Arts & Culture

Earlier this year the Toronto Reference Library ordered 100 new records – for the first time since records were still the most popular way to listen to music – to add to the Arts Department's vinyl collection. About 90 of them have landed on our shelves, and I've got photos of the new arrivals!

The records are all up on the fifth floor of the Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge St.). It's not a lending collection, so you can't sign them out, but we do have two turntables (with headphones, although you can bring and use your own if you like) that you can use to listen to any record we have.

NOTE: If you're eager to listen to any of this music at home, click on the links below to find out what we have in the way of CDs and music to stream via the library website.

The new records were chosen from four categories, the first of which was rock and pop. I personally own 14 of these 25 albums and have heard all of them but one (sorry, R.E.M., I'll get around to Murmur one of these days). 

Next up is hip-hop and r&b, both of which were sadly under-represented before these arrived. And really, what kind of record collection doesn't have any Stevie Wonder, Prince, Aretha Franklin or James Brown, or any hip-hop at all? Wu-Tang Clan, Run-D.M.C., Missy Elliott and A Tribe Called Quest in the house library!

The library already had a large number of jazz albums on vinyl, but was somehow lacking classics like Kind Of Blue by Miles Davis, A Love Supreme by John Coltrane, and Time Out by The Dave Brubeck Quartet.

The final category was Canadian albums, including Light In The Attic's fantastic Native North America: Aboriginal Folk, Rock, and Country 1966–1985 compilation and several Polaris Music Prize winners: Caribou - Andorra (2008), Fucked Up - The Chemistry Of Common Life (2009), Feist - Metals (2012), Buffy Sainte-Marie - Power In The Blood (2015) and Kaytranada - 99.9% (2016). Also ordered but not pictured because it hasn't arrived yet; Tanya Tagaq - Animism, which won the Prize in 2014. 

For a closer look at some of our records you can also search the hashtag #tplvinyl on Instagram, or visit our Discogs.com account (which currently lists about 2,500 of the 15,000+ records in the collection).

Below is a complete list of the 100 albums being added. To search the collection on the TPL website,  you can add the word "vinyl" to any title, artist or album search (or type "vinyl" into the search box to see the entire list!).

Rock/Pop

1. Rubber Soul – The Beatles

2. Let It Bleed – The Rolling Stones

3. Highway 61 Revisited – Bob Dylan

4. Pet Sounds – The Beach Boys

5. London Calling – The Clash

6. The Velvet Underground and Nico

7. Electric Ladyland – The Jimi Hendrix Experience

8. Nevermind – Nirvana

9. Horses – Patti Smith

10. Pearl – Janis Joplin

11. Murmur – REM

12. Like A Prayer – Madonna

13. Born In The USA – Bruce Springsteen

14. To Bring You My Love – PJ Harvey

15. Dummy – Portishead

16. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust – David Bowie

17. Ten – Pearl Jam

18. Parallel Lines – Blondie

19. Tapestry – Carole King

20. Who’s Next – The Who

21. Dusty In Memphis – Dusty Springfield

22. The Hot Rock – Sleater-Kinney

23. Burnin’ – Bob Marley & The Wailers

24. IV – Led Zeppelin

25. Rumours – Fleetwood Mac

R&B/Hip-Hop

1. Illmatic – Nas

2. It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back – Public Enemy

3. Criminal Minded – Boogie Down Productions

4. Aquemini – OutKast

5. People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths Of Rhythm – A Tribe Called Quest

6. Mecca and The Soul Brother – Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth

7. Paul’s Boutique – The Beastie Boys

8. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

9. Under Construction – Missy Elliot

10. Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde – The Pharcyde

11. Raising Hell – Run DMC

12. The Chronic – Dr. Dre

13. All Eyez On Me – 2Pac

14. Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) – The Wu-Tang Clan

15. Doggystyle – Snoop Dogg

16. Curtis – Curtis Mayfield

17. I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You – Aretha Franklin

18. Sings The Blues – Nina Simone

19. Live At The Apollo – James Brown

20. Songs In The Key Of Life – Stevie Wonder

21. Tell Mama – Etta James

22. Stand! – Sly and The Family Stone

23. Purple Rain – Prince

24. The Dictionary Of Soul – Otis Redding

25. Betty Davis – Betty Davis

Jazz

1. Kind Of Blue – Miles Davis

2. A Love Supreme – John Coltrane

3. The Shape Of Jazz To Come – Ornette Coleman

4. Ella and Louis – Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong

5. Time Out – The Dave Brubeck Quartet

6. Mingus Ah Um – Charles Mingus

7. Saxophone Colossus – Sonny Rollins

8. Somethin’ Else – Cannonball Adderley

9. Soul Station – Hank Mobley

10. Song For My Father – Horace Silver

11. Speak No Evil – Wayne Shorter

12. Out To Lunch – Eric Dolphy

13. Midnight Blue – Kenny Burrell

14. Lady In Satin – Billie Holiday

15. Genius Of Modern Music, Vol. 1 – Thelonious Monk

16. Genius Of Modern Music, Vol. 2 – Thelonious Monk

17. Smokin’ At The Half Note – Wes Montgomery

18. Back At The Chicken Shack – Jimmy Smith

19. Head Hunters – Herbie Hancock

20. Idle Moments – Grant Green

21. Meets The Rhythm Section – Art Pepper

22. Our Man In Paris – Dexter Gordon

23. Waltz For Debbie – Bill Evans

24. Thelonious Monk With John Coltrane

25. Birth Of The Cool – Miles Davis

Canadian

1. Blue – Joni Mitchell

2. Music From Big Pink – The Band

3. Up To Here – The Tragically Hip

4. Twice Removed - Sloan

5. Funeral – Arcade Fire

6. Moving Pictures – Rush

7. ‘F# A# Infinity – Godspeed You Black Emperor

8. Metals – Feist

9. Reconstruction Site – The Weakerthans

10. Surfacing – Sarah McLachlan

11. Native North America, Vol. 1: Aboriginal Folk, Rock and Country 1966 – 1985 – Various Artists

12. You Forgot It In People – Broken Social Scene

13. Absolute Torch and Twang – k.d. lang

14. The Chemistry Of Common Life – Fucked Up

15. Animism – Tanya Tagaq

16. Andorra – Caribou

17. Power In The Blood – Buffy Sainte-Marie

18. 99.9% - Kaytranada

19. Sundown – Gordon Lightfoot

20. Shine A Light – Constantines

21. Jagged Little Pill – Alanis Morrissette

22. Afterparty Babies – Cadence Weapon

23. New Seasons – The Sadies

24. Rufus Wainwright – Rufus Wainwright

25. Take Care – Drake