Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Vinyl Revival !

Compact Disk Market Shrinks as Listeners Want the Soulful Sound of Vinyl Recordings

LA JOLLA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Vinyl records and turntables, once relegated to garage storage boxes are enjoying a strong resurgence according to online vinyl record seller, GEMM. “Sales of vinyl records have increased 20% since 2005,” said Roger Raffee, co-founder and company CEO. GEMM (Global E-commerce Mega Marketplace) began selling vinyl records online in 1994. Today GEMM’s consortium of sellers has over 20 million vinyl records available for sale. Considered by music aficionados to be the grandfather of online music sales, GEMM, functions purely as a marketplace where buyers and sellers transact deals for everything from classic rock albums to recordings from current indie bands. The site also offers CDs, DVDs, books, videos, turntables, musical instruments, collectibles and computer supplies. Unlike online auction sites, pricing is set by sellers, i.e., no bidding wars. Satisfied buyers complete performance ratings to assure reliability in dealings with online sellers. GEMM takes a small percentage of the final sales price. GEMM charges no set-up or maintenance fees and operates its own e-commerce and security assurance program entitled Green Shield.

Some suggest renewed interest in album sales is driven by the dance club DJ craze. Audiophiles claim that vinyl records produce a warmer, richer sound. Whatever the case, CD sales dropped 10% in 2006 and 20% in 2007 while sales of vinyl records have increased nearly 10% a year since the late nineties. Not just classic recordings, either. Elvis Costello recently announced that his new recording, Mokofuku set for release on April 22nd will only be available on vinyl and through digital download. Online purchasers, many, classic recording collectors from as far away as Great Britain and Asia, appreciate the depth of inventory found at GEMM as well as its ease of use. GEMM provides a look-back at previous searches and a filtering feature to help users refine their search. If a search is made for the early Fleetwood Mac LP, Bare Trees, “Fleetwood Mac” is the search query with a filter for “Vinyl Only.” Within seconds, several listings popped up on the screen. And just what are those Japanese collectors buying through GEMM? Remarkably, some of the popular vinyl LPs shipped to Japan by GEMM sellers include recordings by Telly Savalas, Andy Griffith and Ann Margaret.

Visit GEMM at http://ROBCOLLECTVINYL.gemm.com

This Date In Music History- April 15

With the addition of drummer Dewey Martin, Buffalo Springfield made their stage debut in 1966 as the opening act for the Byrds, on a run of dates at colleges in Southern California.

Nick of Time, Bonnie Raitt's first album for Capitol Records, entered the album chart in 1989. Produced by Don Was, it is one of the major success stories of the year, rising to #1 and minor hits in "Have a Heart" and "Nick of Time."

Joey Ramone died of lymphatic cancer in New York in 2001.

Dave Edmunds ("I Hear You Knocking") is 64.

Roy Clark ("Yesteday, When I Was Young") turns 75.

John Fred ("Judy In Disguise") died in 2005 after being hospitalized with kidney problems.

Today in 1972, the song "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" by Roberta Flack topped the charts and stayed there for 6 weeks.

Jerry Garcia's ashes are scattered near San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge in 1996. A portion of the remains of the Grateful Dead guitarist had already been deposited into the Ganges in India.

In 1971, Rolling Stone announced that the Illinois Crime Commission had compiled a list of "drug-oriented rock records." The list includes Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" and Procol Harum's "A Whiter Shade of Pale."

Allan Clark, the lead singer with the Hollies, was born in Salford, England in 1942.

The Rolling Stones album “Aftermath” with “Mother’s Little Helper” and “Under My Thumb” was released in England in 1966.

Mitch Miller, music director of Columbia Records, engaged in a spirited debate with Allan Freed over the "potentially negative effects of Rock 'n' Roll on teenagers" on Eric Sevareid's news program on CBS-TV in 1956. Two psychiatrists also joined the discussion.

In 1966, UK music fans were treated to a concert by Jimi Hendrix, The Walker Brothers, Cat Stevens and Englebert Humperdinck when they appeared live at the Blackpool Odeon. Tickets cost 5 and 10 shillings, ($0.70 and $1.40). What a weird list of entertainers, but would have loved to be there!

In 1967, Nancy and Frank Sinatra had the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100, The Cashbox Best Sellers List and Britain's New Musical Express record chart with "Something Stupid.” To this day, they are the only father and daughter team to have a US chart topping single. ("Unforgettable" by Natalie Cole and Nat "King" Cole reached #14 in 1991)

Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen entered the Billboard Top 40 in 1972 for the first and only time with "Hot Rod Lincoln", a re-worked version of "Hot Rod Race", a #29 hit for Tiny Hill in 1951.

In 1989, Roy Orbison had his final top 10 single on the US chart with "You Got It", four months after he passed away. The song was written by Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty and appeared on Orbison's "Mystery Girl" album that was released posthumously.

Legendary crooner Don Ho, who entertained Hawaiian tourists for decades wearing raspberry-tinted sunglasses and singing his catchy signature tune "Tiny Bubbles", died of heart failure on April 15th 2007. He was 76.