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RIP Columbia House

My album collection began with 10 or so Columbia House selections. This was in the Fall of 1980. I don’t remember all, but History - Americas Greatest Hits was one. I listened to it not long ago - sounds great!

The funny thing is that I was in the Army at the time, and did not even have a stereo. I listened to cassettes only, on a Pioneer jam box (JVC made the most popular ones). During this period, almost nobody had turntables - almost exclusively cassette players in their setups in the army barracks.

I collected albums for several years, and it wasn’t until ‘84 that I finally got a turntable and full stereo.
 
I got 2LPs from the Columbia Record Club. One was a Status Quo album which I never played and the other was Bruce Springsteen Darkness On The Edge Of Town which is a favourite to this day.
 
Thank you columbia house and bmg. When I was young and so poor I couldn't even pay attention you kick started my cassette and cd collections over and over again.
 
Oh so many decades ago when I was a teen a friend explained that Columbia House and /or RCA Record Club tracked your membership by address, not by name meaning you could sign up using your name, get your 12 records for .03, send them a fictional new address to throw the angry " must fulfill membership requirements" letters off and then you could start a new "free " membership by making a slightly different address by adding " Apt. #1, or Apt.B. etc.
Before you judge keep in mind I was a teen at the time testing the limits.
I know I still have a J.Geils record and the CSNY Four way street album from the record club.
 
Now that you mention that, I think I did the same, used my home address, my college address, my girlfriend's address. The only guilt I feel about it is that I learned later that artists don't get paid for any of these free (i.e. "promotional) items. so if you had a buy 1, get 11 free deal, they only get royalties on the one you actually paid for.

But as a penniless college student that wouldn't have made a difference to me. It was either use the record clubs or tape them off my friends (which admittedly I did quite a bit as well).
 
I worked at the Colorado City Columbia warehouse in picking and shipping orders in about 93-94. Sent myself at least four boxes of cds. Most popular titles being ordered were Ozzy No More Tears and Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magic if my memory serves me right. It was a cool job.A lot of walking but with your Sony Walkman it was all good.
 
superdog said:
I worked at the Colorado City Columbia warehouse in picking and shipping orders in about 93-94. Sent myself at least four boxes of cds. Most popular titles being ordered were Ozzy No More Tears and Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magic if my memory serves me right. It was a cool job.A lot of walking but with your Sony Walkman it was all good.
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Surprised that hick-town had an actual industry. Must have been out of someones pole barn. LOL
 
Hajidub said:
Surprised that hick-town had an actual industry. Must have been out of someones pole barn. LOL
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It was actually in a giant warehouse right off the interstate.I think it was used to make/ process/ ship ?? either Ray-O-Vac or Ever-Ready batteries in the 70s and 80s. Columbia House had a pretty big operation there and their main one in Terre Haute Indiana.I think it was going there in the waning days of their massive mail order operation. It was closed by the mid late 90s.
 
I probably was one of the rare honest ones and I actually ordered everything from them that I was bound to by the agreement. The ads that would appear in the mail didn't have that much good stuff, but you could order away for the larger catalog which had all kinds of much better stuff. I would do that, make my picks and even having to buy a couple of CDs that were full price (overpriced!), I managed to get some decent titles that I didn't pay much for.

Nowadays, with all of the $1-2 CDs available nearly everywhere, such a thing wouldn't really be worth it, but at the time CDs were really expensive so it was a good deal.
 
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