Dust & Grooves: Record Collectors and Their Amazing Lairs

Book Review: Dust & Grooves: Adventures in Record Collecting by Eilon Paz

My brother-in-law, John, has been collecting LP's -- thirty-three and a third or long-playing vinyl albums. When last I heard, he had over 300 albums, mostly Elvis Presley and '50's and '60's rock and roll music from his teen days. When I saw Dust & Grooves on the new-books shelf at the local library the other day, it made me think of John's collection.

Dust & Grooves started out as a blog by Eilon Paz, a collector himself and a photographer. When he realized the photographs of collections he had amassed and the collectors he had met, the idea crystallized to write a book. And this amazing tabletop size book emerged.

What you will find here is not your typical result of intensive interviews, although there are some longer pieces farther into the book. But what is amazing are the photos of collectors' record habitats. If you're an avid reader, imagine a tabletop book on book collectors that shows collectors' book nooks and libraries teeming with books. Imagine the characters you would meet behind the collectors. That's what Dust & Grooves exposes, only for vinyl record collectors. And they're as diverse as you might imagine.

I'm taking this book to Thanksgiving dinner so John can look it over because I think he would appreciate seeing his kindred spirits and their lairs. John keeps his hundreds of records neatly filed in a cupboard by his console record player. In this book, you will find that other collectors keep theirs in piles and heaps and stacks and shelves and along walls and in cubby holes. John will be amazed, I'm sure. I just hope it doesn't inspire him to let loose his neat stacks into loose piles.

If you're at all interested in music and the re-emerging vinyl record market, you should look through Dust & Grooves. There is probably a collector in your area, and you might well find that collector an interesting conversant. This book might well help you start a conversation and let you know what you're in for before you begin.

Dust & Grooves is a fun romp through the world of collecting, through the world of record collectors and their amazing lairs. It's fun just to browse. And if you're into music, it's fun just to imagine what you might do with your own collection. Would your collection look like any of these?

(c) 2015. Alan Eggleston. All Rights Reserved.

Washington Post Best Books Lists

Looking for a good read or two to get you through the doldrums of the coming winter? Here are the lists of 10-best books from The Washington Post. Some great sounding titles.

• The 10 best books of 2015
• Notable fiction books of 2015
• Notable nonfiction books of 2015
• Best mystery and thriller books of 2015
• Best science fiction and fantasy books of 2015
• Best romance novels of 2015
• Best audiobooks of 2015

If you can't find something entertaining to read here...

Enjoy!