Photographer Eilon Paz left Israel in 2008 to try his luck in New York. At the time, the crisis was beginning and finding work was becoming very difficult. All he managed to get was a job as a salesman in a vinyl record store. It was there that he got the idea to make a project about record collectors.
Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners
Paz met all types of collectors. He liked the ones who had special collections, like only copies of the Beatles' White Album or only Sesame Street records. And while all the collectors were different, they had something in common.
Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Joe Bussard holds up one of his rarest vinyl records in the basement of his Frederick, Maryland home. The paper sleeves are all faded in the middle, the result of Joe constantly going through, sorting, and pulling out his favorites. He's been collecting them for 60 years. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners In January 2011, Paz traveled to Ghana with Frank Grossner. They met Philip Osei Kodze, an 80-year-old man from Mampong, who invited them into his home to look at his vinyl record collection. He hadn’t listened to records in 30 years because he couldn’t fix his turntable. When they first played a record, his reaction was unexpectedly emotional. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Alessandro Benedetti of Monsummano Terme, Italy, holds a Guinness World Records certificate for the largest collection of colored vinyl records. Here he is at the home he shares with his father Marinello (right). Alessandro is holding a copy of Ozzy Osbourne's album Bark at the Moon. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Andy Carty, also known as Mr. Dirty, is from Manchester, UK.Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Miriam Lina and Billy Miller in Brooklyn, New York. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Oliver Wang, a Los Angeles-based vinyl record collector, composer and music journalist, with his home collection. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners While packing "treasures" during a move from London to the Philippines, Keb' Darge takes a break to listen to Teddy McRae's Hi-Fi Baby. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Joey Altruda, a Los Angeles collector. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Eoten Alapatt is a Los Angeles based collector. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners Sheila Burgel is a Brooklyn, New York-based collector who specializes in girl bands. (Eilon Paz)Incredible Vinyl Record Collections and Their Owners DJ Shame at his home in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. (Eilon Paz)