I'm not dead yet

[mgraham333]

I just got back from a Florida Disney vacation. Made it over to the Virgin Megastore in the Downtown Disney shopping area. I was amazed to see a well-stocked jazz selection. The jazz area was even in its own quiet corner. I think what surprised me most was the nearly dozen or so JVC XRCDs. Unfortunately they were $32 a pop and none came home with me. So while they may be a dying breed, this store has a bit of life left.

[kh1958]

The sole remaining Virgin Megastore in the DFW area--located in an outlet mall in Grapevine near the airport, is currently having a liquidation and closing sale.

[Alexander]

Yeah, I picked up some good stuff when I visited the Virgin Mega Store at Walt Disney World in Florida. I remember being pleasantly surprised. I also remember looking in the reggae section and seeing a HUGE display of every single Trojan box!

[AndrewHill]

This is great news because I'm taking my kids to Disney World for a week in March! Man, I'm really missing actually shopping in an actual store!

[BeBop]

While Virgin's never been my preferred place to shop, it's nice to see that they aren't ALL closing.

[AndrewHill]

While Virgin's never been my preferred place to shop, it's nice to see that they aren't ALL closing.

Agree. I really miss the days when Tower was really, really good. They even had a whole aisle devoted to jazz. This was at least 10 years ago of course.

[sidewinder]

Virgin Megastores sold up in the UK to a management buyout and the chain was renamed 'Zavvi' (daft name, daft store). They were badly affected by the Woolworth's fallout (as their supplier of CDs/DVDs) and are looking as if they might be a crunch victim in early 2009. So Virgin Music has been obliterated here in the UK !

[sidewinder]

Agree. I really miss the days when Tower was really, really good. They even had a whole aisle devoted to jazz. This was at least 10 years ago of course.

Don't even get me thinking about the Sunset Boulevard and London Picaddilly Stores. 'Natural Essence' on Japanese import for $18 at the Boulevard !

Edited December 23, 2008 by sidewinder

[Alexander]

While Virgin's never been my preferred place to shop, it's nice to see that they aren't ALL closing.

Agree. I really miss the days when Tower was really, really good. They even had a whole aisle devoted to jazz. This was at least 10 years ago of course.

I miss the Tower on the corner of Newbury and Mass Ave in Boston. They had not only a jazz aisle, but a whole separate jazz DEPARTMENT. I bought my very first jazz album there ("My Favorite Things" on cassette!) in 1992. Sigh. I just remember how overwhelming it all seemed. A whole room of music I'd never heard before. It was terrifying and wonderful at the same time.

After it closed it became a VERY substandard Virgin Megastore and then a Best Buy. I didn't appreciate how good I had it! The 90s were really a great time for music retail!

[Aggie87]

Agree. I really miss the days when Tower was really, really good. They even had a whole aisle devoted to jazz. This was at least 10 years ago of course.

The Tower in Austin had a whole ROOM devoted to jazz (& classical I believe, my memory is getting rusty).

Those were the golden days, and we didn't even know it.

[Stefan Wood]

Ahh, the Tower on 4th and Broadway in New York....... with the outlet store tucked behind on Lafayette. Those were the days!!!!!!

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Agree. I really miss the days when Tower was really, really good. They even had a whole aisle devoted to jazz. This was at least 10 years ago of course.

The Tower in Austin had a whole ROOM devoted to jazz (& classical I believe, my memory is getting rusty).

Those were the golden days, and we didn't even know it.

Oh, I think we DID know it. On the first floor, Tower on Picadilly Circus had a whole Jazz room (with a tiny bit of World music at one end). And a huge room off the Jazz room, just for Blues and Gospel. There was more Gospel stuff there than in the Gospel specialist shop in Brixton! There was a huge R&B/Soul/Hip Hop/Reggae section in the basement - practically a whole floor! And always good bargains about, as well.

Oh, and the guys behind the counter knew their stuff - whether it was about Jazz or Blues or Gospel. And in Britain, that was RARE!

There was so much choice in London in the eighties/nineties. Sterns, Mole Jazz, Tower, Miracle Music, little holes in the wall in Brixton where you could buy Jamaican vinyl, a bunch of second hand places in Camden Town, and some places in Soho which had huge basements full of cutout LPs arranged according to no discernable criterion. Pooh gosh! I was decently well off in those days and making frequent trips to London for the office, so I got into these places reasonably often.

MG

[gmonahan]

Ahh, the Tower on 4th and Broadway in New York....... with the outlet store tucked behind on Lafayette. Those were the days!!!!!!

And in the *really* old days, occasional journeys to Rose Discount Records in Chicago, with all its LPs numerically arranged by LABEL (and little Schwann catalogs all over the place) and an upstairs floor completely given over to cutouts. The days of my youth!

greg mo

[sidewinder]

Oh, I think we DID know it. On the first floor, Tower on Picadilly Circus had a whole Jazz room (with a tiny bit of World music at one end). And a huge room off the Jazz room, just for Blues and Gospel. There was more Gospel stuff there than in the Gospel specialist shop in Brixton!

I remember when that Tower had a big rack full of the whole series of Jazz 625 VHSs. I should have bought the lot, instead of just the 4 or 5 I did pick up !

Edited December 23, 2008 by sidewinder

[Royal Oak]

Up until 2006, HMV in Manchester had most of the basement dedicated to jazz (and a soundproofed room for classical). It was always very civlised down there. Now they have a tiny corner of the packed ground floor with a very desultory selection (RVGs are as far out as it gets).

In the mid-90s, Stockport (my home town) had a Sam Goody's which had a well-stocked jazz section. The store didn't last too long; it's now a Halifax bank.

I agree with Bob about Zavvi - to paraphrase Private Eye "Shite name, shite store!"

Edited December 23, 2008 by rdavenport

[A Lark Ascending]

Oh, I think we DID know it. On the first floor, Tower on Picadilly Circus had a whole Jazz room (with a tiny bit of World music at one end). And a huge room off the Jazz room, just for Blues and Gospel. There was more Gospel stuff there than in the Gospel specialist shop in Brixton!

I remember when that Tower had a big rack full of the whole series of Jazz 625 VHSs. I should have bought the lot, instead of just the 4 or 5 I did pick up !

I recall - and it can't be more than ten years ago - spending a good hour rooting through a rack on the wall in Ray's (in its Shaftesbury Avenue days) devoted exclusively to Classics CDs. A real experience - would they have the ones I was looking for?

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

to paraphrase Private Eye "Shite name, shite store!"

Not Viz?

MG

[Alexander]

Agree. I really miss the days when Tower was really, really good. They even had a whole aisle devoted to jazz. This was at least 10 years ago of course.

The Tower in Austin had a whole ROOM devoted to jazz (& classical I believe, my memory is getting rusty).

Those were the golden days, and we didn't even know it.

Oh, I think we DID know it. On the first floor, Tower on Picadilly Circus had a whole Jazz room (with a tiny bit of World music at one end).

MG

The Tower in Boston not only had a jazz room, they had a whole (smaller) room devoted to world music!

[Royal Oak]

to paraphrase Private Eye "Shite name, shite store!"

Not Viz?

MG

I was going on Glenda Slag's "Crazy name, crazy guy", but you could be right MG. I've not read Viz for a long time.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

to paraphrase Private Eye "Shite name, shite store!"

Not Viz?

MG

I was going on Glenda Slag's "Crazy name, crazy guy", but you could be right MG. I've not read Viz for a long time.

Nor have I - one of my staff used to bring it in back in the nineties.

MG

[Big Al]

The sole remaining Virgin Megastore in the DFW area--located in an outlet mall in Grapevine near the airport, is currently having a liquidation and closing sale.

Slightly off-topic, but that whole Grapevine Mills is getting depressing. Not only is Virgin closing down, there were about 4 or 5 other big stores that were having close-out sales.

[kh1958]

The sole remaining Virgin Megastore in the DFW area--located in an outlet mall in Grapevine near the airport, is currently having a liquidation and closing sale.

Slightly off-topic, but that whole Grapevine Mills is getting depressing. Not only is Virgin closing down, there were about 4 or 5 other big stores that were having close-out sales.

I think it has something to do with a giant Ponzi scheme headed up by President Bush.

[A Lark Ascending]

It seems a middling British chain is going under on a daily basis at the moment.

The Woolworths collapse (a big chain) has an interesting implication for physical CDs. For some time Woolies and WH Smiths have been the only places you'd find CDs in the centre of a middling market town like Worksop. Only a small selection of popular recordings but at least a place for young buyers to start. With Woolies gone that just leaves Smiths. Soon, if you want the latest Abba Compilation or debut CD by a TV talent show winner, you're going to have to head out to the supermarkets on the periphery.

The end of the CD may be much nearer than even I've predicted.

[BERIGAN]

Agree. I really miss the days when Tower was really, really good. They even had a whole aisle devoted to jazz. This was at least 10 years ago of course.

Don't even get me thinking about the Sunset Boulevard and London Picaddilly Stores. 'Natural Essence' on Japanese import for $18 at the Boulevard !

When I went out to LA in the 90's, I'd hit every store they had. There was an Outlet store as well. Not all that much cheaper, but still.... Even the one in the Valley(somewheres) had some TOM (The Old Masters) cds and the guy ringing me up said it was cool I was grabbing them, because more would come in because of it. Found all sorts of interesting imports at the Sunset store that I never saw at the Atlanta store.

They are closing 3 FYE stores on the south side of Atlanta. Weirdest signs ever! 25% off Storewide clearance event! Everything must go! Guess they don't want folks to think the chain was going under. Sure that is soon to happen. Was 25% off for maybe 2 weeks, then this weekend 50% off(One mall store was as torn up as any store I have ever seen, cds and DVDs on the floor, signage down, looked like some 6 year olds on crack had been in there!) and I was told at 2 of the stores, they are closing on the 27th!!!

They didn't have the all time greatest jazz selection, but it was still a music store. After they close, I don't think I will ever buy a cd in store again.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

It seems a middling British chain is going under on a daily basis at the moment.

The Woolworths collapse (a big chain) has an interesting implication for physical CDs. For some time Woolies and WH Smiths have been the only places you'd find CDs in the centre of a middling market town like Worksop. Only a small selection of popular recordings but at least a place for young buyers to start. With Woolies gone that just leaves Smiths. Soon, if you want the latest Abba Compilation or debut CD by a TV talent show winner, you're going to have to head out to the supermarkets on the periphery.

The end of the CD may be much nearer than even I've predicted.

And WH Smug in small market towns isn't much good - the one in Pontypridd has the top thirty, not usually all in stock.

But at least Ponty has Terry's - a market stall operation which has a surprisingly wide stock. Sells instruments, too.

MG