There exist, as we’re all aware, many observable subspecies of the record collector. I was one myself at one point, but later lost any earned credibility in this world by evolving in the 2000s to instead be more of a, um, “digital file accumulator” or CD hound instead. It saved me thousands upon thousands of dollars that might otherwise have been spent on records that I’d have loved to own, but that couldn’t have been well-stored in my exceptionally small San Francisco home, a home which also included a wife, kid and dog and all these goddamned fanzines. However, I’ve recognized myself as something of a fraud whilst traveling and conversing in the worlds of the record collector, where I am still sometimes allowed, so I’m therefore on safer ground reading from afar the fanzines that are created by and for them.

Record Time #1, which came out just this year, is unlike any music mag I’ve ever seen. Scott Soriano, a guy we’ve championed on this site (here and here) for being half of the creative team behind Z Gun, has assembled an even larger team for this one, dedicated to and written by the folks who accumulate cheap, bargain-bin LPs and 45s of many genres with obsessive zeal, strange passion and unending curiosity. Adam G. Taub, a contributor here, unintentionally states the magazines’ overriding ethos well: “I have amassed a lot of records that no one wants to listen to, about which some have asked, on more than one occasion, ‘How can you listen to that shit?’”. It’s full of many other contributors you know and love such as Brian Turner, Ryan Wells, Mike Trouchon, Laurent Bigot, Rose Melberg and quite a few others. Record dorks. We love ‘em. You might liken it to sort of a Bull Tongue Review, but only about records.

I have to say, the pièce de résistance has got to be Soriano’s deep dive on any and every tenuous recording link to Plastic Bertrand’s “Ca Plane Pour Moi”: tribute records, soundalikes, covers, ripoffs, cash-ins etc. This is why fanzines exist, and why you’ll only find top-tier research about what most would find utterly meaningless in a mag like this. Soriano also has a great piece on Rooky Ricardo’s Records in San Francisco and its owner Dick Vivian, an incredibly affable guy who knows absolutely everything about every American 60s pop and R&B 45. I was once looking for some girl group stuff there, and he asked me what my favorite girl group single of the era was – ostensibly so he could find me some obscurities from the store’s vast collection. I watched his face drop when I came up with “Breakaway” by Irma Thomas. How pedestrian! Not even a group! This is Dick Vivian you’re talking to!

There’s another stellar article here about Droll Yankees, described herein as “the perfect record label” by author Stan Appleton. The label’s mission was to rescue all things “Yankee” from modernity, such as quaint Eastern language, plus “sea sounds, bird songs, frog croaks and other sounds threatened to be silenced by the modern world”. Seriously, it’s field recordings of deep sea fishermen and farmers, along with a few records of folk songs by Protestants. It’s a great aesthetic and a thoroughly bizarre label which gets its own complete 1960-69 discography here as well. The label, believe it or not, morphed into a bird feeder company. 

A column called “Cash or Trade” is penned by Mike Trouchon, and he illuminates a dozen of the 50s and 60s instrumental 7” records he’s collected on the cheap. He helpfully expands the boundaries of “instrumental” – and I agree with him 100% here – by saying “I should mention that songs that are mostly instrumental, meaning they include some chanting, a handful of lyrics, and/or vocalese, still go down in my book as instrumentals”. Amen. There are other pieces on Dutch prog wonders, some sports records, Lee Harvey Oswald-themed records and even more prog by Owen Maerks. Joey Soriano – I believe it’s Scott’s brother? – expounds all about fuckin’ Montrose, giving us the full vinyl history of this band who’d often be the opener at the hard-rock “Day on the Green” concerts at the Oakland Stadium. This is all topped off by a review section called “Bargain Bin Reviews” with everything from the Los Angeles Police Pipe Band to Reddy Teddy to the Kent 3. 

And while I don’t really need to comment on it since you can see it right here – how about that cover design? Dennis Worden is the guy’s name. I hope he’s been brought back for future issues, as I know a #2 of Record Time is wrapped up and will be ready to go in the weeks to come.