From John Peel’s record collection to the history of scratching
People who like vinyl, really like vinyl. And when you cherish something so much, naturally you want to spread the love. That’s just what plenty of vinyl lovers have done via the medium of documentary.
As part of our vinyl special, we have collected some of the best related documentaries around. They include a delve into the private record collection of one of Britain’s legendary radio DJs, everything you could want to know about the turntablism movement, a profile of a man who spent more than 100 hours a week manning the desk in the same record shop for over 40 years, an exploration of the psyche of an obsessive record collector, and much more.
In their own unique way, each captures part of the essence of vinyl culture, from the completists to the factories producing the records and of course the cast of characters that populate the stores, clubs and bars where vinyl is sold, traded and – most of all – enjoyed.
Most are under 90 minutes long (though one is only nine minutes) and a lot of them are free to watch on YouTube. Enjoy.
Stuck in the Groove (2021)
One of the great things about the vinyl revival pushing on is that we are still getting a slew of relevant content around it. Last summer, DJ-turned-music/film-producer Taylor Golonka released his missive on vinyl mania and the evolution of records, taking the viewer on a 90-minute, nostalgia-soaked spin predominantly through interviews with collectors, record store owners and mastering and manufacturing experts on their love of vinyl, the perpetual longing for vintage sound and the record-related stories that have shaped them. It finds a nice balance – lightheartedly brass tacks at times, educationally technical at others.
Vinyl (2000)
For the fans, by a fan, Vinyl sees Toronto filmmaker and avid record collector Alan Zweig explore, not vinyl albums themselves, but rather what inspires people to start collecting them in the first place – and the emotional attachment, and in some cases obsession and excessiveness, that the hobby can provoke. His own and others’ confessions really open a window into the psyche behind record collecting.
Scratch (2001)
Before going on to write and produce the HBO docu-series The Defiant Ones (which chronicles the legendary careers of Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine), American filmmaker Doug Pray made a feature-length documentary on the story of the hip-hop DJ, from the
