For the record, they're still making vinyl

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — That dusty stack of records in your parents' basement? They're not as retro as you might think.

Many record collectors, DJs and music junkies still consider vinyl the gold standard of recorded music — scratches, pops and all.

That enduring appeal has helped Nashville's United Record Pressing, which cranks out 20,000 to 40,000 records a day, making it one of the largest — and last — vinyl record manufacturers in the country.

"Folks thought we had disappeared," owner and CEO Cris Ashworth said.

Started in 1962, the plant is as much a throwback as the shiny black discs it produces. The interior is dingy, the '70s decor like a vintage garage sale and the air is a stale blend of ink and cigarette smoke.

Where the vinyl goes

Ashworth, 56, sat down for a recent interview, along with an ashtray and a pack of Merits. He hardly looked the part of dance-music guru, but 60 percent of his company's records are by rap, hip-hop and R&B artists such as Justin Timberlake, Beyonce, Black Eyed Peas, Christina Aguilera, Ludacris and Krayzie Bone.

Most of the discs are 12-inch singles destined for professional DJs at radio stations and dance clubs who still use vinyl records and turntables to mix, scratch and blend music.

"The record labels use us as a marketing tool to get that new track out there," Ashworth explained. "They'll come to me on a Monday, want it out on Wednesday and played Friday or Saturday night at a club or radio station."

Typically, the company will press four versions of the same song: a radio and club mix, as well as an instrumental and a cappella version so DJs can mix and manipulate the sound.

Another portion of United's product goes to retail stores, where vinyl is preferred by amateur DJs, collectors and purists convinced that the sound is superior to CDs.

Why vinyl's cool

"Vinyl has a distinct sound," said Doyle Davis, co-owner of Grimey's New & Preloved Music, a Nashville store where 15 percent to 20 percent of sales are vinyl. "You hear people use adjectives like 'warmer' and 'more round.'

"And there are other things beside sound quality. People know what the song titles are. It's not like, 'I like track 5.' You put the needle on and let it play through — not jump around. You have more of an intimate relationship with the music."

Vinyl records use analog technology, whereby a physical groove is etched into the record mimicking the sound wave. CDs, on the other hand, transform sound into digital packets of information.

"No one ever doubts the quality of vinyl over any other format that's ever existed," said George Sulmers, a Nashville-based club DJ who spins classic funk and soul discs under the name Geezus. "I understand why change happened, but I don't think there was a valid need for the change."

The means of music delivery continues to evolve. Digital downloading has eroded CD sales. Some artists are skipping CDs entirely and releasing new music online for the casual listener and on vinyl for DJs and hardcore fans.

But vinyl still accounts for a small percentage of total music sales. Last year, 858,000 LPs were sold, compared with 553.4 million CDs, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Ashworth believes the data are skewed, though, because a lot of vinyl is sold in mom-and-pop stores not reflected in the SoundScan numbers.

A record-making relic

His company has managed to thrive by picking up business from competitors in a shrinking market. Today, he has only 13 competitors compared to several dozen before CDs took over. Revenues hit $5 million in 2004 and grew to $7 million in 2005. And yet the plant remains a timepiece with its rumbling presses that jar the floor, noisy blasts of compressed air and vats of blue nickel solution used to create the master discs.

Ashworth regards it a relic of Nashville's past, every bit as important as the old RCA studio where Elvis Presley and the Everly Brothers recorded, or the Ryman Auditorium where the Grand Ole Opry enjoyed its heyday.

"We want to be the last vinyl plant standing, no matter what," he said. "There is no other plant that looks like this in the country. This is an antique."