Bob George has been through a lot since he started the contemporary music archive in 1985. But that even leaves him speechless for a moment. The 70-year-old points to a huge stack of cardboard boxes:
“Something like this has never happened to us. 4000 LPs and not a single one is in the case. These are the records – and these are the cases for them. We have now been able to bring a few together “For 40 years. It’s unbelievable. The strangest thing we’ve ever had. There are crazy things here every week.”
Three million recordings on shellac, vinyl and CDs
George, who wrote music books and produced songs before becoming a music archivist, shakes his head. Three million recordings on shellac, vinyl and CDs are piled up on several floors of the factory building. Most of it is not even cataloged yet. And it’s getting more and more: almost every week collectors bring new boxes. And George has two iron principles: Only what can no longer be played is thrown away. And every version of a recording is archived:
“So when the record company changes the cover, the location of the pressing, the label or even the number of songs – a good example is the Beatles’ first album. Capital EMI Europe sent that to Capital USA – and they found the music Terrible. Also a good example of how smart the record industry is. Anyway, they passed the Beatles on to a small label in the Midwest, VJ Records. They released the first Beatles album in the US With two songs more than later on Capital. Although the album has the same name, just a different record label. “
(Signed) records in the Archive of Contemporary Music (Deutschlandradio / Peter Mücke)
And so there are also numerous versions of many albums that fill the shelves that go under the very high ceilings of the former warehouse.
TriBeCa: Most expensive residential area in the USA
When the archive started here with the 47,000 records from George’s private collection, TriBeCa was shaped by dilapidated industrial buildings, gang crime and an exciting music scene. Little is left of that, says George, who has lived in the neighborhood since then:
“Now this is probably the most expensive residential area in the whole of the US. Lots of tech people, stockbrokers, business people. A strange place: everyone still seems to have a second home. Hardly anyone is here at the weekend. There are big lofts here – and us they shit out now. We started with a very low rent – now it’s shot through the roof. “
Paul Simon and Keith Richards on the advisory board
So much so that not even the prominent supporters on the advisory board, such as Paul Simon, Keith Richards or Martin Scorsese, can afford the costs. George is now looking for a new home for the three million music recordings and four million books, photos, videos and other devotional objects that are also part of the archive – and already has offers.
“The people are incredibly generous. We have some offers that we can afford – in contrast to here. Even the city of Stuttgart has reported: We should come to Germany. You pay everything. We have to look at it again. But that’s rather unlikely that we will do that. “
Elvis records can also be found in the Archive of Contemporary Music (Deutschlandradio / Peter Mücke)
No wonder – an estimated 20,000 moving boxes would have to be shipped. Half of them with sensitive vinyl and shellac records. George wants the archive to be what it is: a resource for musicologists, soundtrack compilers, and journalists. At least as long as he is in charge:
“I want to do it for another five years. And then someone should take over who can do it more as a museum. School classes that go through here or a museum café, all this entertainment factor.
Speaks – and dedicates himself again to the boxes with the 4000 LPs without a cover.
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