Artists On Vinyl is short audio documentary in which you can hear some thoughts and stories from renowned musicians like Ben Folds, Gaz Coombes, Interpol, Laura Veirs, Alela Diane, Crowded House, Eels, Ron Sexsmith, Tindersticks, Feeder, Goo Goo Dolls, John Grant and Brett Anderson of Suede.

Alongside the doc, I’m listing here some of my favourite sources and resources on vinyl, the album and focused music listening. Enjoy!

Books to read

Long Players - writers on the albums that shaped them (Bloomsbury). Tom Gatti compiles many of the Long Player editions that have been published in The New Statesman.

A Fabulous Creation - music scholar and journalist David Hepworth on the album’s imperious period 1967 - 1982.

Why Vinyl Matters - Jennifer Otter Bickerdike’s passionate deep dive into vinyl, put together with great interviews with well known and renowned artists, songwriters and other vinyl enthusiasts.

Lastly, not just one book about albums but a whole series. If you have yet to hear about or try the 33 & 1/3rd series of books (Bloomsbury), start now. Just pick your favourite record among those covered and get reading. Each book is readable in one sitting and for many, you’ll do just that. As the series creator David Barker wrote about them:

“This series is based on the idea that when we fall in love, we want to immerse ourselves in the object of our love. We want to know the history, the backstory - and often, we want to know what other people think. Surely we can’t be the only ones to feel this way about “Veronica Mars,” about Jonathan Coe…or about Led Zeppelin IV?

My favourites are Warren Zanes on Dusty In Memphis and Annie Zaleski on Duran Duran’s RIO.

websites to sign-up to

Sound Matters - a comprehensive resource and community about vinyl, albums and sound quality, Sound Matters was created by music enthusiast and marketing professional, Marc Henshall.

Auditory Musing’s Daily Records - I’ve been following this curated site for a while now, and the album recommendations - eclectic as they are - reflect the impeccable taste of curator and clinical pathologist (yes, you read that bit right) Pulin Kothari, the Auditory Muser himself. Pulin has now recommended some 250 album titles, each and every one worth checking out.

Albumism - the features on this site will have you crate digging and enjoying the album in all its long playing glory. It’s just really very good indeed.

Ways to get out and listen

If you are finding it hard to set aside the time for a listening session at home, or perhaps you have yet to invest in a vinyl or high-fi music set up, then check out three great ways to get out and listen to records in a focused and celebratory way:

Classic Album Sundays. Founded by DJ Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy way back in 2010 in a North London pub, with the intention of promoting enjoyment of true listening as the age of digital music began to take hold. According to the website, Classic Album Sundays “tells the stories behind the albums that have shaped our culture.” It does so incredibly well.

Pitchblack Playback. Albums are meant to be an immersive, focused experience. The only distraction should be to get off the sofa and turn the record over. This is the ethos of Pitchblack Playback. The British curation and experience brand encourages music fans to “hear classic (and new) albums & exclusive pre-release premieres on powerful, immersive sound systems, in the dark”. Listening to whole albums from start to finish in almost complete darkness is a refreshingly fun experience.

Music bars - Japanese jazz kissaten (old-school coffee shops playing jazz) became popular from the 1950s in Kyoto and Tokyo. It’s taken a while, but the trend is finally catching on in the UK and other countries. London’s House of Koko has beautiful vinyl listening booths, while bars like Brilliant Corners and Spiritland have dedicated listening events and always plays something interesting through high-end and vintage audio systems.

The Vinyl Alliance. What’s good about this site is the associated resources page including a study of Gen Z and vinyl, and work on the carbon footprint.

Your local record store. Independent record stores have been in steady resurgence for a few years now, thanks to vinyl and the trend for human experiences and owning & collecting records. Many will host listening parties, artist signings, intimate performance and special events for Record Store Day and National Album Day. What are you waiting for, get down there!