Record Store Recollections

[BillF]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012/apr/15/record-shops-shaped-lives?INTCMP=SRCH

[Pete C]

I remember getting jazz recommendations from Harry Lim at Sam Goody's.

[A Lark Ascending]

I'm starting to get nostalgic about my first download site.

[AfricaBrass]

I used to live in record stores. I miss them so much. I made some great friends and discovered amazing music.

[johnlitweiler]

Made some of the best friends of my life while working or hanging out in record stores.

[Chuck Nessa]

Made some of the best friends of my life while working or hanging out in record stores.

John is one of the great friends I made in a record store.

[Victor Christensen]

Those were the days, they were not just record stores, they were places to hang out. I have fond memories of Diplom Radio here in Copenhagen (Chris A. used to come there). I bought my first 10" LP there "Mulligan with Chet Baker", very expensive, a french import, that was in 1952, I was 16. Then later Music Bristol Center, were they sometimes had jams, and then later again Steves Book and Records, Steve Schein is an american who has lived in Denmark for many years. Now there is only one left here in Copenhagen "Jazzcup", I never go there, when ever I buy something nowadays, I do on the net, mostly Jazzmessengers in Barcelona and Amazon.uk.

Vic

[Chuck Nessa]

Sorry to hear Steve's Book and Records is gone. I purchased a bunch of stuff from him the one time I was there.

[BeBop]

Made some of the best friends of my life while working or hanging out in record stores.

Amen. Records stores for me were THE source of discovery. Conerts, from time to time, might send me a new direction. But there was nothing like sitting around, spinning LPs with Rick Ballard, Berigan Taylor, Tom Madden for finding something new. Now, we've got sound samples, YouTube, this forum; then, we didn't even have the internet. Or computers. Ah, good old days.

Sorry to hear Steve's Book and Records is gone. I purchased a bunch of stuff from him the one time I was there.

Another Amen. I can recall a great conversation about Berkeley (and all things American) as I fished kroner from my pocket...and ultimately, my wife's purse. Big ol' picture of Bud on the wall.

[Eric]

I used to live in record stores. I miss them so much. I made some great friends and discovered amazing music.

Yeah man, could not agree more.

To a certain extent, this board fills a bit of the void many of us feel ...

[ValerieB]

i remember buying my first "jazz" record from a store on Mass. Ave. in Boston. can't come up with the name of the store right now. it was approx. 1953 and i thought i was so "hip" purchasing "Chet Baker Plays and Sings"!! it was the small-sized lp, whatever that was called. i still have it!

believe it or not, a record store has opened up right near me in Santa Monica. i think it moved from another location and i think it's called Record Surplus. haven't been in there yet. i know i did a double-take when i first saw it!

[jeffcrom]

As much as I complain about what a cultural wasteland Atlanta can be, reading this thread makes me feel lucky. I regularly hang out in half a dozen or more "record stores" - one of which is only a block from my house. These range from stores like Wax 'n' Fax and Records Galore that mostly sell used vinyl to places like Decatur CD that sell mostly new CDs. One or two even have 78s. In most of these places, the owners know me, know my tastes, appreciate my business, and generally look out for me. Collectively, these stores constitute my primary third place.

[BeBop]

Yes, Valerie. Record Surplus moved from a spot they had on Pico forever. It was a big two floor warehouse full of pretty good, but usually picked-over stuff at reasonable prices. I haven't been to the new location, but it's probably worth a visit, unless your tastes run toward the non-mainstream. They may have a heap of really cheap stuff, uncategorized.

There are still stores opening here and there (Oakland, Salt Lake City) but they usually don't offset the losses.

[Christiern]

Those were the days, they were not just record stores, they were places to hang out. I have fond memories of Diplom Radio here in Copenhagen (Chris A. used to come there). I bought my first 10" LP there "Mulligan with Chet Baker", very expensive, a french import, that was in 1952, I was 16. Then later Music Bristol Center, were they sometimes had jams, and then later again Steves Book and Records, Steve Schein is an american who has lived in Denmark for many years. Now there is only one left here in Copenhagen "Jazzcup", I never go there, when ever I buy something nowadays, I do on the net, mostly Jazzmessengers in Barcelona and Amazon.uk.

Vic

I remember Diplom Radio very well. I used to hang out there with Haandstad, I painted the mural on the back room wall, and designed their record catalog. I also loved a second hand record shop in Copenhagen called Concerno, which Dan Morgenstern also frequented in the post WWII years.

And Pete C., I also remember going to Sam Goody's when Harry Lim, Timme Rosenkrantz and Jeff Atterton all worked there, and I have fond memories of Dobell's Record Shop. I went there once wearing a shirt Lil Armstrong has tailored for me—Johnny, a guy who worked for Doug almost fainted and offered me quite a sum for the shirt. I didn't sell it, but I gave it to the National Jazz Museum in Harlem a couple of months ago. In London and I used to pop into the HMV store on Oxford Street. Remember when one selected the records and took them into a listening booth?

MP3s just don't have that certain something, do they?

[brownie]

Spent a lot of my leisure time in record shops. Lots of fond memories of many of them.

The one that sticks in my mind is the Rare Records store in Teaneck, N.J., that was run by Rod Baum and his wife. Discovered it in 1994.

The racks were full of hard to find albums, many of them at friendly prices. If the price was a bit high, Rod was ready to negociate a discount.

Durfing my first visit there, Rod Baum was also the one who pointed out the Jazz Records Collectors Bash gathering that was being held the following weekend. Baum was one of the organisers of the event. A collector heaven!

His shop later moved to Hackensack, then to Ridgefield Park, N.J. That was my last visit to Rare Records (and the USA) some eight years ago.

Hope Rare Records are still in business!

[sidewinder]

"...or a Samantha Fox tune on pink vinyl.."

[JohnS]

It's shame they've gone but frankly I can't say I miss them that much. The excitement of discovery has now gone for me, presumably it's an age thing.