Proceeds from fundraiser going to U of L radio station
Katie May
LETHBRIDGE HERALD
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"I'm like a kid in a candy store," Becky Watson exclaims as she flicks through a crate of old albums, one by one.
Dozens of crates containing thousands of records are being picked across by crowds of the vinyl-hungry, young and old. Some of them even pushed aside all other personal priorities to show up at Galt Gardens an hour early Saturday morning for first dibs on CKXU's collection.
The University of Lethbridge's volunteer-run campus radio station got rid of the records and CDs to make more room at its new station, which is now undergoing renovations paid for with more than $40,000 in grant money. Proceeds from the fundraiser will go toward expanding the station's signal, said CKXU president Curtis Goodman.
On a good day, Goodman said, the 125-watt transmitter for 88.3 FM will come in clear in Warner, 70 kilometres south. On a bad day, listeners can't even pick it up in West Lethbridge.
"Eventually our goal is to improve our broadcasting range, so we can hit every corner of Lethbridge," and more of southern Alberta from Waterton to Medicine Hat, he said.
As records ranging all genres and several decades flew from the stacks and into new hands for as little as $2 apiece, Goodman explained that most of this music has gathered dust in boxes for years. The station's broadcast license, focusing mostly on Canadian, spoken word and in-house content, doesn't allow CKXU DJs to play most of these albums, including top 40 hits. They were sent to the station from record labels years ago so the donations CKXU gets in exchange will help keep it on the air, he said.
"This is a way that we can say ''come have a party with us on one of the last nice days of summer and let's share music,'" Goodman said, as a live band struck up on the park stage amid surrounding vendors.
Besides, he said, it's clear that people still love buying and listening to records.
"People have an affinity for it because it's something tangible," he said. "There's a warmth to it."
Rodger Wood of Coaldale said he'd "need a bigger house," to fit all his records as he browsed for some "oldie goldies" from the 1950s and 1960s.
He said record collecting is becoming more popular.
"It's all coming back around."
Barry Selk has been collecting vinyl since he was a kid and within an hour at Galt Gardens, he'd already amassed a crateful of more records to take home.
"I just knew there'd be lots of cool, old records. You find stuff that you never thought you'd find," he said, pulling out some Earth Wind and Fire Albums. "I'm stoked on the David Bowie ones."
He said he doesn't think people will stop collecting - or stop making - vinyl records.
"It's too cool to quit."