It Is, In Fact, Record Store Day
Apr 16, 2011 Record Stores
Did you know that today was, we kid you not, Record Store Day here in the states and, apparently, internationally as well? I didn’t know this until somebody sent me this link of depressing photos of record store closings. In any case, the idea is to patronize your favorite record stores so they can ostensibly avoid being on the next list of depressing photos of record store closings. We endorse the message and the concept wholeheartedly and, if we can, we will do our part by visiting one of the record stores participating in the venture. You should check out the site. There are quite a few stores participating in the celebration — perhaps some you’ve never even heard of — and some quotes and other stuff about record stores. I, for one, really miss many of my old favorite record stores and it would be a sad day indeed if we were not able to walk into a store and see bins and bins of used jazz vinyl, hoping to find that one Blue Note or Prestige gem hidden among the rest.
Tags: Jazz Vinyl, Record Store Day
A Trip to a Well-Stocked Record Store
Mar 15, 2011 Record Stores
I’m out in San Francisco for a couple of days and I had a couple of hours to kill so I checked out a record store in Redwood City, The Record Man. It was an interesting experience and probably a shop you want to check out if you’re here, although I wound up not purchasing anything. I’d say the jazz inventory at this store is the largest I’ve seen anywhere, shelves and shelves of records and you get the feeling there’s even more where that came from. You need a ladder, which they provide, and some stamina to go through the records. There’s a lot of stuff, which means a lot of stuff to wade through, but there are also collectibles buried within, although I didn’t unearth any rare Blue Notes or Prestiges. I did find a few nice Verves I was interested in and a couple of vocal records. One of the challenges is that none of the records is priced, so whatever you pick out you don’t know how much it is going to cost you until you go to the counter. There the owner, Gary, who was quite warm and chatty, goes through a process of looking up recent prices from Popsike, supplemented with a Goldmine Price Guide. I suggested he also check out the Jazz Collector Price Guide for pricing information, and perhaps he will. In any case, I brought a small batch of records
A Guide To Jazz Vinyl in Amsterdam
Jul 8, 2010 Guest Columns, Record Stores
The other day we mentioned the idea of posting guides to record stores in various cities to help traveling jazz collectors all over the world. Our first response is from Maarten Kools with this guide to shopping for jazz vinyl in Amsterdam and nearby environs. Enjoy.
