The Holy Lights of Baltimore Md - Hard Times/It's Getting Late

Yesterday felt like one of those record-collector days where life decides to throw a few surprises your way.

A friend last week had given me the number of a woman who wanted to sell her late father’s 45s, so I arranged to meet her yesterday morning. Of course, as I'm heading out the door, the roofing crew shows up to finish my roof. After only five and a half days, I think they were as happy to see the end of the job as I was.

Before meeting the lady, I had seen a yard sale listed that was just outside of town advertising albums. Record collectors know the drill: if you aren't early, you're late. I got there and found three large boxes of LPs plus another stack sitting off to the side. The seller casually says, "They're a dollar apiece."

Now you're speaking my language.

The first few records I pulled were older jazz LPs, so a pile started forming immediately. Digging through the boxes uncovered plenty of jazz and soul titles, but then I got to the separate stack. Black Gospel albums. All of them. One was even on my beloved Peacock label, which pretty much guaranteed it was coming home with me.

I moved the stack aside and started counting. The seller watched me and asked, "You really want those gospel albums?"

Ah...YES. Yes, I do.

By the time the dust settled, I walked away with 75 LPs for $60. That's the kind of math record collectors understand without needing a calculator.

Then I met the woman with the 45s. After looking through them, I found only one record I wanted. She told me to just take it. I offered her $ as I don't like to take things for free, but she replied, "I'm a woman who, once I've made up my mind, that's that, and I won't take the money."

At that point there is only one acceptable response:

"Yes, ma'am."

The roof crew finally wrapped up, and I spent the rest of the day recording some newly acquired songs, including this morning's selection, and attempting the impossible task of organizing my record room. I even managed to get a few artists filed properly before getting distracted by another discovery: Halloween records.

Apparently I've accumulated enough spooky 45s to program Halloween music for the next several decades. Good thing, because the records keep finding me faster than I can file them.

Today's record comes from The Holy Lights of Baltimore, Maryland, often listed simply as The Holy Lights. The cogs of Dis has this as a 1979 reissue of a 1974 recording. While digging, I run across Savoy 45s all the time, but every once in a while one follows me home and reminds me why I keep crawling through dusty boxes in the first place. The thrill of the hunt is real, and yesterday it paid off in gospel, jazz, soul, and a free 45 from a lady who clearly wasn't interested in negotiating with record collectors.