Is the new vinyl just a fad?

[rllink]

We have a bunch of albums from when we were younger and we just have a record player to play them. Just sort of nostalgic. We take the record player out on the patio in the evenings and listen to the album's over drinks. We've done that for years. So lately we have listened to performers like Melody Angel and the Old Crow Medicine Show, just dozens of them on YouTube and they sell recordings. We want to support them so we often times buy something and if there is an album option we get it because then we can listen to it out on the patio over drinks along with the oldies. I don't know that I'm driving the resurgence, but I guess I'm buying into it if it is a fad.

[personatech]

I have a lot of stuff on vinyl that isn't available on either CD or streaming, so there's that.

More important, however, is the point that others have already made but I will expand upon a bit here. A CD is music, while an LP can be a total work of art. I have had four versions of "The Beatles" (White Album): The original US 2LP with embossed, serialized cover (now gone), a 1970s British 2LP pressed on white vinyl w embossed cover but no serial, a 2CD, and the recent 50th anniversary Super Deluxe box set with 6 discs. The LPs and box set were the complete package - music, poster, 8x10 glossies... The 2CD was just the music with a tiny booklet. I consider the LP versions and box set to be total works of art while the 2CD version was simply convenience for convenience's sake.

The only CDs I buy today are box sets or releases that simply aren't available on vinyl. Part of the reason for this is that I do subscribe to Spotify, so most of what would have been casual purchases in the past, I just stream today. Recent vinyl purchased new include 13 Rivers by Richard Thompson and Dylan's Cutting Edge box set. Sound quality and packaging were superb. With the Cutting Edge 3LP set, you also got the download of the entire 6CD version.