The primary ingredient in the makeup of a vinyl record is petroleum. How many records could have been made from all of the oil in the gulf?
Well, 90.1 million gallons of oil spilled into the gulf as of June 11, according to CNN.
Let’s assume a typical 12″ record is made up primarily of oil and is 120g or approximately 0.26 pounds (there are other filler ingredients in the vinyl, but let’s say that the whole thing is made up of oil).
Crude oil weighs about 307 pounds per barrel. There are 42 gallons per barrel, making crude oil about 7.3 pounds / gallon.
7.3 pounds per gallon of oil / 0.26 pounds of oil per record = 28 records/gallon.
90.1 million gallons of oil (as of June 11) X 28 records per gallon = 2.5 billion records!
Whooaaaa!
If records stacked upon each other are 16 records per inch, that would be a stack 13 million feet high! The Sears Tower is 1707 feet high including the spires, meaning you could make 7,695 stacks of records the height of the Sears Tower! (BTW, I refuse to call the Sears Tower the Willis Tower unless they acknowledge that the Willis that they speak of is Chicago’s very own Wesley Willis! )
2.5 Billion records would make over 7000 stacks the height of the Sears Tower!
Whooooaaa!
The circumference of the earth is 24,901.55 miles. If we placed 2.5 billion 12″ records placed end to end, that would be about 475,000 miles, or enough to circle the earth over 19 times!
One of 19 strings of 12" records spanning the circumference of the earth!
Whoooooaaaa!
I’ve got no estimates on how many double rainbows that those 2.5 billion records could span
Obviously is this totally un-scientific and just for fun, but if anyone has any updated data to make this more accurate, I’m sure that the world would want to know, so let me know!
Third Man Record’s motto: “Your turntable’s not dead” (adapted from the motto of his old company, Third Man Upholstery, “You couch is not dead”).
Here a cool quote from Jack:
Vinyl is real deal. I’ve always felt that until you buy the vinyl record, you just don’t own the album … It’s not just me, it’s not just a little pet thing, it’s not just some retro romantic thing from the past. It’s still alive.
Another motto of the label: “Digital where necessary. Tangible where possible.”
Third Man Records has a small performance venue and all shows played there are recorded to eight track and pressed on limited edition colored vinyl available only to the audience from the particular show. How cool is that?
When I was out and about for Record Store Day two weeks ago, I ran into John Boston of Whiskey Bender Productions and his cameraman at three different record stores. They were taking some final shots for their upcoming 30 minute documentary on Chicago, record stores and the resurgence of vinyl. The trailer has snippets of interviews with record store owners and Sound Opinions‘ Jim Derogatis and Greg Kot.
Check it:
A trailer for “Re-Vinylized”, a 30-minute documentary about independent record stores in Chicago. The film celebrates the culture of independent record stores while examining the effects of downloading and the recent resurgence of vinyl record sales. “Re-Vinylized” was produced by Ryan Howard, shot by Carlos Ginard & Greg Cozzi and directed & edited by John Boston for Whiskey Bender Productions and Flashpoint Academy. Visit www.whiskeybender.com for more info about the film.
My better half and I visited 11 Chicagoland stores for Record Store Day 2010. Here’s a quick video of me outside each store and 3 quick in-store performances:
Friendly worker at Second Hand Tunes in Evanston
The World-Famous Vintage Vinyl
Dealing on the Street Outside Vintage Vinyl
Digging for treasures outside of Vintage Vinyl
Reckless on Broadway
Dave's (Solomente Vinyl!)
Reckless on Milwaukee
Me!
Luck of Eden Hall at Vintage Vinyl
Digging at Laurie's Planet of Sound
Visitors from Memphis outside of Groovin' High
Two couples feeling the love on Record Store Day!
I picked up the Superchunk signed picture disc as well as a couple cheap used LPs and an “I Buy Vinyl” T-Shirt.
Overall, it seemed like the busiest Record Store Day yet. Most places were packed (to the point that it was hard to look for records!), especially stores with bands playing. Good times! I had at least five more places to visit on my list, but I got wore out and had to hang it up for the day. Next year I’ll have to do some pre-RSD conditioning to improve my endurance!
I don’t know how I missed this one, but tipped off by Future of Vinyl, I saw this intro video by Paolo Campana who is making a documentary about vinyl. This guy is very serious about his music and records!
Vinylmania is a journey about life through the grooves of music, an investigation of the filmmaker about vinyl as a symbol that represents – in the past, the present and the future – a passion shared by different generations in the age of the internet. The film is a 75 minute documentary about the search for an identity, one cry against the “fast-food” music.
Walking down the staircase into the dingiest, dustiest and most hidden-away record shops, we travel through the fascination of the qualities that make vinyl a legendary object. Dancing in the clubs where the groove of vinyl beats out its rhythm with djs, we discover contemporary artists that make music with vinyl or still release their music on it, and interact with people via a dedicated blog and social networks.
Exploring the five senses of vinyl, the movie approaches with an ironical and anthropological eye one of the most amazing collective researches, together with archive film footage that looks at vinyl as a cultural phenomenon.
With a chorus of musicians, artists, djs, collectors, experts and simple music lovers and teenagers, we discover an object that today represents a huge part of human heritage.
They’ve already got a ton of great footage and photos on the website from his visits to Prague, Berlin, Turin, London, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco (I wish I would’ve caught up with him while he was in the U.S.!).
The following series is from Justin Cohen, a DJ from Northampton, MA. Cohen has DJed regularly at public and private functions since 2004 and held a weekly radio show on Valley Free Radio WXOJ from 2005-2007. Filmmaker: Christian Munoz-Donoso
Why Clean Vinyl Records? - A clean record provides the best sound quality.
Which Vinyl Records Need Cleaning? - Older records need to be cleaned more often.
How to Hold Vinyl Record While Cleaning - Do not touch the label when applying cleaner to vinyl.
Cleaning Medium for Vinyl Records - A cloth diaper works well to clean your records.
Professional Cleaner for Vinyl Records – The best option for cleaning records is a professional cleaner.
Applying Cleaner to Vinyl Records - Spray cleaner directly onto the record.
Cleaning Vinyl Records - Only use corner of cloth when cleaning your records.
Drying Vinyl Records - Do not store vinyl records when they are damp.
Placing Vinyl Record Into Sleeve - Be careful not to scratch vinyl when placing it into the album sleeve.
Storage Tips for Vinyl Records - Keep vinyl records in a dry place.
How to Store Vinyl Records - Stack vinyl records vertically rather than horizontally
A new documentary by Jony Lyle for Goosepimple Productions is coming soon. The 8 minute preview has lots of good stuff in it including interviews Chuck D, Questlove, Danny Krivit, Bruce ‘Bluenote’ Ludval and others set among each of their massive record collections. Check it out:
I was wandering YouTube when I stumbled upon this video from a little over a year ago where 2TurntablesAndAGuy received 20 or more crates (for FREE!) of records from a guy who was moving and couldn’t bring them with him. It reminded me of going through the giant motherload of two pallets of crates that [...]
The primary ingredient in the makeup of a vinyl record is petroleum. How many records could have been made from all of the oil in the gulf?
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