Paul Hyde is a vinyl enthusiast who lives in St. Louis, MO where he works in IT as a Systems Engineer. The married father or two mainly collects punk, garage rock, and '80s-'90s hip-hop. Besides record collecting, he's an avid mountain biker who also happens to be a huge Star Wars fan.
It's nice to welcome a fellow dad to the Record Collector club.
How long have you been collecting records?
Since I was 13 or 14-years-old, so that would make it about 30 years.
Where/how do you usually find your records these days?
I get most of my stuff at record stores. I love hunting for records and digging through the bins. St. Louis has some good record stores (Vintage Vinyl, Music Record Shop, Planet Score, Euclid Records, and Dead Wax) that makes it easy to shop. One of my favorite things to do when visiting another city is finding the good record stores. I do get a few things from Discogs and eBay, too, but I prefer to find them in the wild.
What is the most you paid for a single record, where/how did you obtain it, and what was it?
I'm sort of a cheap record buyer. I don't think I've paid more than $40 for a single record. I had a friend that was selling a huge record collection, and I did end up buying around $280 worth of records in one afternoon. I told myself I was only going to spend $100.
If you to pick one record label you feel had/has the best track record of quality releases, who would that be and what are some key titles you love?
I absolutely love Hostage Records. I've been hooked on just about everything they have released since I picked up The Bleeders 7" in 1997. I pretty much buy anything they release. They have put out some great records from some of my favorite old school punk bands like Channel 3, Shattered Faith, Mad Parade, and The Crowd, as well as bands that have became some of my favorites like Smogtown, Bonecrusher, Broken Bottles, The Drips, and so many more. You can tell the guys behind the label love these bands. Each record comes with an insert that has a write up about the band or record that reads like a love letter to punk rock!
Of everything in your current collection, what is your most prized record and why?
The Damned New Rose/Help 7" first pressing on Stiff. The first UK punk single released. How can you not love that one? The Damned is my favorite band and I found that one years ago and paid next to nothing for it.
Is there anything that frustrates you about the current record collecting scene?
Unnecessary reissues from major labels that clog up the release schedule for independent labels, the bundles and variations is getting a little out of hand, and people that buy records and have bands sign the vinyl drives me nuts.
Which records are still on your want list that you've had a tough time tracking down through the years?
This list could go on for days! The first few that popped in my head are Jawbreaker Whack & Blight 7", Articles of Faith Give Thanks, Beastie Boys To the 5 Boroughs, Naked Raygun Flammable Solid 7", Shattered Faith I Love America 7", Bonecrusher No Escape 7", The Crowd A World Apart, the first three Bronx records, and if I ever win the lottery I'm buying The Damned Stretcher Case Baby 7".
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Tagged: record collector
