According to a report in the Sunday Gleaner of May 31, 2015, Patricia Chin, co-founder of VP Records, says the label is celebrating the revival of vinyl. The veteran producer, who started the label with her late husband Vincent Chin in 1979, and has pushed reggae and dancehall music in the international market for over three decades, says the label has already started to re-press old vinyl records.
Ms Chin, who spoke with The Sunday Gleaner at the recently concluded Best of the Best festival in Miami, contends that vinyl is the heart of the music industry, and represents the true sound of music. "I feel happy and positive that they are bringing back the vinyl, because it was very popular 50 years ago, and it's like gold ... it never changes. You get the real sound like in the studio, if the vinyl is not the heart of the music, then I don't know what is," said Miss Pat, as she is affectionately known.
At Best of the Best, VP Records erected its own museum as Miss Pat and her staff used the event as an avenue to promote Jamaican music, as well as raise awareness of the almost fairy tale journey of reggae and dancehall genres. Among the items on display were T-shirts, photos of iconic musicians, an old school cassette radio, a turntable, and of course, vinyl records.
Miss Pat reportedly told The Sunday Gleaner that while the youth are attached to new technological developments, over time, they will grow to appreciate vinyl. "There will always be a fan-base for the vinyl, and the youth will catch up. The sound systems are there, and I am mostly happy to see when some persons from the new generation are pulling towards the collection of vinyls. The youth will want to connect with their past, because that is the only way they can know their future," she said.
According to Miss Pat, the mathematics of cost will find a way to work itself out. "Fifty years ago, there were not many turntables, they were expensive and people found a way to get them, so we can do it from scratch. The factories are still in Jamaica, we just need to reopen them. Companies are there who have rights to music and were struggling because of the CD takeover. For VP Records, we have 50 years of music in our collection and we intend to start pressing even more," she said.
She disclosed that the label had increased the pressing of vinyl records for Shabba Ranks and Yellow Man among others. "We have Channel One vinyl, Gussy Clarke vinyl, Penthouse vinyl, Prince Buster and so much more, but in the coming years, you will see more," she said.
