What is it about spinning vinyl?

@reubent -- Bad assed album. Even the US pressing of the first album is fabulous compared to the UK, which is polite sounding by comparison. Second album of theirs, also on Swirl, is equally brilliant, but sadly, the US pressing is terrible. I was fortunate to find a UK copy in top condition. Ollie Halsall, while generally unknown, was apparently very influential, and brought a vibraphonist's sensibility to his guitar playing, doing tap harmonics on lead lines. Mike? Patto eventually went to Spooky Tooth if memory serves.
 Most people know the label, if at all, b/c of Black Sabbath or possibly Gentle Giant, but that catalog had some real "head" stuff for the era-- Patto is great, ditto the first May Blitz and if you are into "prog," both Cressida albums on Swirl are wonderful (the UK of their 2nd album, Asylum, is now 4 figures for a minty copy). I got in late, but still found some bargains along the way. Some of the stuff isn’t really "me"- the Catapilla albums, while rare (particularly the 2nd one) are pretty strange; ditto Dr. Strangely Strange-Heavy Petting and some others. However, there are some jewels in there-- and of course, Sabbath rocks really hard on the early UK Swirls. (first through Vol4 released on Swirl until they left the label).
I’m always telling people the best value in these is the 1970 Annual- UK pressing- a two record "sampler" of tracks from some pretty recherché albums. It gives you a taste of some of the great stuff without the heavy tariff, although it’s been some years since I shopped that album.
You are invited anytime! :)

You guys are funny.  And so repetitive.

We tend to forget that listening to music is a 100% subjective experience, and the state of mind is the key component that dictates the experience.

As with many things in life, the returns are commensurate with the effort we put in. With LP, we are actively engaging ourselves in the process of listening to music. With the LP ritual we leave the world and our worries behind, and we prepare our minds to listen to music. If you are healthy and able and complain about it (legitimate health reasons are exception!) shame on you - are we so atrophied as a species that taking a black disc out of its cover and laying it flat down on a spinning surface defies our abilities and endurance?
With digital we miss this step of concentration. The modern smartphone user can only handle the push of a button, and whines when he is forced to take five steps. So, we start the playlist and our brain continues in "this is usual background listening" mode and it's unwilling to zone on the experience. Our lifetime habit with playlists is superficial listening, and your brain will not forget decades of training simply because we upgraded our streamers or got a better DAC....

There is a lot to the physical act of playing vinyl that makes it interactive and fun there is no soul to a digital download or file on a computer.

I think “what it is” with vinyl is the sound. It’s better.  Not to sound like the brain police or anything (who?).