‘Last Vinyl’ sale at Robbins Library. / Tony Moschetto photographs
UPDATED: The Group Room at Robbins Library, 700 Mass. Ave., was the place to be Saturday, Might 20, for the “Last Vinyl” occasion. It lasted six hours, throughout which all the library’s estimated 2,000 to three,000 LPs had been provided up on the market beginning at $3 every, or, for the true cut price hunter, two for $5.
Due to Director of Libraries Anna Litten and the library’s booster membership, the nonprofit Buddies of the Robbins Library, the comfortable basement house resembled a mom-and-pop-type report store {that a} music buyer might need visited within the Nineteen Eighties and even earlier.
The environment was festive. A success tune from six a long time in the past, “Blame it on the Bossa Nova,” by ’60s pop chanteuse Eydie Gormé, performed from a small turntable on one facet of the room, even prompting some Buddies volunteers to bounce.
“Wonderful [record sale]. I discovered issues that I’d by no means discover someplace else.”
— Joel Aronson of Natick
“Implausible!” was Litten’s response when requested in regards to the turnout. “There was a line of holiday makers ready to return in to the sale. Our first hour was a members-only hour for the Buddies of the Robbins Library. A lot of curiosity then.”
One other bonus was that the sale prompted a giant enhance in individuals signing as much as grow to be Buddies of the Robbins Library members, she famous.
“It’s simply actually nice to see each people who find themselves acquainted to us, neighborhood members who come to Buddies’ e-book gross sales on a regular basis, and those who don’t actually know something in regards to the library who heard particularly about this sale,” Litten stated.
Your complete vinyl assortment inside the city library system is being “deaccessioned,” or eradicated, Litten stated, due to persistent dwindling curiosity in them and the simultaneous rising reputation of CDs.
“We’ve got saved a small assortment of information in storage and accessible by request, however only a few patrons test them out,” she advised YourArlington through electronic mail earlier in Might. “In FY22, we circulated 57 LPs. A lot of the LP assortment was withdrawn within the early 2000s.”
“It’s a possibility to rescale our collections to areas extra common for our patrons.”
–Director of Libraries Anna Litten
So it turned clear that to her that the time had come to switch the information, indirectly, to particular person audiophiles who would treasure them.
Whereas there probably had been no priceless finds amongst the pop, jazz, classical, opera, comedy, people and nation platters, amongst different classifications, there however was lots to draw the seasoned non-public collector, the beginner and those that merely prized the sentimental worth and the recollections.
Sally Naish, left, and Lynn Larkin of the Buddies of the Robbins Library staffed the checkout desk on the occasion.
Joyce Radochia, a library trustee and liaison to the Buddies of Robbins Library, was significantly fascinated by recordings that captured gems from one other 20th-century type of media: outdated radio exhibits.
“I’m sufficiently old to recollect after we had no tv once I was a child. However it was thrilling to take a seat subsequent to your radio, and it will be a floor-model radio,” she stated, holding up Tom Combine and Jack Benny albums. “These can be a hoot to take heed to and play them for my grandchildren, who will most likely roll their eyes.”
Radochia additionally loves educational information that educate the listener the best way to, say, do the foxtrot or the best way to dance the hustle. “I imply, it’s simply enjoyable,” she stated.
‘I purchase them to play’
A personal collector from Somerville who wished to stay nameless methodic
‘No No Nanette’ was one of many musicals accessible for buy Might 20.ally rifled by a stack of classical albums. “I had a sense because it was a library that was lowering stock, it will most likely be largely classical music and opera, that are my huge favorites.”
He already owns hundreds of rock and jazz information, so classical is the realm he’s most fascinated by at the moment. He says he enjoys listening to music on vinyl about 40 p.c of the time.
In making his decisions, he stated, “First is what the music truly is, whether or not it’s a specific recording I’m fascinated by, one thing I’ve examine or heard earlier than, or if it’s simply one thing that strikes my fancy. After which, if it’s one thing I’m fascinated by, I’d have a look at the situation of the report. I don’t purchase information which can be scratched and beat up or destroyed. I purchase them to play, even when it’s going to value me a greenback or two.”
A person who indentified himself as Spike from Winchester, whose spouse had purchased him a turntable simply final month, doesn’t know the way a lot phonograph listening he’ll do going ahead.“This can be a new factor for me. So, let’s see if it sticks,” he stated.
He sees vinyl to some extent as being a viable various to streaming companies. “It’s arduous to search out outdated stuff, good things, stuff that’s curated. So I assumed this could be a great alternative.” He left with a field filled with albums: Irish ballads, “The Canterbury Tales,” some Americana, some British stuff and hits from the Fifties.
Joel Aronson of Natick was on the Robbins on an errand for his spouse, in search of present tunes and recordings by orchestras, as she likes vinyl. Though not a report collector himself — he listens primarily to CDs — he’s no stranger to vinyl. As a boy, he stated, he was launched to it by his late father. “My father had a incredible assortment. He had Tijuana Brass, “My Truthful Girl” and “The King and I” — the unique soundtrack.”
Requested what he considered what the library was providing, he replied, “Wonderful. I discovered issues that I’d by no means discover someplace else.”
Jazz, pop albums promote out shortly
The ‘Library of Issues’ offered this turntable used through the profitable sale.Earlier than 1 p.m., the jazz and pop sections had been depleted. “I can not inform you what number of gadgets have been offered. This desk was full after we began this morning,” Litten stated halfway by the sale, pointing to a desk labeled jazz.
That lack was a disappointment to some. “I received right here late,” David Cooper stated with fun. He stated he used to take a look at report albums from the Robbins again within the Nineteen Eighties. On Saturday, he was in search of jazz albums plus perhaps some people and a few issues that aren’t accessible digitally. “Not a lot of what I used to be in search of [remained]. However that’s OK — that’s what I figured would occur.”
Additional explaining the rationale for the sale, Litten stated, “It’s a possibility to type of rescale our collections to areas which can be extra common for our patrons proper now. The best instance is the Library of Issues, which has been rising exponentially over the previous few years, and it’s simply nice to have the ability to dedicate house to that tremendous common assortment.”
The Library of Issues on the Robbins consists of helpful tems that a person can try — for instance, tenting tools, video projectors and different sensible gear that one won’t essentially consider discovering at a library. “For instance, we’re taking part in a number of the information proper now on a report participant that’s a part of our Library of Issues,” Litten stated.
Litten described the sale as an all-around success.
These information left unsold after Might 20 are to be donated to the Waltham nonproft group Extra Than Phrases, which helps deprived teenagers.
Based on a response from somebody monitoring the Fb web page of the Buddies on Tuesday night time, Might 23, “We do not have a full account but of how a lot we made for the Robbins, however many people had been guessing a minimum of $6,000 . . . We expect we offered between 2/3 to three/4 of the information, primarily based on what number of empty bins we had left and the way a lot we needed to re-store earlier than Greater than Phrases might come to choose them up.”
Gwen Wong, secretary of the Buddies of the Robbins Library defined extra in regards to the pricing when contacted Wednesday, Might 24: “We had two of the boys who run the 4th ground bookstore look over the gathering to search out issues that we thought had been distinctive finds, and we priced some at $5 and a few at $10. Collectors wiped that desk clear inside the first hour of the sale. by 2 p.m., the gang had thinned, and we simply lowered the worth of all the pieces to $2 every. There was a small free pile, too, the place the library bindings had simply fallen aside.”
Might 20, 2023: Spring ’23 was residents’ final finest probability to get a ‘licorice pizza’ at Robbins Library
This information function together with pictures by YourArlington freelance author Tony Moschetto was printed Wednesday, Might 24, 2023, and up to date later that day with a proof from Buddies of the Robbins Library about album pricing.
