Record bonanza for collectors

AUTHENTIC SOUND: Brian Wafer has been collecting vinyl for 51 years and is bringing his record fair to Whanganui this weekend. PHOTO/ BEVAN CONLEY

It will be a treasure hunt for fans of the warm sound of vinyl when the Whanganui Record Fair returns on Sunday.

Collector Brian Wafer runs record fairs around the North Island and is bringing his travelling show back to Whanganui after a four-year break.

"We did a run of them about five years ago but then life got in the way like life does," the New Plymouth man said.

But family encouraged him to get back into doing what he loved more than anything.

"Buying good records and listening to good music," Mr Wafer said. "It's time to get back to those things. It's all about sharing the goodness. It's about sharing the love of a good music listening format."

There will be collectors from around the country at the Whanganui fair with a wide range on offer.

Mr Wafer said it was the experience of collecting and playing vinyl which drew people to records.

"When I was young I guess the style of things like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones captured a spirit that I liked," he said. "As it's gone on I've just liked the format. One, it was what I grew up with. But records are just easy to read, they feel good, they look good. Soundwise, absolutely I think they sound better."

He remembered as a 10-year-old first scraping together the money to buy his first vinyl; a 7-inch copy of Walking The Dog.

"After intermediate school one day I went on the bus and went to the record store and looked in the cheap bins. I'd saved my lunch money. I didn't even have a record player but now I had a record."

And while his 51-year hobby has netted somewhere in the vicinity of 10,000 records, his wishlist isn't any smaller. "I'm always looking for stuff. There's a mental list in my head that's probably about 10,000 long," Mr Wafer said.

"For the last 51 years I've bought records, mate, and I'm not going to stop now. Money's made to be spent."

-The Whanganui Record Fair in on this Sunday at Red Eye on Guyton St from 1pm to 4pm. Entry $2.