LPS become next big thing once again

The music goes ’round and around. Still. Even after all these years. There were more vinyl records sold last year than CDS, marking the first time since 1987 that the anachronistic medium outpaced its silver disc successor.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America, there were some 41 million vinyl records sold in 2022. In that same year, listeners bought 33 million CDS.

The more things change, the more they spin around.

Nearly 90 years ago now — in 1935 — a novelty song called “The Music Goes ’Round and Around” became something of an overnight sensation, selling like hotcakes straight out of the gate. Other versions — including one featuring Ella Fitzgerald — would follow. As the lyrics had it: “The music goes ’round and around … and it comes out here.”

Because spinning records was the thing. Until CDS, that is.

The new medium, which promised “perfect sound forever,” made its way around the globe in 1984. And after just a couple of years, CDS took off like a rocket.

Plenty of folks sold their collections of vinyl records, buying lots of their old favorites again on CD. But a funny thing happened on the way to history’s dustbin — vinyl not only refused to die, but eventually became cool once again.

To be sure, most folks listening to music today subscribe to some streaming service, with physical media making up only a fraction of the industry’s overall income. But still, the resurgence of vinyl has been something quite astonishing.

And turntables are selling, too. Some of them for a song, but others at prices fit for a king. Because people need some way to play all those records, and some folks like only the finest things, no matter the price.

There are some audiophiles who never bought into the CD craze, preferring the warmer, more natural sound of vinyl. Though they once seemed a small group of Luddites, their persistence has paid off.

Mainstream stores such as Best Buy no longer stock compact discs, but many do carry vinyl records. Yes, in 2023.

Thomas Edison invented the phonograph in the late 1870s, with the 12-inch long-playing record — the LP — coming around in 1948.

Before that, of course, there were 78s. And all these years later, the music goes ’round and around — and it comes out everywhere.