“Write a letter and lose the email. Buy a record and turn off the computer. It just feels a little closer to the bone.”
“When I was growing up in Laurel, Mississippi, my parents had a record player in my dad’s office. I bought Michael Jackson’s Thriller at the Sound Shop in Sawmill Square Mall in Laurel, and life was pretty different after that.
I remember closing the doors to the office and dancing around the room doing my best moonwalk. I even had the sparkly glove. When I got a little older, one of my brother’s friends had a tape of the Violent Femmes first record, and I remember taking it to the Sound Shop and telling the clerk I wanted everything that sounded like them. Thus began my musical journey.
Over the years, I bought tapes, and then CDs, and then computers slowly took over. I’m not prone to sentimentality, but as computers have come to the forefront, I…like many a grandpa complaining about the younger generation…miss the ritual of hearing music going to the record store to check it out, learning about new music form the clerks, and meeting all sorts of new people along the way.
A few years ago I bought an old record player and started buying vinyl. I love the way it sounds, but to be honest, I’ve never been that picky about how I listened to music. My dad had an old Pontiac Executive when we were growing up. It had the worst speakers you can imagine. It sounded great to me.
What I really love about vinyl is the ritual. I love the weight of it. I like the fact that you typically listen to the whole record when you use a record player. Songs aren’t sandwiched into a playlist, so the spin class can climb a hill. I like the way the graphic art gets to shine, and I like that it requires a little work on the part of the listener.
The other day I took a few advance copies of my album Blackberry Light to a friend’s store in Mississippi, and he threw ‘em on the shelf. My buddy Jack Pendarvis, a local Oxford, MS writer and author bought the first copy. Seeing him walk out of there with that album made me feel all warm and fuzzy I must admit.”
—Charlie Mars
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Charlie Mars Tour Dates:
Thu 08/09/12, Denver, CO, Soiled Dove Underground
Wed 08/15/12, Philadelphia, PA, Tin Angel
Thu 08/16/12, New York, NY, City Winery
Fri 08/17/12, Annapolis, MD, Rams Head On Stage
Sat 08/18/12, Vienna, VA, Jammin’ Java
Fri 08/24/12, Cambridge, MA, Club Passim
Sun 09/02/12, Chicago, IL, City Winery Chicago
Wed 09/05/12, Fort Worth, TX, Live Oak Music Hall & Lounge
Thu 09/06/12, Houston, TX, McGonigel’s Mucky Duck
Fri 09/07/12, Austin, TX, The Belmont
Appearing with Steve Earle:
Sat 09/15/12, Pittsburgh, PA, Carnegie Lecture Hall
Sun 09/16/12, Charlottesville, VA, Jefferson Theater
Wed 09/19/12, Brownfield, ME, Stone Mountain Arts Center
Thu 09/20/12, Rockland, ME, Strand Theatre
Fri 09/21/12, Huntsville, AL, Flying Monkey Arts
Fri 09/28/12, Englewood, NJ, Bergen Performing Arts Ctr.
Sat 09/29/12, Bethel, NY, The Events Gallery At Bethel Woods Center For The Arts
Sun 09/30/12, Poughkeepsie, NY Bardavon, 1869 Opera House
Thu 10/04/12, Birmingham, AL, WorkPlay Theatre
Appearing at Loblolly Festival:
Sat 10/06/12, Laurel, MS, Downtown Laurel
Thu 10/11/12, Oxford, MS, Proud Larry’s
Fri 10/12/12, Jackson, MS, Duling Hall
Sat 10/13/12, Memphis, TN, Hi-Tone Cafe
Thu 10/18/12, Charleston, SC, The Pour House
Fri 10/19/12, Wilmington, NC, The Soapbox
Sat 10/20/12, Atlanta, GA, Smith’s Olde Bar
