$20 Record Challenge

(Not my actual records. Just a random pic from the interweb.)

We started this thing a while back on our message board no one looks at called the $20 Record Challenge. Basically, you go to a record store and see how much shit you can get for $20. Vinyl only. Hence the "Record" in the title. The point being, to see how frugal of a shopper you can be without spending astronomical collector prices for bullshit. There's no real point to it, except for a handful of people to nerd out over their record purchases. It's very similar to Travis from WYDU's Shopping Trip posts, except I don't provide downloads or tracklists because I'm not that generous.
If you would like to read an old one of these I posted over at EWA, here you go.

I'd also like to state that I'm not a typical Record Collector Nerd. I am a person who happens to own an above average amount of records. I am not into paying collector prices for shit and if I find out one of my records is worth a decent sum of money, I usually sell it instead of brag about having it. I will buy just about anything for a dollar if it has an interesting cover. So if you happen to be a Record Collector Nerd and you're reading this post wondering why I'm bothering with wasting my time talking up a Trammps record I bought for $1, it's because I don't give a shit and you're a douche.

Anyway, I'm not positive what my total came up to, because a couple of these records were more than a dollar, but for the most part, they were all from the dollar crates. They were purchased at Last Vestige in scenic Albany New York. I originally went there because the movie 1408 (GO SEE THIS!) has inspired me to make a grimy Screwed (but not Chopped) version of "We've Only Just Begun", and Carpenters records can almost always be found in $1 bins. I saw the cover though and I realized I already own the Carpenters record that song is from. Here's what I came home with:

V/A - Deram Dayze: This is an old Psych-Pop comp, and despite the fact that I don't really like The Beatles, I dig on a lot of this obscure Brit Psych shit for some reason. This is one of the only records I paid more than a dollar for, and the only one I've listened to so far. It's a little less Psych and a little more Pop than I would like, but it's still pretty decent.







Prince - Purple Rain: Another record over a buck. Five to be exact. This is actually the third vinyl copy of this record I've bought. The first one I got from some junk store and it was scratched to shit. Then I bought a second one in better condition from the Last Vestige dollar bin to replace that one. My friend was also looking for a copy of this, and I ended up giving him the copy that was in better condition, so I figured it was time to finally bite the bullet and pay $5 for a listenable vinyl copy of Purple Rain. I'm sure most people own this, and it probably makes me a little gay, but whatever. I was slightly let down that m copy didn't come with the limited edition poster as the promo sticker on the cover promised.

Prince - Around the World in A Day: Not my favorite Prince record by any stretch, but it's the record "Raspberry Beret" comes from and it was in decent condition and only a dollar, so I didn't pass it up. This makes me a little gayer than if I were to just own "Purple Rain" because that's the safe Prince record to own, and anything else might have gotten you beat up in High School. I own other Prince records too, so I might as well start making out with dudes right now.





The Trammps - Disco Inferno: The aforementioned Trammps record. I bought this because my roommate jokingly told me to bring back something he could dance to. Plus it doesn't hurt to pad my obnoxiously large Disco record collection despite the fact that I don't even like Disco. I do enjoy the cover however. I'm guessing it was constructed to show off the power of early computer graphic design. There's a lot of disgusting colors proudly displayed on here, and none of them really go together. The pic on the side doesn't really do the color contrast justice. Someone purposely fixed the levels on that so you wouldn't vomit on yourself. The 70's were a simpler time, I tell ya.

The Sylvers - Showcase: I've quickly come to learn that the Sylvers were originally a group that sounded a lot like the Jackson Five, and even managed to out Jackson Five the Jackson Five on certain songs. Then at some point they transformed into the Roller Disco Boogie band that has heaps of records in second hand shops. Without looking at their discography, I'm guessing this record came out at around the start of their Roller Disco Boogie phase, and it probably sucks, but those first few records you can listen to over and over again for an infinite amount of time, so I've recenly found myself picking up any Sylvers records no matter how shitty it's most likely going to be.

Paul Kantner - Blows Against The Empire: Paul Kantner is one of the dorks from Jefferson Starship. I bought this record strictly because of how fucking wacked out the layout is. The cover itself is pretty out there, but the inside is a gatefold featuring metallic silver ink on a black background. There's all kinds of space landscapes and clever pot leaf placing going on. I didn't even know metallic silver ink was something you could print and mass produce back in 1970. I will probably never get around to listening to this record, because it won't ever live up to the high precedent the inside gatefold has set, but I'm sure glad I own it now.


Def Leppard - Pyromania: This was back when Rick Allen was still rocking two arms. It's hard to believe, but this record sold like 13 million copies back in the day. I'm not even sure if every release in 2007 combined sold 13 million copies. I didn't buy this so much because I'm a fan of the music, but moreso because I'm a fan of the Made for VH1 Def Leppard biopic. VH1 has a knack for making biopics that manage to just slightly go over the line of realism in order to make an otherwise boring story sensationally awesome. I highly recommend tracking down the Def Leppard Biopic, even if you don't like them. I forget the name, but I used to own it on VHS, if that counts for anything.

Stevie Wonder - Innervisions: I only have an electronical copy of this record, so I figured I'd buy the real thing. It's one of those records that everyone should own, and most everyone does own it already. I am a cheap fuck so I was waiting for it to show up in a bargain crate in decent shape instead of paying top dollar for it. I suck.







The 5th Dimension - Greatest Hits: Not only do I already own all of 5th Dimensions essential releases, but I also own at least one other Greatest Hits record. It seems they put out official albums and Greatest Hits albums at an even 1:1 ratio. I'm not even sure why I got this since I'm damn sure I have every single song on here already. You never know when you'll need 5 copies of "Aquarius" I guess.






Be-Bop Deluxe - Sunburst Finish: The only reason I bought this is because the cover features full frontal nudity. I've never heard of Be-Bop Deluxe and I doubt this record will ever make it to my turntable, but it's hard to pass up full frontal nudity for a dollar. Especially when there's a flaming guitar added to the mix.






Stanley Clarke - School Days: There's a good chance this album isn't that great, but I really like the cover. The "painting" looks like what modern day video games look like, but it was made in 1976, so that makes it really futuristic.








Doonesbury's Jimmy Thudpucker - Greatest Hits: When I picked this up, I laughed at the idea that someone put out a record related to the Doonesbury comic strip. Then my friend Scot made the very dead on observation that that was the first time Doonesbury has ever made anyone laugh.

Trip 66 - Limited Edition 5 Song EP: I thought Trip 66 was an early Alternarock band, but the label says this was on Ruff House, which wasn't really known for Alternarock. It turns out they WERE an early Alternarock band. I don't know how Limited this EP really was since there were several hundred copies in the $1 bins. The vinyl is transparent purple though, and it's a 10", so I guess it was worth my dollar. Maybe I'll melt it down and make an ashtray out of it.