COMC vs. RSD: A Very Vinyl and Cardboard Weekend

It was a big collecting weekend.  At Record Store Day on Saturday I spent all the money I usually spend on music for the whole year in only a few hours.

In addition to that, I received a package from COMC containing a bunch of Griffeys I need for future posts as well as a few other fun cards that were priced right. 

So the collector in me has been torn between new cardboard and new vinyl all weekend long.  Which will win the day? 

Let's start with the new cardboard:

One of the best photos I've seen Ultra use for our guy, and who doesn't want to be on the Z-Team?

The Big Red Machine Topps card is a beast, am I right?

A lot of good ones here, too many to comment on. 

McGwire is trying to ruin my Griffey card....

I bought a bunch of these to give out as gifts.  We love Brees down here in NOLA, so this is a pretty universally desired card here even among non-collectors of cards.

A nice group of Griffeys with a Drew Brees center.  Heck of a weekend for cardboard.

Now for some new vinyl:

First, I landed both my big RSD wants:

Sigur Ros Agaetis Byrjun limited to 1000 copies.  These are already going on eBay for $150.00, so I'm relieved I landed mine.

Fela Kuti Sorrow, Tears and Blood. This has already ridden my turntable twice.


Here are a few more RSD releases I was able to pick up:

I finally found the Dave Brubeck Trio 10" which I noticed is the same size/design/packaging as the 2012 release:

I'm thinking when all is said and done, this will be a whole series released one RSD at a time.

Miles Davis Milestones.  Like some of my favorite Griffeys, this is individually numbered:

There are several other Miles Davis records I passed on, but I may end up going back and picking them up after all.

Deftones Live Volume 1: Selections from "Adrenaline"

Corn on Macabre - I bought this only because the cover artist, Daniel Danger, is one of my favorite artists out there. I have about a dozen of his prints on my walls, so buying the vinyl for a fraction of the cost of a poster makes sense.....

Rough Guide to Psychedelic Brazil.  I gave this one a spin as soon as I got home.  It was good, but I have no reason to keep it on vinyl - it will end up on the 'Bay.

I also found this Vitamin String Quartet Performs Sigur Ros record which sounds pretty good but which I also may not end up keeping.  Apparently this one is also a limited release.

Phish Junta.  This came out last year for RSD, but the store I went to had held one back and I was the lucky finder.  It is also individually numbered.

I like Phish OK, but I love this album more than anything else they've done.  It's probably the only Phish record I'll ever buy on vinyl.

I also picked up some non-RSD records including:

Beach House Bloom.  Probably my favorite record of 2012.

Dr. John Desitively Bonnaroo - I have three copies of the original release, but this one is a reissue.  I'd much rather put the wear and tear on the reissue.

I raided the used records as well:

 

Big Brother & the Holding Company feat. Janis Joplin Cheap Thrills.  This is the one with all the biggest hits, including my personal favorite "Summertime."  And check out the great Robert Crumb cover art!

 [I forgot to take a picture of.....]

Herbie Hancock Futureshock.  This has the famous "Rockit" and some other allegedly bizarre futuristic Jazz compositions I have yet to listen to.  I bought this as an oddity and because I love Herbie Hancock.

Portishead Third: Limited Edition.  This baby came with a lithograph, a beautifully-etched 12" single of Machine Gun, and a 1GB special edition flash drive containing Portishead videos and documentaries.  My wife and I are big Portishead fans and this is a $70 record for only $30, so I had to nab it.

The Who Sell Out.  It was a dollar and is featured in my Greatest Album Covers of all Time coffee table book.  I must admit I don't know what songs appear on this album, but the condition of the record itself is superb.

Wet Willie The Wetter the Better.  I bought this because it was 50 cents and I loved the cover art.  It's just so unapologetically raunchy - I had to have it in the collection.  We gave this record a listen as a goof, and believe it or not it was not bad.  Wasn't expecting that.

Weird Al Yankovic Self-titled.  I had this one as a kid on CD and used to listen to it all the time.  The record was in great shape and it was less than 5 bucks, so I pulled the trigger.  And I'm glad I did!  When I got it home, I noticed this:

Signed by the man himself.  It'll be worth thousands someday.....

The greatest thing I got was not a Record Store Day release, nor was it a limited or antique used record.  It was this bad boy:

The Fela Kuti Box Set Volume 2.  This thing contains six albums of Fela doing his thing.  I defy you to put some Fela on and not dance - the guy had a great band and a fantastic sense of rhythym.  One of my favorite artists of all time.

I picked up Volume 1 a few years ago.  We put it on for parties and while cleaning the house or cooking meals.  Now we have six more records to choose from!

The biggest Fela Kuti hit is "Water No Get No Enemy," so if you're looking to try Fela on for the first time, that's a good place to start.

In the battle of vinyl vs. cardboard, vinyl definitely won this round.  That's probably going to be the case for every Record Store Day weekend for as long as my wife lets me out of the house to spend money.