020423 • Thrift Store Finds

Brandenburg Concertos • I easily have twenty or thirty different renditions of these concertos… but there is a reason it is such a staple of classical music. This two-disc set was in perfect condition, down to the booklet, and only a buck-fifty. It’s sad to me that nobody even knows what this is, and what is considered good music anymore.

Great American Showpieces • This is a timely find as I’ve been listening to a lot of American composers lately.

Not I • This author has written other books on the war, I’d thought he was just another historian, but rather, he’s a survivor of it. I’ve read another first-hand account from a young person’s perspective, it is a part of the war most people don’t even consider.

Mozart / Salieri Concertos • I used to not like the flute in orchestral or small group performances, but after John Williams’ “Rey’s Theme” from The Force Awakens (Never watching that movie again), that one piece changed everything for me. It’s amazing, the power one piece of music can have on one’s view of things.

012823 • Thrift Store Finds

A Touch of Gold • I like these compilations from piano competitions. I spent thirty minutes, using three different cd drives, but couldn’t get anything past the first six tracks to rip to my iTunes, so I had to re-buy this online. I found a shrink-wrapped, new copy for six bucks, which I would have paid anyway (this faulty one was $1.50). Once I listened to a few tracks, I had to do it.

Haydn: String Quartets • I have the other disc to this, so it was a good find.

Thompson: Symphonies 2 & 3 • After discovering the Sibelius symphonies, I’m now very open to new symphonies, especially from not-known-to-me composers. The initial listen was positive. Some of the best music I’ve ever heard, I didn’t like or wasn’t interested in on the initial listen, so who knows what I’ve got here!

The British Are Coming • I have Rick Atkinson’s three-book set on World War II, and this is the first (2019) in a set on the Revolutionary War.

Went to the ARC on 88th and Sheridan, and then to the Arvada ARC at 58th and Independence. Both were really disappointing, especially 88th. They didn’t have a lot of books or cds for some reason. Both stores had a lot of DVD, but there isn’t much I’m going to find in that format that I don’t have. What I am looking for in DVD, or what is left for me to find, isn’t something that would ever hit those shelves. Mostly looking for Blu-ray now. I did see a Blu-ray of Saving Silverman for $5, but with how busy it was, and since I have it on DVD already, it wasn’t quite worth it to go through the trouble to pay an online price for it, and find an employee to open the display case it was in. The Thompson Symphonies was all I bought at 88th, and I almost put it back.

011423 • Thrift Store Finds

I paid full price for most of these. Usually on Saturdays, the “half-off on selected tags” day, I try not to do this, but all of these books were too good to pass on. Still far cheaper than buying them new, or used online.

Modern Submarine Warfare • This book is part of an unofficial set, of which I have several. It’s always nice to find another one!

Atrocities • Not a happy topic, yet a very interesting one.

The Devil’s Hand • Jack Carr has six books out (This is what the Terminal List series with Chris Pratt is based on) and has the distinction of being the first new fiction series I’m adding to my Brad Thor / Vince Flynn / Kyle Mills library of thrillers. I’d like to find the other five at thrifts, to avoid the higher prices, but they are all relatively new, and with the series doing well, that could take a while. I have thirty more books to go in my Brad Thor / Vince Flynn / Kyle Mills re-read, so I have some time before I have to worry about it.

Italy’s Sorrow • Italy’s involvement in World War II is very interesting. When Hitler and Mussolini created the Pact of Steel, it stipulated that when one country got involved in a conflict, the other would join in. Mussolini didn’t realize Hitler would do what he did so soon, as both Germany and Italy still needed years to rebuild their militaries. Italy was farther away from being able to be effective with its armed forces, a key reason why they did so poorly.

The New Tsar • Interesting for obvious reasons.

Had To Fix It…

Aaron Copland composed one of my all-time favorite symphonies, but I haven’t listened to much of anything else he’s composed. I did collect this three-cd set, and was listening to it today, and as it is with some of these cheaply designed cd covers, there was something that bugged me.

The person who designed this cover was looking for a way to spice it up, and make it more original. Either that, or had just learned the Paint Bucket in Photoshop or Fill in Illustrator, saw the closed “O” and “A” on the cover, and couldn’t help him/herself. I find this similar to most modern art, because if one doesn’t accept this as an artistic vision of sorts, well hey, it’s all subjective!

I disagree. It just looks cheap. If you look at the above “A”, it doesn’t even fill accurately. This was done very quickly, something I’ve noticed on so many of these low-volume classical discs.

So, I fixed it by redoing the covers, so that I’m no longer irritated. I think it looks a lot better without the fill.

On Volume 2 and 3, I did too much contrast to the photos and it’s a bit washed out, but I’m leaving that for now.

There is a page dedicated to my compact disc cover restorations on my portfolio site. Most of the discs I get from thrift stores require some sort of touching up.