Suffering of a record and data collector

[Inigo]

I'm now updating my Excel database of the 78rpm collection, updating the records locations, a field collecting by means of easy keys, the places where records are stored. And I've found a nice Capitol album set with four records of songs by Gershwin, played by Billy Butterfield orchestra. And I go to look for them in the database and aaaasrgh! They are not registered! I have no idea how I forgot to register them, neither when I bought them! Could be any past Naucktion, or from a bunch of records I bought in eBay... Other times this has happened, I recalled in which lot of records they came, or whatever, but this album set I only can recall vaguely the era. But no idea, nor old emails referring to it. It must have been a Naucktion, but I only keep the dry emails telling the lot numbers I had won... I'll have to go back searching old Nauck catalogs to see in which lot they came! A nightmare! Can you understand my frustration?

[JerryVan]

I share your frustration! I have a Bessie Smith record, (Hot Time in Old Town).... somewhere. Not in my inventory list & have run out of places to look for it.

[Inigo]

I see... Could it be placed in any machine? I do keep one record in each machine turntable. But if you have machines with record storage space, that's another place to go ..

[vintagetenor]

I believe that the most efficient and effective way to organize records is by label and catalog number. My collection is primarily popular music (both vocal and dance band) and jazz, so the collection is in two categories on the shelves:

1. Vocal records by label and catalog number and

2. Dance records (jazz included) by label and catalog number

So, there is virtually no record I cannot get to within just a few moments with the aid of a discography.

[gramophone-georg]

I'm now updating my Excel database of the 78rpm collection, updating the records locations, a field collecting by means of easy keys, the places where records are stored. And I've found a nice Capitol album set with four records of songs by Gershwin, played by Billy Butterfield orchestra. And I go to look for them in the database and aaaasrgh! They are not registered! I have no idea how I forgot to register them, neither when I bought them! Could be any past Naucktion, or from a bunch of records I bought in eBay... Other times this has happened, I recalled in which lot of records they came, or whatever, but this album set I only can recall vaguely the era. But no idea, nor old emails referring to it. It must have been a Naucktion, but I only keep the dry emails telling the lot numbers I had won... I'll have to go back searching old Nauck catalogs to see in which lot they came! A nightmare! Can you understand my frustration?

See, this is why God has given us alcohol and magic mushrooms.

But seriously... another perspective:
I always WANTED to be an organized database guy, but never got there. I live my life in what I jokingly call "organized chaos". My shop has tools and parts everywhere but I turn out the production. I also know where everything is. My wife tries to "help" by straightening and organizing things. It IS nice, and looks very professional, and I DO appreciate it, but I cannot find anything.

Same with my out of control record collection. I'm not even sure how many records I actually have- 10,000? 15,000? But I am still good at finding things, and I can almost always look at a record and remember where I got it. Almost.

I accept my limitations and am happy with them. But this is also why I sell so many duplicates. Some, of favorite records, I have on purpose. Others? I tucked away and forgot I had them. I have another extremely large lot of records tucked away in one of my storage sheds that I need to go through one day.

I think I would miss the "discovery" aspect of my collection were I more organized. That, and my enjoyable hobby would become just another task.
I suppose there is a "syndrome" for this behavior, but I don't care.

[Inigo]

My collection has 5,000+ 78s. But due to my lately bad memory, I thank myself for having started the database 25 years ago, and to maintain it daily. To register a new record takes 5 minutes...
Yet I also have surprises in my collection, as far as I only consult the database to locate one record. But most of the time I simply take a bunch from everywhere and play them... and I have many records that I don't remember.
I also use to have a printed catalogue from the database, in the fashion of the companies catalogues. Yet also reading it I have surprises!
I remember when I only had 300 78s, and I knew everyone by heart.... Then, suddenly I raised to 500, anda few years later I discovered the internet and mail auctions, and numbers raised to 3,000 in five years, and although I register every new record (and only have some lapsus...) my memory became a chaos, and the record collection overcame myself. Now I simply discover records in the shelves, or in the catalog...
I never buy lots, simply I cannot manage that. I buy in small bunches, a dozen or two each time the most, but usually only a handful of them. Despite that, I forget them ina couple months, so surprises don't stop coming in!

[travisgreyfox]

I'm in the same boat as George. I have piles of records everywhere by label. When I want I want to hear something in particular I might have to dig through a pile or two, but I generally find what I'm looking for quickly enough. Wish I was more organized though.

[drh]

What's even worse is when you look for a record where the catalogue says it should be, and what's there is something entirely different.

Or nothing at all.

A catalogue entry telling you that you have a record but not where to find it is also frustrating.

As to your uncatalogued album, the solution is really quite simple: when records are left alone together on shelves in the dark at night, they breed. You can even tell the parentage: 10" records spawn 45s; 45s spawn Little Wonders. Since yours are 10", they would be the offspring of 12" Red Seals. Unexpected 12" records are the children of 14" Pathés. And so on.

And, of course, since these spawnings are the illicit, undisciplined result of clandestine couplings, they tend to grow up to be delinquents--you won't get Caruso Zonophones that way, but you'll often get extra copies of Kostelanetz and His Orchestra Play Victor Herbert Melodies or Henry Burr singing "There's No One Who Loves You Like M-O-T-H-E-R."

[drh]

I believe that the most efficient and effective way to organize records is by label and catalog number. My collection is primarily popular music (both vocal and dance band) and jazz, so the collection is in two categories on the shelves:

1. Vocal records by label and catalog number and

2. Dance records (jazz included) by label and catalog number

So, there is virtually no record I cannot get to within just a few moments with the aid of a discography.

I have my LPs and 78 album sets that way, and I agree, it's usually the way to go--as long as you're willing to keep a database or other reference so you can look up what label and catalogue number apply to the record you want. (Pathé had such a messy catalogue system, if you want to call it one, that the label/number method doesn't work well for them.) It's especially good for the classical collector, because it completely eliminates the awkward problem of what to do with that record with the inevitable, hackneyed Grieg-Piano-Concerto-On-One-Side-Schumann-On-The-Other coupling or the collection of overtures by seven different composers. Single 78s, by contrast, I keep in albums, each assigned a number, and in my catalogue each entry for such records has what amounts to a 9-digit ZIP code to tell me where to find it; for instance, 12408-0011 would be sleeve 11 of 12" album 408, 10130-0304 that it's a two-record set in sleeves 3 and 4 of 10" album 130. I'm playing catch-up with cylinders; some have locators, some don't. For them the ZIP codes tend to be 5-digit; for instance, 75002 would tell me the cylinder is in the second slider of my Amberola 75.

[Frisco The Beagle]

Inigo - I fell your pain!
I catalog my collection of V-Discs, which are much simpler than most other records, as each V-Disc has a unique number. My collection is still fairly small so you would think it is very efficient. Sadly, NOT SO! The main problem is in transposing digits (database number 340 is actually record number 304, etc.) and/or misfiling the record when returning it to it's "slot". Yes, frustrating in the extreme - I mean, I spent all this time developing and updating this database, and it fails me !!! Haha!

Even though I have typed in the title and artist of each and every record, I am still surprised when reading through the database - "Oh, I forgot I had that one" However, the database has been very useful in preventing me from buying duplicates.