Reply
Mon 14 Nov, 2011 07:25 pm
We libarians (intentional misspelling) have a bunch of rules to ensure consistency (that great god of librarianship).
Here's some cases where the rules drive me nuts.
First up sorting artists/musicians alphabetical by last name.
Alice Cooper.
Strictly speaking the band was called Alice Cooper - so early recordings should be sorted under A. But circa 1973 the lead singer, Vincent Furnier, adopted the name 'Alice Cooper' and the band no longer existed as a separate entity. So after that point recordings should be sorted under C. But what about old studio outtakes and demos recorded in 1969 but not released until 2000? AAAAAAAAGHHHHH! Wouldn't someone browsing quite reasonably expect the recordings pre and post Cooper comma Alice to be filed together?
Then there's Booker T. and the MGs
Should go under 'T' - but even I file under B.
And what about DJ this and MC that? Do you file them all under D or M or file them by the second bit, which is often a first name rather than a last name, if it's a name at all.
I knew a milkman who bought a record store in the early 80s.
He grasped the last name first thing with white knuckles.
He filed Jethro Tull under T.
The Steve Miller Band under B.
and best of all...
XTC under C.
@hingehead,
I was never sure if Melanie was easy or impossible for him.
Eons ago, when Dewey Decimal still ruled, I worked for a famous NYC art library. My job was to find misfiled title/subject cards. I found a bunch filed under Angelo, Michael. Someone didn't know his surname was Buonarroti.
@Green Witch,
That's freaking hilarious - and like anyone would look under B for Michaelangelo anyway.
The 5 Royales challenge me too.
I've treat the 5 as a number (whereas I treat the FOUR Seasons as a word). You drop the 'The' of course.
Of course trying to find 'The The' in a library catalogue that treats 'The' as a stop word is so much fun.
hinge
I remember all these things.
You make me glad I'm no longer acting as a librarian - or even Liberian - or Libarian. Still think a bit like one, though!
Bloody 2pac stuffs me to - he recorded as 2Pac - was born Parish Lesane Crooks, adopted the name Tupac Amaru Shakur, and is commonly referred to as Tupac.
Cataloguing the Silk Road project. Very concerned about pipa player Wu Man. Pretty sure Wu is the family name which means it should be filed as Wu, Man - but how can I be sure? She was born in China in 1963 but now lives in the US. What do her friends call her? Man sounds weird as a girls' name. Asian names are such a pain for librarians.
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace