Melodies and Memories

This past weekend, Phil and I decided to venture to the east side where we used to live. We chose Melodies and Memories at 10 mile and Gratiot. The store has a pretty good selection of vinyl. I was looking through the new arrivals when I came across this little gem:

Laura Nyro is one of my favorite singer/songwriters of all time. She wrote "And when I die" which was a huge hit for Blood, sweat and tears when she was only 16 years old. The guy at Melodies and memories told me that she wrote "Wedding bell blues" when she was 12. She wrote so many hit songs made famous by other artists: "Wedding bell blues" and "Stoned soul picnic" by 5th dimension, "Eli's Comin" by Three Dog Night and "Stoney End" by Barbara Streisand. This album was later released as "The first songs" so this one was a real find.

Another thing I found was a record by an obscure 80's scottish band called Secession. Back in the late 80's I used to go to dance clubs, most notably Todd's at 7 mile and Van Dyke. They played a lot of goth/post punk/dance/alternative music. This brought back memories of dancing and having fun with friends.

Selling Vinyl Records (LPs) Online

Last week I received an early birthday present from my husband : Goldmine's Record Album Price Guide 7th edition on CD-ROM. Goldmine is the definitive guide to pricing vinyl records. I was very excited to receive this present because I had wanted to get into the vinyl record selling business. I have been collecting records on and off for a while now. The only problem I have with records as opposed to video games or books is that I usually don't want to part with them.

So I looked up an LP I picked up at the Royal Oak Flea Market a few weeks ago. It is Nunsexmonkrock by the post punk/goth artist Nina Hagen. I paid $5.00 for it. 

I looked it up by the serial number ARC38008. This is what Goldmine priced it:

So Goldmine says it is worth 12.00 because I have the original and not a reprint. This was good news because I am always worried that I will pay too much for vinyl albums. But they are definitely making a comeback. Artists such as Beck, Def Leppard, The Fray, Morrissey, Bad Religion and Suede are putting their new releases out on vinyl. UHF in Royal Oak and Found Sound in Ferndale have a great selection of new as well as used vinyl. 

So Goldmine prices Nunsexmonkrock at $12.00 so I decided what the album is listed for on Ebay. The album is listed from $3.99 + shipping to $19.99 + shipping. So I am thinking I can probably get at least $10-12 for it. 

The great thing about having Goldmine on CD ROM is that I downloaded it to my Android phone. Now I can shop and never wonder if I have a bargain or am getting ripped off.