MUSIC MAN: SCOTT CITY MAN HAS OVER 5,000 RECORDS AND THOUSANDS OF COMPACT DISCS

Wipfler loes all kinds of music, from country to hard rock, from easy listening to rap. His vast music collection includes a number of sound systems to play his favorite tunes.

Jason Kluender and Dana Hoff choose their wedding reception music from Wipler's collection.

Charlie Wipfler describes himself as a party animal.

And a major compliment to his party animal life is his music collection -- everything from the Benny Goodman Orchestra to the latest from Boys II Men -- that he has parleyed into a small business.

Two rooms that were bedrooms at one time have wall-to-wall racks and cases of albums, cassettes, reels and compact discs.

Wipfler's vinyl album collection totals in excess of 5,000 and he has about half as many compact discs.

"I like music," he said laughingly while sitting in the middle of a room filled with the lyrical contraband.

Wipfler, 50, of Scott City said he first purchased a Hank Williams Sr., 78-speed record in 1952 or '53. Since then he has had a passion for acquiring music.

"I would have little parties over here to clean out the garage and play the music for friends," Wipfler said, "and after people would come over and hear it, some of them started to call me later and ask me to do it somewhere else."

That was more than 15 years ago and in the late 1970s, Wipfler started a roving sound-system business. Today he has seven sound systems taxied around the region in six vehicles.

"It's still a hobby for me," he said. "This just supports my habit."

And his habit is undoubtedly music.

If Wipfler wanted to hear every original song he had on vinyl, estimates are that he could hear a different tune night and day for about 100 days. Not to mention what he has on compact disc, tapes and reels.

"Some of them are duplicated," he said. "This isn't a collection."

Wipfler said if he was a collector, he would have never taken the albums, compact discs, cassette tapes or reels out of their packaging. He said by breaking the seal, the music or the package loses value.

"But I enjoy it that way," he said. "A collector can't tell you what it sounds like or anything else about the music. He can just tell you what it's worth. I can't even begin to tell you what this is worth."

Wipfler's wall-to-wall vinyl collections include boxes with the categories, "Charlie Daniels," "Waylon, Willie and Jesse," "Conway and Loretta," and "Female Country." And each of his cardboard boxes can contain a couple of hundred albums including 33s, 45s and 78s.

But he's not just a country fan.

He's got hard rock, rap, easy listening and just about every other kind of music offered in main stream society. He isn't fond of every type of music, but he said depending on the audience, he can always use some songs in his sound system business, Charlie's Music Review.

Wipfler likes seeing the expression on the faces of high-school-age kids when he walks through the door of their gym to perform for a prom or other school dance.

"They look at me like `What's that guy going to do,'" he said. "It only takes a few songs and then they decide I'm all right."

Wipfler said while traveling around the region he has discovered that different places like different types of music. He said people from around Perryville like a little more rock at their functions.

"Down here they like a little more country or maybe some softer stuff," he said.

With all of his music, Wipfler doesn't have a fast computer to catalog it. He simply knows where most of the music is placed. The catalog is in his head.

"It's really simple," he said. "If someone walks up and wants `Mack the Knife,' that's going to be in a '50s collection, or whatever it happens to be, I can usually find it pretty quick."

Wipfler said his hobby, or business, is doing fine. The music review typically has three or four bookings a weekend. The holiday season is incredibly booked up, he said. A typical four-hour party will cost about $225.

"I make enough to pay for the equipment -- and we go through a lot of that -- and the wear and tear on the vehicles," he said.

Wipfler, the father of three, also has done his share of special school projects and other tasks thanks to his vast music collection. He also has mixed audio tapes for girls participating in area pageants.

Wipfler and a fraction of his collection can be seen most weekends at weddings, school socials, birthday parties, holiday gatherings or other functions.