# Did you raid your parents' record collection? What made an impression? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 18, 2011, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204 "2011-08-18T18:37:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/1 "2011-08-18T18:37:36Z")
I trace my folkie roots back to my mom. Back in the early sixties, when I was young enough to be impressionable, but not old enough to reject them because they were, yanno, …_Mom’s_, she brought home lots of folk albums, that I borrowed, fell in love with and scratched all to hell and gone. Among the ones I remember playing over and over on our giant piece of furniture stereo console were: Bob Dylan’s [The Times They Are a-Changin’](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Times_They_Are_a-Changin%27) Peter, Paul & Mary’s [See What Tomorrow Brings](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/See_What_Tomorrow_Brings), and [In Concert](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Concert_%28Peter,_Paul_and_Mary_album%29) Phil Ochs [I Ain’t Marching Anymore](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Ain%27t_Marching_Anymore) Dave Van Ronk’s [Dave Van Ronk, Folksinger](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Van_Ronk,_Folksinger) Joan Baez’s [Joan Baez, Vol. 2](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_Baez,_Vol._2) I also wore out her Andy Williams’ [Moon River and Other Great Movie Themes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_River_and_Other_Great_Movie_Themes) Mom was/is cool. You? ---
**Author:** ![Bri2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/48db29/32.png) [@Bri2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bri2k)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/2 "2011-08-18T18:49:06Z")
My dad didn’t have any records, but my mom did. While I enjoyed a few things from her collection, the only one that I still listen to now is [Jonah Jones’ Muted Jazz](http://www.amazon.com/MUTED-JAZZ-VINYL-JONAH-JONES/dp/B000OOQD5S). Actually my vinyl copy is long gone, so I had to grab the nearest CD version called [I Dig Jonah](http://www.amazon.com/Dig-Jonah-Jones-Capitol-Collection/dp/B00003W0XR). He does my favorite version of St. James Infirmary. Bri2k ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/3 "2011-08-18T18:59:06Z")
Mom’s albums that I liked included Joanie Sommers, Brenda Lee, and The Carpenters. My favorites belonging to my stepdad were Bob Dylan’s Desire, ELO’s A New World Order, and Meatloaf’s Bat Out of Hell. ETA: Oh! And Mom’s Jim Croce albums. ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/4 "2011-08-18T19:13:34Z")
Their collection is entirely pre-rock (they were born in the late 1920s/early 30s), and mostly classical and Broadway shows. Plus a lot of weird 50s stuff like _Persuasive Percussion_ and those Jackie Gleason albums to get drunk to, whatever they were called. The ones I eventually adopted were _Calypso_ by Harry Belafonte (the only folky one) and _Jazz Samba_. I still have both of those. I’m surprised in retrospect there were no other jazz records. I’ve picked up a few of those weirdo Enoch Light LPs in years gone by but I never listen to them. Is there an Aged Hipsters’ Home I can give them to? ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/5 "2011-08-18T19:20:04Z")
> [@Ichbin\_Dubist](#): > > I’ve picked up a few of those weirdo Enoch Light LPs in years gone by but I never listen to them. Is there an Aged Hipsters’ Home I can give them to? What was so weird about those? Some (all?) were recorded on 35mm multi-track mag-coated, sproketed film with the very best studio musicians and they were the cutting edge of tech at the time. Do they sound too much like elevator music nowdays? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/6 "2011-08-18T19:24:07Z")
Joni Mitchell Beatles Pentangle Steeleye Span Turns out they didn’t really like those bands (apart from the Beatles) - they were gifts from relatives trying to get them into music. The stuff they liked was: Acker Bilk Tijuana Brass Lieutenant Kije The Seekers That’s about it really. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/7 "2011-08-18T19:31:56Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Tijuana Brass Whipped Cream and Other Delights is the sort of record that teenaged boys liked before the internet came around. I wonder if the music was any good. The parents also had Tom Lehrer records that I listened too. ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/8 "2011-08-18T19:36:02Z")
> [@gazpacho](#): > > The parents also had Tom Lehrer records that I listened too. Oh yes! I also forgot Allan Sherman’s “My Son the…” records and [The First Family](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_First_Family_%28album%29). ---
**Author:** ![Meltdown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Meltdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meltdown)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/9 "2011-08-18T19:41:52Z")
Dad had some homemade cassette tapes he either made himself or had someone else make for him. Mostly folky stuff. Some songs I have vivid memories of listening to on one of those old, single-speaker tape recorders: “Puff the Magic Dragon” – Peter, Paul and Mary “Leaving on a Jet Plane” – Peter, Paul and Mary “Blowing in the Wind” – Bob Dylan “Richard Cory” – Simon and Garfunkel “The Ballad of Ira Hayes”-- Johnny Cash “Commanche” – Johnny Horton “Jim Bridger” – Johnny Horton ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/10 "2011-08-18T19:44:17Z")
> [@Ichbin\_Dubist](#): > > Their collection is entirely pre-rock (they were born in the late 1920s/early 30s)… Same here. The records in their collection that I liked included _Peer Gynt Suite_, various Christmas LPs (some of which I have), and a few anthologies that included things like Sarah Vaughan’s “Broken Hearted Melody” and Brook Benton’s “Kiddio”. Also some comedy records – _The First Family_, Bill Cosby’s _Wonderfulness_, and a Jonathan Winters record (I think it was _Another Day, Another World_). ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/11 "2011-08-18T19:46:21Z")
My parents had a huge record collection but none of it was very memorable. One day I sat and listened to their 45’s for several hours. Only a couple were catchy, but I can’t remember now what they were. There was a time though in elementary school that I discovered their vinyl copy of Simon & Garfunkle’s _Bridge Over Troubled Water_. I must have listened to that album five times a day for about a year. Just yesterday I was scrolling through my iPod for something I haven’t heard in a while and rediscovered it. I was amazed how it still holds up and what a great album it still is. Terrific stuff for a couple of teenagers. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/12 "2011-08-18T19:47:51Z")
I credit my folks’ record collection with making me a Bob Newhart fan. The Button-Down Mind records were awesome. To this day, when I want to make fun of a company I think has shoddy prodcuts, I refer to it as the “Grace L. Ferguson [whatever] and Storm Door Company.” Depressingly few people think it’s funny when I say this. Maybe it’s my delivery. I don’t have Bob’s super-dry style. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/13 "2011-08-18T19:55:26Z")
I liked my dad’s Bob Newhart, Bill Cosby, and Tom Lehrer albums. I was not that entertained by his musical tastes. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/14 "2011-08-18T20:24:47Z")
My dad’s albums that I liked: Roger Miller (greatest hits) Tommy Makem and the Clancy Brothers (The Boys Won’t Leave The Girls Alone; Isn’t It Grand, Boys) Ray Charles (greatest hits double album) Harry Belafonte (greatest hits, also a double album, I think) Bill Cosby (Wonderfulness; Revenge) I still listen to the Clancy Brothers quite a bit. I think my least favourites were The New Christie Minstrels and [The 12 String Guitar of Glen Campbell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_12_String_Guitar_of_Glen_Campbell). Oddly enough, once my dad switched to cassettes, he only listened to country music. ---
**Author:** ![lawoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@lawoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawoot)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/15 "2011-08-18T20:27:25Z")
Tom Lehrer’s [An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Evening_Wasted_with_Tom_Lehrer) Reiner and Brooks [2000 and Thirteen](http://www.amazon.com/2000-And-Thirteen/dp/B002WUQ4CY) Spike Jones - [The Best of Spike Jones and his City Slickers](http://www.amazon.com/Best-Spike-Jones/dp/B0012GMZVS) and an album that they got as as a premium at a gas station featuring American music - it had _Rhapsody in Blue, Slaughter on Tenth Avenue, Adagio for Strings, Putnam’s Camp_ (Ives), the _Overture to Candide_ and _A Real Nice Clambake_ from Carousel. An interesting mix, and it helped me appreciate various forms of music. ---
**Author:** ![Busy\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@Busy\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Busy_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/16 "2011-08-18T20:33:27Z")
My Dad grew up in 1960s Liverpool, UK, so you can guess what he was listening to. Yep, country and western. Buck Owens to be precise and the Bakersfield sound - must have had 20 albums. Never made much sense to me - he had some more mainstream country stuff like Merle Haggard, Charlie Pride, Waylon Jennings etc that was good to listen to as a kid. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/17 "2011-08-18T20:44:19Z")
The only records my mom ever had were some Vicki Lawrences and some Olivia Newton Johns and maybe a Carpenters or two. I think my dad had a record of fishing songs once. If it weren’t for my uncle, I don’t think I’d even know what music is. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/18 "2011-08-18T20:47:31Z")
When I was a teenager, my dad’s comedy albums. Specfically Allen Sherman and the Smothers Brothers. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Evil\_Prince\_Zorte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@The\_Evil\_Prince\_Zorte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Evil_Prince_Zorte)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/19 "2011-08-18T20:48:16Z")
Like others, I didn’t take much to their general music collections, but I listened to their novelty records over and over. Mostly Bill Cosby’s “Wonderfulness”, “I Started Out as a Child”, Allan Sherman’s Peter and the Commissar, and a bunch of 45s of Stan Freberg, Homer and Jethro, and Spike Jones. I can’t hear Stars and Stripes today without thinking of the chorus of Homer and Jethro’s [Crazy Mixed up Song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4Jp6o6D-UI). ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2011, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204/20 "2011-08-18T21:18:02Z")
Raiding has that secret quality to it and I never did that, but I borrowed stuff from my dad all the time. I still do when I visit home, except now I just load it onto my iTunes. So we skip the stage where my dad can’t find his copy and blames me for not putting it back. 😃 I got most of my Band albums from him, and a lot of Hendrix and Allman Brothers shows. I’ve done some extensive raiding of my little brother’s CDs, too. That’s where a lot of my Coltrane albums come from. I got Blue Train, Soultrane, and Dakar from his collection. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-raid-your-parents-record-collection-what-made-an-impression/593204.md?page=2)