How do you Organize Your Collection?
- Thread starter RAJ
- Start date
Oh really dudes?
You only need three sections:
Records That DB Cooper Can Dance To
This contains a full run of Depeche Mode releases, a couple of Tears For Fears 12s and a beaten promo copy of 'I Ran' 45 by Flock of Seagulls.
Records That White People Think They Can Dance To
File all jazz, funk and soul here.
Norwegian Death Metal
Ideally this would be empty, but is a good place to stash all those thrift scores that you will never be bothered to spin, ever.
B/w sold all mine, barring a batch of libs and blaxplos
You only need three sections:
Records That DB Cooper Can Dance To
This contains a full run of Depeche Mode releases, a couple of Tears For Fears 12s and a beaten promo copy of 'I Ran' 45 by Flock of Seagulls.
Records That White People Think They Can Dance To
File all jazz, funk and soul here.
Norwegian Death Metal
Ideally this would be empty, but is a good place to stash all those thrift scores that you will never be bothered to spin, ever.
B/w sold all mine, barring a batch of libs and blaxplos
Delay said:Organizing you records should be about finding them and putting them away will as little hassle as possible.
All of my albums are arranged alphabetically in a few sections:
12" singles
rap LPs
Everything else..
I have a few small sections of things I like to keep together, but are small enough to group without alphabetizing. New Orleans bounce, gogo, soundtracks, and libraries
you still on just that one book case collection?
it's so easy when you have it whittled down to 500-800lp's
once you got 5k + it really s a challenge
my biggest issue is the incoming collections,space for them and actually selling the shit/keeping what i want.
i don't keep as much anymore and have been acquiring more and more as time goes on,
easier bought than sold
i guess i am almost approaching hoarder at this point
All of my albums are arranged alphabetically in a few sections:
12" singles
rap LPs
Everything else..
I have a few small sections of things I like to keep together, but are small enough to group without alphabetizing. New Orleans bounce, gogo, soundtracks, and libraries
you still on just that one book case collection?
it's so easy when you have it whittled down to 500-800lp's
once you got 5k + it really s a challenge
my biggest issue is the incoming collections,space for them and actually selling the shit/keeping what i want.
i don't keep as much anymore and have been acquiring more and more as time goes on,
easier bought than sold
i guess i am almost approaching hoarder at this point
Even though I've had about 10k come and go, I keep my collection at about a 1,000, sorted by genre as I like to listen to them. The genre subsections are not sorted, as I usually like the randomness when I pull.
Records that I like to put on when other people come over - these live under the living room stereo for quick grabbing.
Jazz
Latin
French
Reggae
Hard rock / Punk / Metal
Hip-Hop
Folk
Soul/Funk
Indie
60's rock
70's rock
Psych
Misc - Classical, Opera, un-genre-able
10"
stacks and boxes of edited but unsorted 45s
Bins of records that are cleaned, priced, and ready for sale.
Bin of records that are currently on discogs.
Records that I like to put on when other people come over - these live under the living room stereo for quick grabbing.
Jazz
Latin
French
Reggae
Hard rock / Punk / Metal
Hip-Hop
Folk
Soul/Funk
Indie
60's rock
70's rock
Psych
Misc - Classical, Opera, un-genre-able
10"
stacks and boxes of edited but unsorted 45s
Bins of records that are cleaned, priced, and ready for sale.
Bin of records that are currently on discogs.
I'm the only one who has the whole damn collection in one alphabetized group? I can't imagine trying to separate things by genre, I'd get to hung up on whether some things were funk or soul or jazz, or metal or punk, etc. Although separating the 12" from the LP's does sound like a good idea, gotta think about that one...
asstro said:I'm the only one who has the whole damn collection in one alphabetized group? I can't imagine trying to separate things by genre, I'd get to hung up on whether some things were funk or soul or jazz, or metal or punk, etc. Although separating the 12" from the LP's does sound like a good idea, gotta think about that one...
Hey Asstro,
Genre-based organizing helps me because I tend to select records to listen to based upon my mood. So, it's quick and easy to go to a particular section that has the type of music that suits my mood. I'm well over the 10K mark, so wading through a non-category based system would take forever. Now, the problem has become re-filing stacks of stuff once I listen to them (or compile them to make mixes). Hell, I have a collection of records unfiled on the floor as we speak! Oh well, one day...
Peace,
Big Stacks from Kakalak
Hey Asstro,
Genre-based organizing helps me because I tend to select records to listen to based upon my mood. So, it's quick and easy to go to a particular section that has the type of music that suits my mood. I'm well over the 10K mark, so wading through a non-category based system would take forever. Now, the problem has become re-filing stacks of stuff once I listen to them (or compile them to make mixes). Hell, I have a collection of records unfiled on the floor as we speak! Oh well, one day...
Peace,
Big Stacks from Kakalak
asstro said:I'm the only one who has the whole damn collection in one alphabetized group? I can't imagine trying to separate things by genre, I'd get to hung up on whether some things were funk or soul or jazz, or metal or punk, etc. Although separating the 12" from the LP's does sound like a good idea, gotta think about that one...
Yeah, the hard-to-define stuff is what resulted in my hip hop/non-hip hop split. It was the only genre split that didn't raise problems, but I need some sort of genre split to make the whole mess more manageable.
Yeah, the hard-to-define stuff is what resulted in my hip hop/non-hip hop split. It was the only genre split that didn't raise problems, but I need some sort of genre split to make the whole mess more manageable.
asstro said:Although separating the 12" from the LP's does sound like a good idea, gotta think about that one...
I don't really understand the reasoning behind this strategy. Why separate records by the same artist or style simply based on that factor. I understand for 45's because there isn't really a good way to store the 45 next to an lp or 12".
I don't really understand the reasoning behind this strategy. Why separate records by the same artist or style simply based on that factor. I understand for 45's because there isn't really a good way to store the 45 next to an lp or 12".
ost said:asstro said:Although separating the 12" from the LP's does sound like a good idea, gotta think about that one...
I don't really understand the reasoning behind this strategy. Why separate records by the same artist or style simply based on that factor. I understand for 45's because there isn't really a good way to store the 45 next to an lp or 12".
Originally, I separated them for DJ purposes. Now I just remember what format I have a track on and I can grab it easily.
I don't really understand the reasoning behind this strategy. Why separate records by the same artist or style simply based on that factor. I understand for 45's because there isn't really a good way to store the 45 next to an lp or 12".
Originally, I separated them for DJ purposes. Now I just remember what format I have a track on and I can grab it easily.
I'm still on that genre/alphabetical steez. For simplicity's sake, I keep my genres pretty broad:
rap
funk/soul
rock
jazz
And then I have an unorganized section called "oddball" which is all that other stuff--children's records, spoken word, comedy, those "Steel Drums of the Caribbean" type joints, etc.
That's for albums and 12s. For 45s, there are exactly two groups:
stuff I would play at a gig
stuff I would not play at a gig
And there is no organization whatsoever within those two groups. I somehow just know roughly where everything is.
rap
funk/soul
rock
jazz
And then I have an unorganized section called "oddball" which is all that other stuff--children's records, spoken word, comedy, those "Steel Drums of the Caribbean" type joints, etc.
That's for albums and 12s. For 45s, there are exactly two groups:
stuff I would play at a gig
stuff I would not play at a gig
And there is no organization whatsoever within those two groups. I somehow just know roughly where everything is.
I have my collection sectioned off on my shelf by genre for the most part.,
soul/funk/R&B
Jazz
Rock
Hip-Hop
Those are all sorted A-Z
Then I have 4 boxes on the ground filled up. 3 boxes with new finds to go through before they are filed away, then the last box is for records I found a sample on I want to use.
Also under my table setup I have a crate filled with spoken word/random samples records. There are also some random stacks of classical/country/random whatever records in random parts of my record room. Those are out of the way since they don't get as much attention.
In my living room I have a big shelf filled with more popular records or doubles of all genres. That shelf doesn't have really any organization whatsoever.
At times it seems like it's just a huge mess in my record room, until I try and clean everything up and realize I'm fine with the way its all set up.
soul/funk/R&B
Jazz
Rock
Hip-Hop
Those are all sorted A-Z
Then I have 4 boxes on the ground filled up. 3 boxes with new finds to go through before they are filed away, then the last box is for records I found a sample on I want to use.
Also under my table setup I have a crate filled with spoken word/random samples records. There are also some random stacks of classical/country/random whatever records in random parts of my record room. Those are out of the way since they don't get as much attention.
In my living room I have a big shelf filled with more popular records or doubles of all genres. That shelf doesn't have really any organization whatsoever.
At times it seems like it's just a huge mess in my record room, until I try and clean everything up and realize I'm fine with the way its all set up.
I like the idea of an empty space for Norwegian Death Metal. It's like an empty plate for Jesus at the dinner table. Just in case he shows up, allthough you secretly know he never will.
My filing system:
1. Genre
2. Country
3. Labels (organised on catalogue number re: Blue Notes and Impulse)
4. Artist (depending on quantity)
5. Reissues and comps (any genre) are filed seperately
My filing system:
1. Genre
2. Country
3. Labels (organised on catalogue number re: Blue Notes and Impulse)
4. Artist (depending on quantity)
5. Reissues and comps (any genre) are filed seperately
my system was along the lines of Stacks' - genre -> big name artists together, then small artists bunched by style/sub-genre. Makes it easy to find things based on what you feel like listening, and also made it easy for friends who came over and wanted to thumb through and see what else I had in a specific style, like samba or forró. Alphabetical wouldn't work for me as makes no sense to have Lightinin' Hopkins and Lightning Bolt next to each other.
the whole system came crumbling down when I moved a few years ago, and I attempted to re-organize but a cleaning lady came over one day and did a mega shuffle in an attempt to clean behind the records. Things have been a mess since then, the only discernible piles being stuff I've been listening to recently and the triage of things I pull when digging which I split into keepers, things to sell, and things to swap back with the dudes I buy from.
the whole system came crumbling down when I moved a few years ago, and I attempted to re-organize but a cleaning lady came over one day and did a mega shuffle in an attempt to clean behind the records. Things have been a mess since then, the only discernible piles being stuff I've been listening to recently and the triage of things I pull when digging which I split into keepers, things to sell, and things to swap back with the dudes I buy from.
I guess the genre dividing makes sense if you are dealing with tens of thousands of records, my collection is "only" around three thousand 12" & LP's and I'm not a record store so it doesn't seem that hard for me to find stuff when I want it (although the other day I was trying to remember which comp I have with "Water Get No Enemy" on it and got stumped). I kind of like the idea of artists intermingling anyway, I can look on my shelf now and see Adam Ant into Anthrax into Antibalas into Apollonia 6 into Arctic Monkeys into The Arsonists and that seems to make sense as a reflection of my tastes.
My eye is twitching just from reading this thread. I was going to say that I am more or less organized with an 'alphabetized cannon' that dominates the vast majority of records but then realized all of my caveats - dance 12's, hip-hop singles and LPs, soundtracks, classical, then like four shelves of unorganized-in-waiting for me to move all the letters down in the alphabetical section to make room. Still the general idea, I think, works - in that I have a large section of most kinds of records where a normal person could chance upon my albums and find what they were looking for.
Hey all -- lurker here, who was interested to read what you folks do with organizing the collections.
I thought my setup was relatively simple but when I typed it out it seems more complicated.
Here's how mine's organized:
Box sets
Jazz/other instrumental (alphabetical)
Japanese jazz (alphabetical)
Brazilian (alphabetical)
Other non-rap (soul/funk/rock/etc.) (alphabetical)
Rap
-dudes I have lots of records by (grouped by artist/group -- includes records by other artists that I associate with one of these dudes, e.g. they produced/remixed a track)
-Canadian rap (chronological)
-other (alphabetical)
"Neo-soul" (cringe at that genre title) (grouped by artist/group)
Comps (excluding Brazilian/Japanese/Canadian rap, which are in those sections)
7"s/10"s (not many of these)
Records I had to move out of the living room (no organization whatsoever -- the shelves are full, so anytime new records come in some records have to go out -- I revisit these about 2x/year to see what's worth keeping/what I won't miss)
I thought my setup was relatively simple but when I typed it out it seems more complicated.
Here's how mine's organized:
Box sets
Jazz/other instrumental (alphabetical)
Japanese jazz (alphabetical)
Brazilian (alphabetical)
Other non-rap (soul/funk/rock/etc.) (alphabetical)
Rap
-dudes I have lots of records by (grouped by artist/group -- includes records by other artists that I associate with one of these dudes, e.g. they produced/remixed a track)
-Canadian rap (chronological)
-other (alphabetical)
"Neo-soul" (cringe at that genre title) (grouped by artist/group)
Comps (excluding Brazilian/Japanese/Canadian rap, which are in those sections)
7"s/10"s (not many of these)
Records I had to move out of the living room (no organization whatsoever -- the shelves are full, so anytime new records come in some records have to go out -- I revisit these about 2x/year to see what's worth keeping/what I won't miss)
In order of my shelving units top down:
- Avant/Classical, alphabetical by composer
- Soundtracks/Sound Library/Sound Effects (mostly bird songs), not in any order.
- Crusty Anglo/Euro Rock, alphabetical with certain scenes having their own section.
- Non-Anglo Rock (mostly psych/hard rock), by country with chunks of certain artists together
(for example all of my Luis Alberto Spinetta related together)
- Latin, not alphabetized
- Brazilian, not alphabetized but all Bossa is together and favorites like Marcos Valle have their own section.
- African, not alphabetized but comps and Fela have their own section.
- Bollywood, not alphabetized
- Jazz, Alphabetized
- Ethnographic/Field Recordings, not alphabetized but certain countries separated. Should probably redo by label
- Blues/Folk/Country, not alphabetized but certain artists have their own section
- Reggae, not alphabetized but Dub, Lee Perry and 60's each have their own section
- Soul, Alphabetized w/ P-Funk, JB and Meters each have their own section
- Weird
- Three shelves and numerous boxes of unsorted stuff yet to be filed
- 45s by genre/country or unsorted.
In the sections not strictly alphabetized, I tend to put certain 'moods' together, hence Bossa or Dub being separated so I can find things when I want a certain feel.
Total around 7000 LPs and 2000 45s. Would like to trim down by at least 30%.
- Avant/Classical, alphabetical by composer
- Soundtracks/Sound Library/Sound Effects (mostly bird songs), not in any order.
- Crusty Anglo/Euro Rock, alphabetical with certain scenes having their own section.
- Non-Anglo Rock (mostly psych/hard rock), by country with chunks of certain artists together
(for example all of my Luis Alberto Spinetta related together)
- Latin, not alphabetized
- Brazilian, not alphabetized but all Bossa is together and favorites like Marcos Valle have their own section.
- African, not alphabetized but comps and Fela have their own section.
- Bollywood, not alphabetized
- Jazz, Alphabetized
- Ethnographic/Field Recordings, not alphabetized but certain countries separated. Should probably redo by label
- Blues/Folk/Country, not alphabetized but certain artists have their own section
- Reggae, not alphabetized but Dub, Lee Perry and 60's each have their own section
- Soul, Alphabetized w/ P-Funk, JB and Meters each have their own section
- Weird
- Three shelves and numerous boxes of unsorted stuff yet to be filed
- 45s by genre/country or unsorted.
In the sections not strictly alphabetized, I tend to put certain 'moods' together, hence Bossa or Dub being separated so I can find things when I want a certain feel.
Total around 7000 LPs and 2000 45s. Would like to trim down by at least 30%.
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