My family had a console record player like this in the 60s and 70s. When I look at the picture I’m taken directly back to moments spinning Bringing It All Back Home, Rubber Soul, The Sound Of Music, Funny Girl (the original Broadway cast recordings of the latter two), New Morning and Let It Be. I spun lots of other records on the machine, but those are the ones that the picture brings back most vividly.
Click on the image to enlarge.
Interacting with a record player of any kind leaves a much stronger imprint on you than any other way of listening.
It’s true, Paul. I’m surprised that I remember not only first listenings to crucial albums from my past but the machines on which I first heard them.
We had a console like that as well, and I remember being made to listen to a record intended to introduce children to classical music. (Alas, it was three decades later that I began to actually love classical music).
But what that picture and your memories most remind me of is of a babysitter who brought along and played an early Beatles record – probably “Meet the Beatles!” Cool picture, fun memory.
One interesting thing for me, Ken, is that I remember listening to my parents Broadway cast recordings of musicals, over and over, though I would never have bought them for myself or even admitted that I liked them. It took me many years to realize how much I loved musicals!