What happens with your record collection when you are gone?

[bigjohnwayne]

I am 32, healthy as a horse, and gladly will accept any revisions of wills that result in me receiving your Crimson mega boxes or out of print Canterbury stuff.

[Buddhabreath]

I've made an argument that no one cared to address here. Great music survives. Survives means continues to be studied and listened, even by a minority. Just the way that classical music has survived for centuries. Why rock music isn't worthy of such a destiny?...

Well I didn’t address it because I basically agree. Although to quote Hammill we are “lost in a labyrinth of future mystery” so who knows. Regardless, nobody’s made a really cogent argument against it other than very very few people even now recognize the music we love as great. While that may be true it is also true that art that is sometimes not recognized in its own time becomes cherished by future generations.

Stranger things have happened. When Marcel Duchamp exhibited a urinal as found art “The Fountain” in 1913 it was of course highly ridiculed. It has since been sighted by many art historians as the most influential piece of art of the 20th century and one of eight 1964 replicas sold at Sotheby's, New York in 1999 for $1,762,500! Now I’m not comparing classic prog rock to a urinal even though some of it deserves to be pissed on...

[chalkpie]

But we are talking precisely of these names, no others were mentioned, possibly because they have already survived for 50 years so that's a sign of longevity. I am part of the people that did not live the "age of prog" but went back in time and discovered it, just for the sake of its quality. Why should it be otherwise in the future?

I've made an argument that no one cared to address here. Great music survives. Survives means continues to be studied and listened, even by a minority. Just the way that classical music has survived for centuries. Why rock music isn't worthy of such a destiny? Why Zappa, or Pawn Hearts or Soft Machine or Trout Mask Replica or whatever makes the test of time does not belong to the sphere of cultural achievements that continue to have an impact on future generations? The only viable answer from people that deny it such a fate is that it simply is not good enough. Or that future generations will be devoid of people with sufficient intellect to appreciate it.

In any case, that's the last from me on the issue.

Totally agreed. Besides classical, think about folk tunes from hundreds of countries that have survived generations without ANY recordings or in some cases manuscripts. Music survives, history proves it.

[Garden Dreamer]

Who knows what will be remembered or revered 100 years from now. .

Well according to Rush, in 2112 some kid is going to unearth a guitar and make beautiful music, but the priests of the temples of Syrinx will denounce it as another toy that helped destroy the elder race of man...

[chalkpie]

Well according to Rush, in 2112 some kid is going to unearth a guitar and make beautiful music, but the priests of the temples of Syrinx will denounce it as another toy that helped destroy the elder race of man...

And he's gonna transpose it a 5th down.

[Rick L.]

5445

[chalkpie]

8675309

[ThomasKDye]

Well according to Rush, in 2112 some kid is going to unearth a guitar and make beautiful music, but the priests of the temples of Syrinx will denounce it as another toy that helped destroy the elder race of man...

Yeah, right. As if we could get more planets into the Solar Federation in 93 years. The other planets HATE us.

[Bill_in_Cle]

This depressing subject (and all you miserable pessimists out there) prompted me to create an account to comment.

We have all spent too much time and money (hello, Steve F./Wayside Music) just to see our collections trashed after we're gone. Our music assets are as worthy of inclusion in our Will as any other tangible personal property. Your Will should inform your executor of the (potential) value of your collection and suggest ways to maximize return (and thus the executor's percentage) when liquidating. You should probably have an inventory of all or, at least, the most valuable items (like all your Fripp autographs). Or you could instruct the executor to offer the stuff for shipping cost, just to get it to an appreciative home.

--Does Discogs.com work for selling large collections? Is it worth the trouble to create a collection at Discogs for use by an executor?

--Should this forum have a section for offering dead guys' discs to other fans?

--If you have a significant focus on certain groups, offer the that stuff to forums for those artists.

--Maybe there are business opportunities here: "Looking to dispose of your loved-one's collection? Don't let it go to the curbside, call Graveside Music!"

The music is too good to lose it to the dustbin. Make plans to pass it on now, while you're able, or later via your Will.

Now I'll return to lurk-mode and not follow my own advice.

[arturs]

Also looking forward to taking my daughter to the Kansas concert in a few weeks. We're not dead yet!

Just bring earplugs for her. I've seen the new Kansas twice and loved it but they are excruciatingly loud. Their soundman must be stone deaf!

[Buddhabreath]

Just bring earplugs for her. I've seen the new Kansas twice and loved it but they are excruciatingly loud. Their soundman must be stone deaf!

Hmmmm. OK, thanks for the heads up.

[jarmsuh]

If I can be healthy enough and know that I have not many days left, I will give you all my big Prog Collection, one by one, you will just have the pay postage cost

[Finch Platte]

Don't forget your local library!

[rockcup]

For example in the future: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkk4UBHQMgo

[Finch Platte]

I volunteer at a Goodwill-type agency in Connecticut. We are on the receiving end of various music collections (we don't take books - the library does and resells them). Mostly we get the leftovers after the dealers and relatives have sorted through. They get looked at by our people (like me, and I take good stuff to the radio station), then left out for clients to pick through, then what's left (lots of those awful compilations) is given to local artists to melt down for their art or taken to the recycler or trash burner.
Vinyl in good shape still seems to draw people. CDs not so much. Cassettes are immediately thrown out. There are occasional treasures but I think a huge volume goes right to the dump/recycling. Rightly so in my view.

CDs don't sell at thrift shops because they are priced stupid-high. Our local record store Rasputin's has thousands on sale for 25 cents each, and people walk out with armloads. When I go to a thrift shop, they're priced so high I'll only buy one or two, if that. Sometimes I say "really?!?" out loud.

At Rasputin's, you can take a chance. Not so much at the thrift shops.

Your mileage may vary.

[the winter tree]

About 8 years ago I was browsing in the LP section of a used record store, and I came upon almost all of the Strawbs catalog and also many classic Gentle Giant LPs, all for $3 each. All were in EX condition. I bought the whole lot of course. The guy behind the counter told me that the previous owner of the LP's wife sold them all shortly after he died.
So whoever you are, thank you and they found a good home.
I do wonder what will happen to my rather large collection.
I worry more what will happen to my original albums after I change my cosmic address. I need a archivist.
PM me if you are interested.

[jarmsuh]

Don't forget your local library!

Yes, suddently they could improve their Prog Collectoin by 80%!

When my dad died we give his music collection to the church.

[Finch Platte]

Yes, suddently they could improve their Prog Collectoin by 80%!

When my dad died we give his music collection to the church.

How did they like the G G Allin discs?

[yamishogun]

A healthy 65 year old is likely to live until 95, which will be the year 2049, when I guarantee nobody will want CDs. Why not start giving away part of your collection now when people will enjoy it? Are you really going to listen to Shaun Cassidy's Greatest Hits again?

[progmatist]

CDs don't sell at thrift shops because they are priced stupid-high. Our local record store Rasputin's has thousands on sale for 25 cents each, and people walk out with armloads. When I go to a thrift shop, they're priced so high I'll only buy one or two, if that. Sometimes I say "really?!?" out loud.

At Rasputin's, you can take a chance. Not so much at the thrift shops.

Your mileage may vary.

Pricing varies wildly from one thrift store to the next, depending on the worker(s) who price the items. Where I live, a Goodwill store on one side of town will price a used DVD player ridiculously high, while another Goodwill store on the other side of town will price that same player for a steal.

[Dave (in MA)]

What happens with your record collection when you are gone?

I think the cats have been playing my CDs. Every once in a while I can't find a CD and then I find it misfiled.

[Tangram]

Just remembered what happened to my Dad’s collection of lp’s and 78s when he passes over a decade ago. My siblings didn’t want anything ( and not many of the books either) so I cherry picked the lp’s and all of the 78s. So one of these days I will pick up a turntable again. Doesn’t give me a good hope for my collection . Hopefully I’ll be able to give it away before I’m ready to check out.

[progmatist]

^^ About a year and a half ago, I had a discussion with the owner of the used record store voted best by a local magazine. He told me some guy contacted him wanting to sell his father's extensive prog collection, after he passed away. The owner and the seller never came to terms because the seller wanted too much money. The owner said there's no way he's going to pay $1,000 for it.

[strawberrybrick]

My heirs can sell it, keep it, donate it, up to them ultimately. It's all in Discogs, so they will know what they are up against if they try and sell it. The question then is "will it hold value?". I will say that entering everything - and I mean everything - into Discogs was cathartic. i don't think I've really gone through everything in 20 years or so. I ripped all my CDs (finally, I know) to create a digital collection, and that also is something that I've finally come to recognize as it's own thing. It would be great if a grandchild or such down the road had interest in all of it. But for now the question for me remains "when will I stop adding to it". I'm hoping never.

[Shadow]

I want to be buried with all of my old records...

It will be my vinyl resting place...