Music is popular all over the world and can be enjoyed in almost every setting. From singing your heart out to a tune in the shower to a summer BBQ in your background, music has a place in many areas of life, which is why it comes as no surprise that Brits streamed roughly 160 billion tracks last year.
However, one of the many disputes in music is how it should be listened to. Some believe that the latest headphones offer the best sound quality while others listen on an original vinyl player as a more pure way of hearing your favourite artists. If you’re on team vinyl, then you may be aware that some vinyl records can cost significantly more than others. This means that listening to the most iconic songs on your vinyl player could cost a lot of money.
To show you just how much these vinyl discs can cost, we’ve put together a list of the most expensive vinyl records around the world. Read on to discover which singles and albums will set you back the most.
John Lennon and Yoko Ono: Double Fantasy (1980)
This record sold for a whopping $150,000 in 1999 and is one of the rarest in the world. The reason this record sold for so much is because it had been signed by Lennon on the day of his death, making it one of the last ever signatures John Lennon gave.
The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
It’s not every day you stumble across a record that’s been signed by each of The Beatles and that’s why this one sold for so much in 2013. This album signed by John, Paul, Ringo and George sold for $290,000, which is more than 10 times the expected fee that the organisers of the auction were expecting.
Elvis Presley: My Happiness
How much would you pay to hear the very first recording of the legendary Elvis Presley? Well, Jack White of the White Stripes valued it at $300,000, when he bought it in 2015.
The Beatles: The Beatles (White Album)
The Beatles are certainly popular among vinyl disc collectors and they feature again with their White Album selling for $790,000 in 2015. The specific album sold was a very special one for two reasons. One, it was owned by Ringo Starr and two, it was the very first copy of the album as it bears the serial number ‘0000001’.
Wu-Tang Clan: Once Upon a Time in Shaolin
Finally, we have the Once Upon a Time in Shaolin from Wu-Tang Clan, which was sold for $2 million to infamous Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli. This is a one-of-a-kind record and the purchase contract included a clause that meant an owner could not sell the album for at least 100 years.
Ownership of vinyl records continues to rise in the UK but most people will be priced out of the ones mentioned above. Fortunately, you can build a vinyl collection full of great albums on a much lower budget.