Record, Tape and Video Exchange and The Doors

I have been converting some of my old records to digital; some of the ones which are not readily replaceable. Whilst looking through some very old records from the sixties which were very worn out. I found The Doors Album "Waiting for the Sun" pressed in 1973.  I bought it from the Record, Tape and Video Exchange at 38 Notting Hill Gate in London. It was a very popular place for all sorts of record enthusiast and it is still there.

http://www.mgeshops.com/music-video-exchange-38nhg/

I do not know why anyone would want to exchange a Doors record, for me they were the ultimate rock musicians and poets. I still love their music even though I have got  tired of most of the rock and pop records of their era.  Maybe the person exchanging the record had copied it onto cassette. I never did this as I was not happy with the results.

Copying records was alright for parties but I was never satisfied with it for serious listening. The cassettes added to the slight harmonic distortion which is always there and coupled with the tape hiss I found it tiresome listening to music this way.

I paid £4.50 for this record and way back then it was a lot of money. I must have been in a good mood or feeling rich.

I pulled the record out of the sleeve and examined it. There were not too many scratches and it was not too dusty. I cleaned the record with a carbon brush and earthed myself and the turntable. I don't know if method of cleaning works too well but I was pleasantly surprised; there were no pops and or clicks and very little static crackling. It still sounds great and compares well  with CD.

For a second hand record this is nothing short of amazing, both the previous owner and myself had looked after the record very well. During the 1970's we could all afford better decks which did not damage the records so much despite repeated playing.

This copy was pressed in Germany in 1973 in 135 g vinyl. The original recording was made in 1968.

In 1968 there was enormous controversy surrounding the live performances of the Doors. The libertarian aspects of Jim Morrison's bohemian life style and explicit stage performances led to much criticism in the conservative press. He was arrested during one stage performance for indecency. He was also convicted for obscenity by a Miami court in 1969.

He also courted controversy by allegedly exposing himself on stage during a tour of the UK . He was not investigated by the British authorities who were taking a more lenient attitude to stage performances.

All this was happening during a period of turmoil and student protests against war and demonstrations supporting civil rights. Many governments were worried but they need not have been. 1968 did not lead to revolution in a political sense but it lead to a new industrial revolution focused on consumerism, computer technology and the internet.

Some elements of the libertarianism  promoted by The Doors, Jefferson Airplane and Crosby, Stills Nash and Young remain.  Opinions voiced on the internet remain largely uncensored, in the Western World anyway. We have a more open attitude to sex and civil rights.

Much of the the idealism and hope of the 1960's has disappeared. Playing the record , however, still keeps me in touch. The music sounds just as good.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protests_of_1968