Review: 'In the Groove: The Vinyl Record and Turntable Revolution'

Long ago declared dead, vinyl has made a zombie-like comeback in recent years that doesn't seem in danger of declining. A report on sales published in Variety just three and a half months ago provides strong support for such confidence. 

But if you're the kind of person who reads Psychobabble, you probably already know this. In fact, I'd discontinued music reviews on anything but vinyl quite a while ago and walk it like I talk it with my own music collection: I've sold off almost all of my CDs and replaced almost all of the essentials with their vinyl equivalents in a move I hope I won't regret the way I regret exchanging my original vinyl collection for a handful of magic beans back in 1990. 

Basically, I love vinyl, I have pledged allegiance to vinyl, and I demand you do the same. So a book about the current vinyl and turntable revolution should be just the ticket for someone like me. The book's bona fides are strong: its five authors include some of the most well-known rock writers of the twenty-first century: Matt Annis, Gillian G. Garr, Ken Micaleff, Martin Popoff, and Richie Unterberger. In a series of short essays, they discuss the history of the format, stand-out record stores, iconic album covers, the mono vs. stereo debate, important record labels, and, at its most advanced, the parts and components of various varieties of phonographs. There are also some potentially useful tips for phonograph calibration, but by mostly delivering the basics, In the Groove will most appeal to youngsters new to this whole vinyl collecting thingy and are just learning what azimuth is.