Recently had a work colleague, who suddenly passed away, He had a will for all the essential things, but there was no provision for his large Record and CD collection, He lived alone and his son has no interest whatsoever in music, he’s happy to donate to local charities or just bin the lot, if they are not interested, which seems a tragic waste to me. So this got me thinking, what plans if any, do fellow music lovers have for their collections when we reach the end of the road.
I’ll send my playlist to my kids.
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Mrs G can keep what she wants and has useful suggestions how to dispose of the rest. If we both go at the same time, well then it’s someone else’s problem.
My collection is of no significance to anyone other than us, so it can all go in the skip. I’ll be dead and in no position to care or object.
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Most of it, landfill I’d think…after all, they’re not the music, just recordings - most of which were issued in the thousands if not more.
I’ll sell the rare ones before I peg out - assuming I’m not hit by a bus out of the blue.
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A very small number of albums or CDs where I have explained the significance and/or financial value and would like them kept (or sold for an appropriately expensive amount but, at the end of the day, it’s someone else’s call.
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I think the best thing to do would be to catalogue everything on Discogs so it’s easier for relatives to sell for sensible values. That may be too much hassle for my daughter though…
I haven’t really worried about it though because my collection will have served its purpose by then.
Let’s face it most of one’s belongings get sold for less than market value because beneficiaries rarely have the time to try to get market values. It becomes about expediency more than anything really.
Why worry, you’ve enjoyed them so that’s what’s important. I remember haggling with a buyer for my house once until I realised we were arguing over £5000 on a £140000 house and it was going to amount to about £10 a month on the mortgage - not worth worrying about…
JonathanG
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My servers tells me, I have 14,869 albums - I guess now most this stuff is on streaming services, somebody will switch the server off and they will find theirway to landfill.
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All very true.
After living in my mother’s attic for 30 years, when she died I gave my LPs to my nephew who expressed interest in them. I was never going to transport them across the Atlantic and trying to cherry pick some to keep would not have solved the quantity problem.
Charity is the best option. They have people who can look at a large collection and decide if it’s worth hauling it to a depot to sort through.
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That’s the option I’m looking at the moment, although I hope not for a long time!
If it’s an esoteric collection - say 1980s breakdance electro. The charity broker would usually put a random bundle up for auction to sellers.
If it’s a shedload of Phill Collins then it’ll go into landfill.
Unfortunately it seems vinyl is difficult to recycle,
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Either i get a commitment from my adult children that they won’t just squander several thousands of pounds worth of records and cds, or as I’m being cremated I’ll have them all packed around me in the box and I’ll take the lot with me!!
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That’s what you may have paid for them but in reality try and off load a CD or even a vinyl collection and it is worth buttons.
CDs are about 10p if you can find someone to buy them and vinyl a few quid if you’re lucky.
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It’s all going to get very warm with me then!!
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I am speaking from painful experience thinking I was sitting on a goldmine. Even vinyl which people pay a fortune for - finding a dealer (most of them run on a shoe string) with capital enough to shell out a few grand is difficult.
Selling them off one by one on discogs or eBay is fine if you have the time and can wait around for a buyer.
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Burning vinyl will give off harmful toxic fumes. This may well upset the local authorities.
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If they’re happy to burn me then the vinyl should not be an issue! I’ll make sure they have fresh filters!!
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Interesting topic I have an experience last Saturday night whilst listening in the dark in our music room with a lovely glass of wine.Mary Chapin Carpenter was playing along nicely when an almighty crash sent me in the direction of my maker. Lights on and 200 of my CD collection had hit the floor a glass sided CD storage unit had collapsed in one side showering glass everywhere Mrs R came running offering support glad I was still alive but if not she said she would cleared up finished the wine and boxed up the CD collection for charity to save money on buying another rack, so now I know… Heartless or what!
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To be fair you said it was a lovely glass of wine, so it would have been a shame to let it go to waste. 
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