Thrift Stores And Album Art, My Only Vices

I’m a nearly perfect husband. I squeeze the toothpaste from the bottom, I don’t leave clothes on the floor, and I never, ever leave the toilet seat up. With 7 daughters, I dare not.

I don’t have many vices, either. Not counting chocolate, peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, and Ben and Jerry's New York Super Fudge Crunch, I have only two vices.

Thrift stores/flea markets are one of my favorite pastimes, a hobby my wife, Kelly, taught me to appreciate. I am amazed and amused by the relentless shelves and stacks and piles of stuff, some of it rare, some of it valuable and useful, much of it worthless, and all of it interesting.

VHS tapes used to be my focus, as Kelly and I loved to find a romantic comedy for $1, get take out sweet and sour chicken, then snuggle up in front of the couch when the kids weren’t home.

Now, with Netflix, we don’t need VHS tapes, so I focus on books and vinyl albums when we go thrifting. Actually, I just look for album covers. I have all the music I want on CD and iTunes. I don’t have a turntable, so I’ve never listened to any of the albums in my collection.

I am pretty choosy about what albums I add, with 3 main criteria:

• I only buy albums that are significant to me, meaning they were something I listened to as a younger person.

• I only buy albums that have artwork that I like, and deem worthy to put in a frame and hang on my wall.

• I only buy albums that don’t cost much, $2 or $3, with a rare $5 splurge.

My most recent addition is Chet Atkins Picks on the Beatles. Mr. Atkins, CGP is one of the most talented and prolific musicians ever, and, of course, I’m a big Beatles fan. The sleeve notes on the back by George Harrison are funny.

Other recent purchases are the Everly Brothers (I named one of my children after them, that’s how much I like the Everly Brothers), Rick Nelson, and Fleetwood Mac.

Still others that I have yet to get around to framing are Monty Python, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Harry Nilsson, Paul McCartney and Wings, Young Frankenstein (“what magnificent knockers”), and the Smothers Brothers.

If you had to pick 5 favorite album covers to put on your wall, what would they be?