Incredible collections of vinyl records and their owners

Photographer Eilon Paz left Israel in 2008 to try his luck in New York. At that time, it was the beginning of the crisis and it became very difficult to find a job. All he managed to get was a job as a salesman in a vinyl record store. It was there that he came up with the idea to make a project about record collectors.

Paz met collectors of all types. Most of all, he liked those who kept special collections, for example, only copies of The Beatles '"White Album" or only records of "Sesame Street". And although all the collectors were different, there was something in common between them. "Collecting vinyl records is much more difficult than collecting MP3 records. It is expensive. They weigh a lot. You have to constantly monitor the collection. Even to listen to a record, you can't just turn it on and forget about it. It requires attention. I think people who collect vinyl have a lot more respect for music."

Joe Bussard shows off one of his rarest vinyl records in the basement of his home in Frederick, Maryland. In the middle, all the paper packages are faded-the result of Joe constantly going through, sorting, and pulling out his favorites. He has been collecting this collection for 60 years. (Eilon Paz)

In January 2011, Paz went to Ghana with Frank Grossner. They met Philip Osei Kojo — an 80-year-old man from Mumpong, who invited them to his house to look at a collection of vinyl records. He hasn't listened to them in 30 years because he can't fix his record player. When they first played the record, his reaction was unexpectedly emotional. (Eilon Paz)

Alessandro Benedetti from Monsummano Terme, Italy, holds the Guinness Book of World Records certificate for the largest collection of colored vinyl records. In this photo, he is in his house, where he lives with his father Marinello (right). Alessandro is holding a copy of Ozzy Osbourne's album Bark at the Moon. (Eilon Paz)

Andy Carty, also known as Mr. Dirty, is from Manchester, United Kingdom.

Miriam Lina and Billy Miller in Brooklyn, New York. (Eilon Paz)

Oliver Wang, a vinyl record collector, composer, and music journalist from Los Angeles, with his home collection. (Eilon Paz)

In the process of packing the "jewels" during the move from Back in the Philippines, Keb Darge breaks off to listen to Teddy McRae's Hi-Fi Baby. (Eilon Paz)

Joey Altruda, a collector from Los Angeles. (Eilon Paz)

Eoten Alapatt is a collector from Los Angeles. (Eilon Paz)

Sheila Burgel is a collector from Brooklyn, New York, who specializes in girl pop groups. (Eilon Paz)

DJ Shame at his home in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. (Eilon Paz)