I used to order by genre and had these divisions:
Pink Floyd (about 15 entries)
Non-Synth New Wave/Jangle Pop/Power Pop
Emo
Goth
Classic Rock
Other Rock
Non-Rock, Non-classical (f’rinstance, rap or trip-hop)
Classical
But then I realized that categorizing some bands was just too difficult (f’rinstance, at what point would I put an artist in the “Goth” category? We can all agree on Xymox and Siouxsie, but what about the Cure and New Order? If them, then why not OMD and Concrete Blonde?) I was confusing myself as to which genre the artists were in, and also, the whole “Genre” thing is fun to debate but I don’t want to pidgeonhole an artist by placing them in a section with others.
So my collection is now alphabetical by artist. Except Pink Floyd (and solo Syd Barrett) is at the top. Having around 200 CDs my one case is overflowing and I’m well on my way to filling another one which I haven’t bought yet. So on a bookshelf there is my Elvis Costello along with all my classical (don’t ask). And in my tinier CD case there is all my CDs I haven’t listened to for more than a year, to make room for the larger case that I keep closer to my computer.
The singles are alphabetical by year. The LPs and CDs are alphabetical and chronological, with compilations and soundtracks at the end; these are arranged by label. Within sections, records/CDs are filed Promo first (if I have one), Commercial first issue, Reissue (includes Mobile Fidelity / DCC / other imported and/or remastered editions - so four different issues of “Dark Side Of The Moon” are together, rather than by the year they were reissued). 78s are arranged by label and catalogue number. I make no genre distinctions. The Beatles have their own section (group/solo). With 12,000 + records, I am running out of wall space! They are arranged on shelving that runs floor-to-ceiling on three and a half walls of my room.
To keep track, I have a relational database that I was working on when I checked on new threads in this forum! Just yesterday, my copy of Joel Whitburn’s “Top Pop Singles 1955-2002” arrived at my door, and “Bubbling Under The Hot 100” is coming next week. Now I can finally assign release dates and chart numbers to everything that fell outside the Top 40! (Hooray, at last!). I will be working on the database for many years to come. It’s a big improvement over the years when I kept the list longhand in binders!
I used to put them with the most recently played at one end. That way I could keep track of things I hadn’t heard in awhile.
Now I do it alphabetically by artist.
My Taxonomy
By Genre - with compilations (store bought or mix CD’s) at the front
By Alphabetical Order by Artist
By Chronological order - with best of’s first
Genres:
Stuff my wife will listen to that I like, too - mostly mainstream rock, with some trip hop and techno
Blues
Aggressive stuff - metal, hard rock, alternative
50’s doo wop and rockabilly
Soul, Funk, R&B and Rap
Jazz
Classical
and then a small corner for CD’s I don’t like but need to hold onto…
I do alpha by artist, then alpha by cd. Except for my Depeche Mode collection, which goes in chronological because I’m a big Depeche Mode nerd.
Alpha by artist, then alpha by CD, currently. I’ve been toying with the idea of rearranging to do alpha/chrono after I move in August, but I’m not sure I’ll get around to it. And it’ll stay alpha/alpha on the computer, because it looks tidier that way.
I once tried to do things by genre, but it got tedious and occasionally confusing and I decided it wasn’t really worth it for me.
The problem with doing it by genre is that I’d end up with a few artists whose albums are spread out across my collection, and a few that don’t really belong anywhere.
Genre is a real problem for artists that crossover, too. Why would you want Neil Young spread out over country, jazz, big band, techno, rock, etc.?
And Bob help you if yer a fan of electronica. You’d need a genre list to keep track of everything (“now, is this 2-step Neoprogressive Jungle House, or is it really Retro Trip Hop Happy Hardcore Dub?”)
The vinyl (about 4 or 5 feet of it) is strictly alphabetical by artist.
The CDS by genre (jazz and standards; world music; classical; Christmas; everything else), then alpha by artist, chronologically within artist. Compilations, soundtracks, etc. go in alpha. order by title.
Can anybody recommend a software app that will do stuff like sort by players, songs, as well as genre, title, et al?