Vinyl fans and traders tell of love for LPs as sales soar

Lifelong music lover Tim Laws searches for another LP to add to his collection

While more than four fifths of recorded music is consumed via streaming, vinyl continues to make a comeback.

Sales rose by 11.7% to 5.9 million units in 2023, increasing for the 16th year in a row, according to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) trade group.

BBC News spoke with traders and customers in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire about the LP's enduring appeal.

Some of the colourful LP sleeves on display at Spin-It Records in Hull

Tim Laws sifts through dozens of LPs in The Beatles section of Spin-It Records in Hull's Trinity Market. He's hoping the Fab Four can add some Sixties sparkle to his family's New Year's Eve celebrations.

Established in 1993, we are in what the owners claim to be the UK's oldest vinyl-only record shop. More than 15,000 LPs and 7,000 singles, many with weird and wonderful sleeve designs, adorn the shelves.

Mr Laws says: "I'm 64 years old and I've loved music and records my whole life. Records are like books - they last forever."

Putting aside the temptation to suggest the 1967 hit When I'm Sixty-Four, we ask Mr Laws to elaborate on the appeal of vinyl when people have access to decades of hits on their smartphones.

"With downloads and CDs, music is compacted," he explains. "You tend to lose those highs and lows contained in the music.

"But with a record, providing you have a quality player, you hear the music exactly as the artist intended."

Mr Laws tells us he still has a Hacker record player, bought when he was 15.

"I got it on hire purchase from Radio Rentals. My dad signed the paperwork," he recalls.

Another customer Andy Smithson, 56, can relate; he still has his 1979 Technics player, which he says remains "in perfect condition". Mr Smithson says he is drawn by what he terms the "visual aspect" of records.

"If the music is rubbish, you're still left with a good piece of artwork," he says, sifting through a rack of 45s. "There's nothing quite like a record in terms of quality. It's a richer sound. Downloads just do not have the same appeal."

Andy Smithson says he is drawn by the "visual aspect" of vinyl

UK vinyl sales are at the highest level since 1990, as the revival of the physical music market continues. However, it's not just proving popular among veteran fans.

Shop assistant Diane Waudby reveals their customers span generations, adding: "Taylor Swift LPs are really popular with the young 'uns."

In fact, Taylor Swift's 1989 (Taylor's Version) was the nation's best-selling LP of 2023, followed by the Rolling Stones' Hackney Diamonds.

Ms Waudby reports students, in particular, are also snapping up vinyl albums by artists such as Elvis Presley and Fleetwood Mac.

In Leeds, Nick Fraser, owner of Jumbo Records, which has been selling LPs since 1971, paints a similar picture. He says there is a huge range in customers, from young teenagers buying their first LP to people rediscovering vinyl later in life.

He says younger customers seem to be more interested in music from different genres and eras.

By way of example, Mr Fraser says a young person might come in for a Taylor Swift album but also pick up records by Aphex Twin or Fleetwood Mac.

"People seem to be much more open-minded and that's lovely," he says.

Nick Fraser, owner of Jumbo Records in Leeds, says people are becoming more open-minded about music

Record Plant opened in the town of Farsley, near Leeds, in October.

John-Paul Craven, one of its four co-owners, said: "The kind of revival people talk about has been happening for 10 to 15 years, really, and I think for us it's not showing any real sign of slowing down."

In Lincoln, Jim Penistan who owns Back To Mono record shop, says the introduction of the first iPod in 2001 triggered a slump in sales of records, cassettes and CDs. But he says vinyl sales have rocketed post-2010.

"You feel closer to the artist when you listen to a record," he says. "People want LPs to show they are a real fan."

According to Mr Penistan, the likes of Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and Blondie are proving popular to "young females".

"They appeal to the trend celebrating strong women," he says.

Dr Jo Twist, the BPI's chief executive, said the resurgence of vinyl "underlines the resilience of the UK music market" at a time when streaming consumption continues to hit record levels.

She added: "Whilst LP sales have now been on an upward path for the past 16 years, it is encouraging to see a stabilisation in demand for CD, as well as new generations of music fans falling in love with the cassette.

"It is giving people more choice than ever in how they enjoy their favourite music."

Back in Hull, in the Grade II listed Hepworth's Arcade, Fanthorpes HiFi is celebrating its 75th year of trading.

Fanthorpes has been selling sound systems in Hull since 1948

Marc Fanthorpe, the grandson of founders Arthur and Laura Fanthorpe, talks of "gear addicts", with some customers shelling out several thousand pounds on turntables to obtain the purest possible sound.

Mr Fanthorpe adds: "This industry is constantly reinventing itself. As a trader, you think, 'how will it get past the next technological stage?' - but it always does."