WFMU puts positive spin on fair

Imagine rows and rows of vintage vinyl records from bygone years, and boxes of CDs representing every genre, plus live music and radio broadcasts—30,000 square feet of pure joy for serious collectors and casual listeners alike. Welcome to the annual WFMU Record Fair, held this weekend Friday through Sunday at the Metropolitan Pavilion.

The fair, in existence for 15 years, is organized by the WFMU 91.1 FM, a freeform radio station that gives DJs complete freedom over the playlists. This philosophy has clearly extended to the fair, as the multitude of vendors sell everything from Afro-funk to vintage rock to jazz.

Station manager and program director Ken Freedman got the inspiration for the fair in 1990 when a WFMU benefit proved to be a good way to attract attention to the radio station.

“We started the WFMU Record Fair as a way of raising extra money for WFMU while celebrating our love of music and records,” Freedman said. Now, more than 15 years later, caters to over 4,500 people.

Of course, the main specialty at the fair is the impressive collection of old vinyl provided by the numerous independent dealers present. Indeed, the prices can range from $20 for the more common records to thousands of dollars for the true collector’s pieces.

Freedman admitted that this focus usually attracts an older crowd, but with vinyl making a comeback, younger people are flocking to the fair.

Along with all the products for sale, WFMU also hosts live events. This year, groups as diverse as The Trashmen, known for their surf and rock ‘n’ roll style, and La Cumbiamba eNeYé, who use instruments from indigenous cultures of both Europe and Africa, played at the fair. There are also countless broadcasts from the fair by WFMU DJs such as Billy Jam and Michael Shelly.

Freedman acknowledges some difficulties in organizing the fair: “Everything is really chaotic,” he said. “There is so much going on and it’s so overwhelming, especially since our full time staff is so small.” There are only five people working full time on the project, and there certainly is a lot of work to go around.

Money, particularly, also represents a problem for the fair. “We are perpetually scrapping for money,” Freedman said. “We try not to fundraise more than once a year, and this fair is a great way of getting more cash through the admission fees.”

But despite the difficulties in organization, the record fair has become instilled in the music world as one of the most extensive fairs in the city, if not the country.

As Freedman said, “We are obviously passionate about music and this fair is a way of expressing that.”