In my early days, there were certainly not as many tools available to help select new albums to buy as there are today. Personal computers and the internet did not exist, therefore preview clips were not available. Some record stores had copies of records available that they would play for you. Listening posts became available later on, but these only contained the most popular music. Certainly I was interested in some of the popular music, but I was always interested in discovering something new.
New albums from bands I already knew and loved were almost automatic purchases. With bands I knew but had inconsistent albums (in my opinion), a new release was a risk. Fortunately, one of my friends would usually be a fan and would purchase a copy, so I’d be able to hear it first, then decide.
Radio play was another opportunity to hear cuts from new albums. AM radio ruled the airwaves where I grew up, and there were only a couple of FM stations available. There were a couple of AM stations focussed on the music I liked. If the new album had at least a couple of songs I liked, then I’d be comfortable purchasing the album. The FM stations were much more eclectic, tending to focus on full albums, the selection of which were at the discretion of the host. This was definitely like panning for gold: while you had to sift through a lot of music, when you hit something you liked, you did hear the whole thing.
With no other help available, I had a couple of other criteria I used in making a decision. I’d look through the album credits. If there were musicians on there that I knew and liked, whether they were part of the band, or session help, that would factor into the decision.
Album art was another factor. If I was unable to get any other information from looking over the album, the cover art helped make the decision. Was it funny? Quirky? Show the band? Display a scene I found appealing? All these things fed into my record buying 6th sense.
Another factor was the nationality of the band, and where it was recorded and produced. If you’ve cruised through this site, you may have seen I was a self proclaimed Pompous Ass. At that time of my life, I put a premium on British bands. If the band was British and the album was recorded in England, then it got a checkmark in my decision process.
So this is the arcane little process that crawled through my mind as I flipped through the record bins searching for new music. I’ll have to go through my collection and let you know my win/loss record. Stay tuned for that!