# Did Anyone Else Ever Sign Up for Columbia House Records/Tapes ?



## MarkinPhx (Mar 3, 2019)

I signed up back when I was in grade school. I think I still owe them around $10


----------



## RadishRose (Mar 3, 2019)

Yes, my parents did. LP albums.


----------



## Aunt Bea (Mar 3, 2019)

No, but I did get into a similar mess with a book club.

I remember my mother put on her best telephone business voice and shut them down then she hung up the phone and the rest, as they say, is history!

_“That which does not kill us makes us stronger.”_  - Friedrich Nietzsche

I think Nietzsche was referring to my mom! layful:nthego:


----------



## fuzzybuddy (Mar 3, 2019)

Oh, yeah. You had a form to fill out each month. It had a bunch of real dog records, from which you could select one. If you didn't send ithe form in, they would send you the "Selection of the Month" I never remembered to send in that form in, and getting "The Best Of The Beatles as sung by Lester Glump's Rag Time Band",  I think I only have to buy 3,247 more records to end my contract.


----------



## MarkinPhx (Mar 3, 2019)

fuzzybuddy said:


> Oh, yeah. You had a form to fill out each month. It had a bunch of real dog records, from which you could select one. If you didn't send ithe form in, they would send you the "Selection of the Month" I never remembered to send in that form in, and getting "The Best Of The Beatles as sung by Lester Glump's Rag Time Band",  I think I only have to buy 3,247 more records to end my contract.



:lol:


----------



## Trade (Mar 3, 2019)

I got taken in by those scammers when I was about 13. Ended up getting billed for some overpriced crap records that they sent me and I didn't return in time. They sent me several threatening letters when I didn't pay up. Then one of my friends clued me in to the fact that since I was a minor the so called contract I had with them was not valid. So I sent them a letter informing them of that fact. I think they sent me one more threatening letter and then quit. Haven't heard from them since.


----------



## CeeCee (Mar 3, 2019)

Yes and I had totally forgotten about it until now...it was such a great deal in the beginning, lol.


----------



## Trade (Mar 3, 2019)

CeeCee said:


> Yes and I had totally forgotten about it until now...it was such a great deal in the beginning, lol.



Yeah. They would send you a list of about 100 records and you could pick out something like 12 of them for the price of one cent. And there were actually 12 records on there that you actually might want. So you went for it. Then next month they would send you a flyer with 100 records on it and you were supposed to buy one. Only trouble was they were all crap except for the ones you had already bought. And if you didn't buy one at their price that was about double retail plus shipping and handling they would send you one of the crap ones anyway and give you 10 days to either buy it at their ridiculous price or send it back which involved taking it to the post office and paying to send it back to them. If you didn't do that they billed you for it anyway. I might have gotten some of the details wrong, it was almost 60 years ago, but that was the gist of how the scam worked.


----------



## Sassycakes (Mar 3, 2019)

I was lucky growing up because a friend of my Dad's loaded juke boxes. So he always saved me and my sister all of the new records that he had to load the juke boxes with. He always had spares so it was never a problem. I can't tell you how many hundreds of records we accumulated.


----------



## norman (Mar 3, 2019)

Yep, what a mess...book club, yep....classical music, yep...columbia record club, yep.  I am thinking about starting a recipe club for people who can't boil water.  sign up here...:lofl:


----------



## CindyLouWho (Mar 3, 2019)

That's a fun memory I'd forgotten about. Bought quite a few albums from them...I want to go back to that age and time and give them a spin again.


----------



## applecruncher (Mar 3, 2019)

Didn't belong to Columbia, but I remember sending a $2.00 money order for "24 Original Happening Hits".  :laugh:  (saw a TV commercial)


----------



## jujube (Mar 3, 2019)

Trade said:


> Yeah. They would send you a list of about 100 records and you could pick out something like 12 of them for the price of one cent. And there were actually 12 records on there that you actually might want. So you went for it. Then next month they would send you a flyer with 100 records on it and you were supposed to buy one. Only trouble was they were all crap except for the ones you had already bought. And if you didn't buy one at their price that was about double retail plus shipping and handling they would send you one of the crap ones anyway and give you 10 days to either buy it at their ridiculous price or send it back which involved* taking it to the post office and paying to send it back to them.* If you didn't do that they billed you for it anyway. I might have gotten some of the details wrong, it was almost 60 years ago, but that was the gist of how the scam worked.



AND THEN, they'd claim they didn't get it back.  Or that your "pass card" never arrived for that month.  Big mistake getting involved with that company.  I got out, thank goodness.


----------



## HazyDavey (Mar 4, 2019)

O' ya, Columbia Record Club I remember it well. I think I still have some of those old records around here somewhere. Years later when we where playing somewhere, I would make an announcement to the audience that I'd just signed a record deal with Columbia Records..     Then tell'm the rest of the story.


----------



## applecruncher (Mar 4, 2019)

HazyDavey said:


> O' ya, Columbia Record Club I remember it well. I think I still have some of those old records around here somewhere. Years later when we where playing somewhere, I would make an announcement to the audience that I'd just signed a record deal with Columbia Records..     Then tell'm the rest of the story.



:lofl:


----------



## moviequeen1 (Mar 4, 2019)

Yep,I also was in this club when I was in my late teens early 20's.
I enjoyed getting the cassettes in the beginning,then I lost interest


----------



## MarkinPhx (Mar 4, 2019)

I am trying to think if there is a current business model similar to the messy one Columbia House had but can't think of one.


----------



## MarkinPhx (Mar 4, 2019)

Reminds me of the old K Tel commercials !



applecruncher said:


> Didn't belong to Columbia, but I remember sending a $2.00 money order for "24 Original Happening Hits".  :laugh:  (saw a TV commercial)


----------



## Trade (Mar 4, 2019)

MarkinPhx said:


> I am trying to think if there is a current business model similar to the messy one Columbia House had but can't think of one.



If by similar you mean specifically designed to rip people off I can think of a few. 

Rent to own.
Payday advance
Car Title loans
Reverse mortgage.

I'm sure there are others.


----------



## MarkinPhx (Mar 4, 2019)

Great examples !



Trade said:


> If by similar you mean specifically designed to rip people off I can think of a few.
> 
> Rent to own.
> Payday advance
> ...


----------



## Pinky (Mar 5, 2019)

Geez, I'd forgotten the Columbia Records and Tapes Club scam .. ended up with so much music I never listened to.

Someone mentioned the Book Club. Fell into that one too.


----------



## fmdog44 (Mar 5, 2019)

Sassycakes said:


> I was lucky growing up because a friend of my Dad's loaded juke boxes. So he always saved me and my sister all of the new records that he had to load the juke boxes with. He always had spares so it was never a problem. I can't tell you how many hundreds of records we accumulated.


I'm guessing all the kids in your neighborhood suddenly claimed you as their best friend!!


----------

