Wall of Shame

Jess had a friend over today. I was playing with records like I usually do when we have company and he mentioned to me that he was thinking of picking one up for his dad for Father's Day. I figured I have plenty so why not just donate one to a worthy cause, right?

This brings us to a collector's dilemma. Which one to part with? I managed to find one I didn't really ever listen to and thought his dad might find interesting, but it got me thinking about why I buy the music I do.

Sometimes you get stuff because it's already established that it can stand the test of time. That accounts for most of the stuff I own that was recorded before I was born.

Sometimes you get stuff because it speaks to you somehow and it also stands up to the test of time. This accounts for much of my back catalogue recorded when I was old enough to hear it new.

Sometimes you get stuff because it sounds promising, and then promptly goes to hell! Just admit it. Sometimes you hitch your car to the wrong train. It happens to the best of us. This is the crap you leave stuffed in dusty boxes or trade in at second-hand music stores and hope nobody is looking.

Which brings us to the wall of shame.

I am going to look in my music collection right now and list the 5 most shameful things I own. I won't make apologies and I'm not bashing anyone's taste. I'm just being honest. This is stuff I wish I could un-buy.

*drum roll*

#5: Erasure - The Innocents
I fell for the 80's synth-pop thing like a lot of others but let's face it, this just wasn't a wise investment. Two tracks got a decent amount of club and radio play and the rest is nearly intolerable.

#4: Lords of Acid - Voodoo You
Yeah, it voodooed me alright. That's really all the explanation I can offer.

#3: Sisters of Mercy - A Slight Case of Overbombing
When Peter Jackson was trying to describe to New Line exactly what kind of "epic" he was referring to while pitching Lord of the Rings, I'm pretty sure he used a couple of tracks from this as examples. Temple of Love especially, is a marathon I'd rather not endure again. You'd think the title would have given me a clue.

#2: A homemade mix of Rush songs I threw together to annoy the hell out of a friend.
I really did make this just to play in the car at unbearable volumes sometimes when he was in it. He hated Rush with a passion that would make Moby Dick read like an Archie comic.

And the top spot goes to...

#1: The Go-Go's - God Bless the Go-Go's
Kinda speaks for itself, doesn't it?