The Return of Vinyl

(By Elizabeth Tuico) Record sales have skyrocketed in the last 15 years. Today, more records are sold than compact disks, making vinyl a $1 billion business in the United States.

According to The Vinyl Factory, 41.72 million vinyl LPs were sold last year. Female singer songwriters topped the charts with Adele’s 30 clocking in as the best-selling LP of 2021. Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour came in second place, and Taylor Swift’s version of Red was third. (I was thrilled to see Prince and The Revolution’s Purple Rain Soundtrack at #7 and The Beatles’ Abbey Road at #8.)

In the early 1990s, I thought records were relics of the past like 8-track and cassette tapes. I was so convinced that I threw out my entire collection during a cleaning frenzy.

Great Album Covers

Most of my teenage years were spent huddled around a record player spinning my favorite tunes. Album covers played a prominent role in this ritual. One school year, I decorated a dorm room with my favorite album covers. These cardboard creations were a thrifty student’s most accessible way to the pop art of the times.

The Abbey Road album cover often was scrutinized. Why was Paul McCartney barefoot? What did it really mean? A fan theory began circulating in 1966 that Paul had died in a car wreck when the band was at the height of their fame. To keep The Beatles train running, dead Paul was replaced by lookalike William Campbell. Many believed the Abbey Road photo depicts a funeral procession: John is the priest; Ringo is a mourner; George is a gravedigger; and Paul is the barefoot corpse. (Turns out, Paul was just hot and kicked off his shoes for the photo shoot.)

Billboard’s #2 greatest album cover of all time

Billboard ranks the best album covers of all time. Highlights include: #47 Rhythm Nation 1814, Janet Jackson;  #43 Rumours, Fleetwood Mac; #27 Pearl, Janis Joplin; #16 London Calling, The Clash; #6 Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd; and #1 The Velvet Underground & Nico’s self-title album featuring an iconic Andy Warhol banana. (It’s hard to argue with a Warhol as Billboard’s top pick.)

Great Album Titles

Just as important as the cover art is the title of an album. It has to be just right. Some of my favorites include:

Life’s Rich Pageant, REM

Tea for the Tillerman, Cat Stevens

Jagged Little Pill, Alanis Morissette

Exile on Main Street, Rolling Stones

Live Through This, Hole

Dad Loves His Work, James Taylor

In Through The Out Door, Led Zeppelin

Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen

Katy Lied, Steely Dan

Why did Chicago’s record label allow them to get away with their unoriginal album titles (i.e., Chicago II, III, V, X, etc.)?

I’m glad we returned to where it all began with vinyl. There is something romantic about records that digital files can’t replace. We all want to open the album jacket, admire the artwork and study liner notes while listening to our favorite music. It’s important to slow down sometimes. Playing a vinyl album from start to finish is like enjoying a great bottle of wine.