In spring 2011, New York music journalist Amanda Petrusich convinced her husband, Bret Stetka, to learn scuba diving with her. She invested hundreds of dollars in lessons and gear and trained in a local pool. Then she traveled to Beaufort, North Carolina, where Stetka’s parents have a vacation home, to complete the open-water dives required for certification. And she did it all for one reason: so she could visit Grafton, Wisconsin, and sift through the bed of the Milwaukee River looking for 78 RPM records and metal masters.
What was the inspiration for the book?
That ended up being a sort of perfect storm for me, and I would say probably halfway through the research and writing of the book, I wanted to be a part of that process—I wanted not only my own collection but I wanted some sense that I played a role in protecting this music that was so important to me. Even talking about it now I’m like, “Amanda, that sounds crazy.” I sound like a crazy person. But I got the bug a little bit.
He’s not featured too heavily in the book, but Richard Nevis has probably one of the best collections if not the best collection of 78s in America. He’s an engineer who’s worked at Yazoo Records for many years. I remember riding in a taxi with him, going over the Brooklyn Bridge, and I was trying to talk to him about newer records to find out if he was interested in any music being made now. He was adamant that it all ended with Hank Williams for him. I was like, well, this is insanity.
Coming to this as a music writer, I wasn’t entirely unfamiliar—it’s kind of a dude activity. It surprises me, because some of this music is so beautiful it should theoretically transcend all of that. I did have the opportunity to speak to this fantastic neurobiologist at Johns Hopkins about why this is such a male hobby. He had some interesting theories, one being that the collecting impulse is related to addiction, which also skews a little bit more male. Certain forms of OCD and autism have also been shown to trend a little more male.
How would you say your relationship with music has changed? Or has it?
Four 78 RPM record collectors featured in Do Not Sell at Any Price tell the stories of their favorite finds.
