Finding Minnesota: Altoona man's collection contains more than 40,000 records
ALTOONA, Wis. — Larry Daken's Al Jolson record is nearly 100 years old but it's contemporary compared to many of the other 40,000 records in his collection.
It all began 23 years ago.
"I was in an antique store and there was a Victrola. I thought that would be kind of neat to have one of them. I never had one," Daken said. "I started playing the records and that did it. From then on, I was stuck."
He couldn't stop buying vinyl — country western, rock-and-roll, the classics — but also, recordings of historical events and even old commercials.
Safe to say, Daken's vinyl has found its groove. It's taken over his Altoona, Wisconsin basement, and it got to the point that he spent 10 months cataloging and creating a record library that runs into the laundry room.
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From some of the oldest to some of the rarest.
"Like the Miles Davis jazz record — $1,000 there they say it's worth," Daken said.
Most of what he has are LPs. He finds them on Craigslist, eBay, thrift stores and garage sales.
It's a collection that's, admittedly, spun out of control. But it also means Daken has become a record historian. He can tell you who has the most expensive record of all time — he just doesn't know who they are
Wu-Tang Clan, a New York City hip hop group, made just one physical copy of their seventh studio album and encased it in a jewel-encrusted box, making it extremely rare and extremely valuable. But the album was a little after Daken's time.
"I've heard of them before that. I never heard their music," Daken said.
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Nonetheless, the music doesn't stop — Daken's basement is proof of that.
"I have so many that I haven't listened to most of them because I'll never live that long," Daken said. "To me, it's like a time capsule. I travel. It's amazing."
Daken has sold some of his collection but says he's still on the lookout for more — he's just more selective now as he tracks down rarer and harder-to-find records.