Vinyl Record Memories

Vinyl Record Memories

written by JUDY SALAMACHA By The Bay

Entertainer Dick Clark said our favorite music is the soundtrack of our lives. The comment made little sense to me until I had a close encounter with a movie soundtrack album cover that triggered a flood of past memories.

Where you were when Pearl Harbor was bombed? President Kennedy was shot? 911 exploded? Michael Jackson died? Gary Freiberg of Los Osos discovered the same question can be asked about a Glen Miller or Ray Charles hit, Elvis or the Beatles on television’s Ed Sullivan Show, or experiencing the Boston Pops for the first time. Regardless of age, music evokes a stroll down memory lane.

Realizing music’s social relevance, Freiberg questioned why audio history is not preserved and studied. Music has recorded transitional social mores since 1877 when Thomas Edison invented the phonograph.

Understanding only 5% of what has been recorded – music, comedy or famous speeches - will be transferred to modern audio formats, he launched his quest to heighten the historical importance of the vinyl record.

In 2002 he convinced the San Luis Board of Supervisors to proclaim August 12 Vinyl Record Day.

Freiberg advocated, “It’s a day to value the good times of our lives by sharing our favorite music.”

He created a website, www.vinylrecordday.org, and in 2007 promoted a well attended event in Mission Plaza. In 2008 he applied for a national stamp series.

“The Citizen’s Stamp Advisory Committee could use some local support because the series is seriously being considered,” he requested.

He’s consulted with many communities, who celebrate Vinyl Record Day, including a recent request from Australia to associate their plans.

When he wanted to display his own collection of album cover art, he and wife Mary created a user friendly frame 11 years ago. Before it was vogue, he marketed the frame online at www.rockartpictureshow.com.

Thousands of worldwide customers including the Smithsonian, Warner Brothers, and the University of New Hampshire selected the Freiberg frame for displays documenting Vinyl Record cover art as an art form.

Freiberg ultimately sold his San Luis investment brokerage business to devote fulltime to the promotion of vinyl record preservation and his online frame company. He’s collected 3,500 LPs, 1,000 45s, and 8,000 covers, researched numerous behind-the-scenes stories about the artists and industry and designed a poster depicting the history and diversity of cover art.

In 2009 Freiberg invites Vinyl Record Day involvement.

“I feel it will be a success when raising awareness will justify Americans preserving their record collections. I’d like families to spend August 12th together sharing their favorite music and memories with each other.”

However, sharing requires today’s generation to listen without their IPODs.

Source:www.sanluisobispo.com/
Reprinted by Permission