Author Archives: TVD HQ

Flossmoor, IL | Vintage vinyl and furniture store comes to downtown Flossmoor: Record and furniture store The Conservatory Vintage and Vinyl is having its grand opening Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in downtown Flossmoor. The Conservatory, located at 1042 Sterling Avenue, is the area’s only store that sells vintage furniture and records. In addition to vintage vinyl, the store includes mid-century modern furnishings. Chogie Fields, co-founder and owner of the store with her husband, Anthony, says if she had to be a piece of furniture, she would be a light. “Light guides people, it helps to illuminate things that you can’t see. Light helps you feel comfortable, it gives you peace, gives you joy,” Chogie said. The Conservatory Vintage and Vinyl deals in two trades: vintage furniture, and vinyl records — but maintains the streamlined, curated feel of an art gallery. For this, the owners credit Collete, a shop in Paris, where the couple’s dream to open up their own place was born, 17 years ago.

Devon, UK | For the record – vinyl is back, according to a new documentary: Stars from Radiohead and Pink Floyd feature in The Vinyl Revival, a documentary about the resurgence of the record. Devon filmmaker Pip Piper made The Vinyl Revival as a follow-up to the acclaimed Last Shop Standing, based on the book by Graham Jones. Having been launched in April to tie in with Record Store Day, the film will be screened at the Exeter Picturehouse on July 26, followed by a Q&A with the director. Mr Piper, who moved to Exmouth in September, said Last Shop Standing was about the danger that with the growth in online music streaming, independent record stores could be a thing of the past. “I mean at that point there were 269. There had been 2,200 in the 1980s,” said 55-year-old. “So here was something about which I was just fascinated as a film director, in the sense of losing things from our culture and how important some of these things were.

Storing your vinyl records: You’re a vinyl junkie, always have been. You were there from the beginning, you probably gathered cassettes and CDs too along the way, maybe even some minidisks around 1997, but you were always loyal to the record. Your collection is epic, rare, it spans whole walls. Chances are then, you know it’s important to store your precious library carefully and intelligently, so here are our cardinal rules for getting vinyl storage right… Paper inners become much like a fine grain piece of sandpaper, adding surface noise over the years every time you take your record in and out of the paper inner. Instead, opt for either a delicate plastic liner within a paper inner or as a round-bottomed plastic-only variant. Then, pairing this with an outer sleeve that goes over the cardboard sleeve will go a long way to shielding your record from dust entirely. Choose a light and smooth material – heavy plastic sleeves will weigh onto your vinyl, stick to your artwork, and peel it off over time. With this in mind, you also need a sleeve with plenty of room!

Black Sabbath Prep ‘Vinyl Collection’ With Bonus Rarities: Ozzy-era, vinyl-only collection will include album of mono mixes of their singles, including two that never came out. Black Sabbath wrote the book on heavy, and their first decade’s worth of albums represent the Old Testament in the book of metal. From the clanging opening chords of “Black Sabbath” and lumbering siren’s call of “War Pigs” to the demon’s cry of “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” and proto-thrash riffs of “Symptom of the Universe,” the Iron Man laid the blueprint for the genre on their first eight albums. Those LPs will now make up a new vinyl-only box set, The Vinyl Collection 1970 – 1978, which is due out September 6th. And because die-hard Sabbaholics likely already own the band’s canon, the group is including a reproduction of “Evil Woman” seven-inch (backed with “Wicked World”) and a new 12-inch compilation of their mono singles, dubbed Monomania (a pun off their Sabotage deep cut “Megalomania”), which includes two previously unreleased mixes. The set will be available only as a numbered collector’s edition, limited to 3,000 copies.

Freddie Mercury new music CD and vinyl release date: Exciting news for Queen fans: It is still difficult to accept there will be no new recordings from Freddie Mercury. However, there is still the Holy Grail for Queen fans – lost or archived material. Some have never been released to the public. There was huge excitement recently when a stunning new version of a lesser-known track was unveiled, stripped back to just Freddie’s spine-tingling vocal and a piano. The track is not a Queen song but a cut from the 1986 rock musical, Time. Written by Freddie’s friend, Dave Clark, the Queen frontman covered two numbers for an all-star concept album, including Time Waits For No One. Clark has uncovered the original recordings. It has taken two years to painstakingly remaster them without all the subsequent synthesiser and instrumental tracks. Fan excitement was inevitable and the new video of the recording has already racked up almost 12 million views.

Orlando, FL | Record Store Crawl hauling vinylphiles across Orlando, Saturday, July 20: The Record Store Crawl is back for another day full of viny, shopping, vodka drinks, and more vinyl. Crate diggers will be escorted via coach bus from record store to record store while enjoying music, drinks, and games on Saturday, July 20th from 11:30 a.m. onwards. Tickets are $39.95 and get you a seat on the bus with access to private music performances along the route, which includes popular shops like Park Ave CDs, East West Records, and Rock ‘n’ Roll Heaven. Crawlers will enjoy special discounts at each stop, limited edition swag, as well as lunch and special drinks from sponsor Deep Eddy Vodka.

Dublin, IE | Made In Dublin: The wheels keep turning for Spindizzy Records: “There’s always been a niche market for records.” For some people, vinyl records simply remind them of their parents or grandparents – a relic from a bygone age. But, fortunately for record shop owners, there remains a sizeable cohort of music lovers who prefer 12 inch records to never-ending Spotify playlists. The market for new and used vinyl records and – somewhat surprisingly – CDs has been buoyant in recent years, aided by the convenience and global reach of online selling. However, Enda Gogarty’s involvement goes back much further – he began working in Spindizzy Records in George’s Arcade in the late 1990s, shortly after it opened, and he has been the manager since 2010. “It started off in a place called the Collector’s Centre,” he recalls, “that would have had a militaria place, a poster place, a crafts place, a book place and a very small record shop. It grew from that small stall.”

Columbia, SC | The Strategies That Keep Papa Jazz Record Shoppe Alive: 40 Years Young. Papa Jazz Record Shoppe is 40 years old. And through those years, “Big Money” Mack Spence has dug through the crates. Arriving at the Five Points shop on a recent Wednesday afternoon, Spence warmly greets employees Alex McCollum and Woody Jones, who recount his exploits playing with the R&B group Black Love back in the ’70s, including opening gigs for the likes of Jackie Wilson, Bobby Womack, and Sam & Dave. An old-school picture of Spence — decked in an extravagant red leisure suit, standing on a Columbia riverbank — adorns the desktop of the computer behind the counter. “Man, if you a friend of these guys, then you gotta be alright,” the longtime customer tells Free Times, adding with a chuckle, “Look, I need to put me a cot up in here, man, as much as I’m down here.” This week, Papa Jazz celebrates its unlikely longevity.

Port Fairy, AU | Port Fairy Vinyl Swap Meet will have something for all record-ophiles: Hunting for an original, not re-released, version of your favourite vinyl album? Port Fairy might be your hunting ground with stall-holders are preparing their stock for the 3rd Vinyl Swap Meet. Prehistoric Sounds owner Shane Godfrey said there will be something for everyone, with vendors bringing everything from vintage blues and jazz, hip hop, soul and heavy metal albums. “It’s great to have an event like this down (in the south-west),” Mr Godfrey said. “People love records because they are tangible and tactile, it’s something you can hold. “When you put a record on the turntable you tend to take more notice of the music, it is not just background noise.” While some highly sought-after limited-release titles, such as Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs or The Coloured Balls, are likely to be snapped up in the first hour, there will be plenty of gems still in the crates.

Read More »

An Open Letter to the Majors From Independent Record Stores (Guest Op-Ed): In 2007 things were bleak. Record stores were successful but irrelevant in the eyes of many in the music industry. In response, independent record stores owners got organized and created Record Store Day (RSD). By doing so, the world’s largest music event was established and a billion-dollar-per-year vinyl industry was relaunched. Last year’s RSD was the biggest ever, as were our Black Friday and Small Business Saturday events, breaking all previous sales records. Unsung in the ensuing positive press coverage was the amount of CDs sold on our big day. With so many other businesses leaving the CD behind, record stores are still selling substantial numbers. With the help of our industry partners we continue to adapt and thrive. Not everything is rosy; things have been rough over the past 3-4 months. Just last week, Michael Bunnell, the owner of Boise’s Record Exchange and President of the Coalition of Independent Music Stores, sent a message out about how bad things have gotten.

Newark, DE | Rainbow Records settles in to new location: Even with the ongoing Main Street construction and a move to a new location, this is shaping up to be the busiest summer Rainbow Records has had, co-owner Todd Brewer said. The record store, which traces its history back to 1979, relocated last month to Pomeroy Station, the mixed-use complex located next to Newark Shopping Center and anchored by Ski Bum. The new location boasts more space, free parking and less expensive rent. “It’s been fantastic,” Brewer said. “We’re seeing regular customers more often because of the free parking.” The record store is mostly moved in now, and with the extra room, everything flows better and it is “night and day” from the smaller space the store had on Main Street, Brewer said.

Forest Park, IL | Old School Records launches GoFundMe: If owner is unable to pay rent through August, he will have to close business. The Old School Records has started a crowd sourced funding campaign, in an effort to keep the “fixture record store in Forest Park” afloat, said owner Peter Gianakopoulos, who started the GoFundMe. On July 13, Gianakopoulos said he was eight days late paying his rent for this month, and that he still owed payments from the month before. He said that if he is unable to “pay through August” he will have to close the business. “I need a minimum of $5K to cover my late taxes and my rents. Extra funding could help me avoid home foreclosure as well,” Gianakopoulos said. …”I think people get the sense that all small business owners are well off or even wealthy,” Gianakopoulos said. “I started this business with my family lending me about $10,000. If I can pay off my debts, by April of 2020 I’ll be back to normal—month to month, teetering like most small businesses.”

Independent Soul: Daptone’s definitive 7″s: A label that has helped define a contemporary funk and soul sensibility, it’s hard to believe Daptone has existed for fewer than twenty years. Founded by Neal Sugarman and Bosco Mann (aka Gabriel Roth) in 2001 out of Mann’s now defunct Bosco Records, Daptone and its Dap-Kings house band (fronted by Mann) formed the backbone for a 21st century classic soul revival spearheaded by the late, great vocalist Sharon Jones. Taking Stax and Motown as inspiration, Daptone has been a family affair from the off, bringing in artists to record alongside The Dap-Kings, The Sugarman 3, and the Menahan Street Band. In spotting talent, young and old, the label helped bring “the screaming eagle of soul” Charles Bradley in from the cold, and provided journeyman singers like Lee Fields a new lease of life…To mark the 100th 45 released on the label since 2001, founders Neal Sugarman and Bosco Mann have picked a selection of 7″s that have defined Daptone’s prolific output.

Read More »

Boston, MA | Once again, LPs are rolling off shelves of local record stores: Step off the elevator that brings you to Lowell’s Mill No. 5, a vintage mall and mixed-use space on the fourth floor of an old textile factory. The first shop you see is Vinyl Destination. It’s an old-fashioned record store — all albums, no CDs. Vinyl Destination is open boutique hours — Thursday through Sunday afternoons and evenings, mostly. On a recent Saturday, the guy behind the counter is talking to a customer about their shared addiction to record collecting. “You ever buy so many records that months later you still haven’t listened to some of them?” he says with a rueful chuckle. “That’s the story of my life.” In the digital age, renewed interest in the classic analog format of vinyl records began to surge a decade or so ago, and the revival shows no signs of abating. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, vinyl sales for 2018 were up 8 percent from the previous year, reaching a 30-year high. And that doesn’t account for significant sales figures for used vinyl, as Forbes recently reported.

Baltimore, MD | Sound Garden owners plan Maryland’s first medical cannabis lounge in Fells Point: The couple behind the retro record store Sound Garden is planning to open Maryland’s first medical cannabis lounge in Fells Point later this year. The lounge will inhabit 701 S. Bond St., previously home to Sir Duke, a bar that closed earlier this year. It is currently going through the approval process and awaiting final approval. “We don’t know,” said Derek Baumgardner, City Board of Municipal and Zoning Appeals Executive Director, when asked when his agency expected to grant final approval. The lounge—inspired by similar businesses on the West Coast and Arizona— will be a members only club where card holders can pay a monthly fee to partake in medical cannabis educational sessions, yoga and cooking classes, according to its website. Members will also be able to consume medical cannabis on site. This business venture comes in two parts, the medical cannabis lounge on the second floor and a new restaurant on the first.

Auckland, NZ | A record pressing plant has opened in New Zealand: The first in over 30 years. A new vinyl factory called Holiday Records has opened in Auckland, New Zealand – reports Newshub. Launched by Ben Wallace and Joel Woods, the factory has one Viryl Technologies WarmTone™ Record Press, with the ability to make 800 records per day. “I got my father’s collection in a box – I don’t want to hand my son a Spotify playlist,” Wallace shared. Wallace and Woods have also opened a record shop in central Aukland with the same name, stocking new albums, turntables and tech, merch and books. You can find them at 111 Wellesley Street West, Auckland

Orlando, FL | DJ Smilin Dan’s Getting Away With It turns Remix Record Shop into an after-hours happening every week: Gather round, kids. Here’s some music lore for you. Once upon a time, people had to purchase music! Even more fantastical, they had to travel – yes, over mountain and wood – to record shops to procure it on physical media, arcane materials like wax, disc, tape and probably flint or something. Some of these record shops even developed into outposts of society unto themselves. Seriously! Watch High Fidelity, Pretty in Pink, shit, even Empire Records if you must. Anyway, though nothing like in ye golden olden times, that great record store culture still exists in our city. Park Ave CDs, Orlando’s flagship independent record store, is both testament to and bastion for that with their excellent and well-known in-store performances. Public events and other such gatherings at other record stores, however, are slim pickings. But a good and notable one that’s been happening on the reg this year is Getting Away With It at Remix Record Shop.

Companies still earning well by their older devices: The Walkman buried in your basement is likely to be someone’s hot new accessory. The retro-tech market is alive and kicking. In May, Apple refreshed the iPod contact for the first time in four years. Vinyl record sales clocked in at 400 million on common over the past four years, based on information from data tracker Statista. DVD player sales are trending downward, however, they nonetheless consistently hit four million units sold each holiday quarter, even as recently as 2018. Different devices that have stayed the course: camcorders, radios, clock radios, desk phones, and DVRs. Millions of those are still being used in US households in 2017, in keeping with Statista. What drives individuals to proceed purchasing vinyl records, instant film cameras, and iPods, long after new merchandise have made those objects irrelevant. Older devices have a lot of staying power as a result of they allow individuals to unplug from the fixed ping of smartphones and tablets.

Glasgow, UK | Missing Records moving to new Glasgow city centre shop. The Missing Records team are expanding and heading back home to Oswald Street, where the magic all started in 1984. An iconic Glasgow record store is on the move. The team at Missing Records are busy preparing to expand to bigger and better things, and just so happen to be heading home to the spot where the magic all began. The second-hand vinyl specialists have announced they are relocating to Oswald Street. And as all loyal customers of the famous independent stockists will know, that was the site of the original Missing Records when they launched in 1984, before they opened their current Argyle Street shop. Staff say they will have plenty more space for even more “music, films and wall art” when the “adventure continues” at the new unit from next month. But at the moment they’re still trading business as usual!

Newcastle, AU | Hiss & Crackle Records making plenty of noise on the west side: Mitchel Eaton can remember a time in June 2003 when music fans formed a long snaking line outside Kotara’s JB Hi-Fi store to purchase a CD. The queue was a peculiar mix of hard rock and metal heads and arty student types, eager to grab a copy of Metallica’s often-maligned St Anger album or Radiohead’s Hail To The Thief. In his 18 years of working at JB Hi-Fi, it was the biggest day Eaton ever witnessed. “We sold hundreds in a week,” Eaton recalls. “It was just a different time.” Today streaming services like Spotify and Apple dominate music consumption and listening to your favourite act’s latest release is as easy as clicking a button on your smartphone. However, there remains a passionate and sizable consumer base who remain dedicated to the humble record store. And a continually growing audience who adorn the old-school pleasure and tangibility of vinyl.

Rotterdam, NL | Rotterdam’s Clone Records launches classical music sub-label, Edit.Futurum. Its first non-electronic foray. Rotterdam institution Clone Records is starting a classical music sub-label called Edit.Futurum. Since Serge Verschuur founded Clone 25 years ago, it has grown to encompass over a dozen different sub-labels, a distribution company, and a physical store. Verschuur announced the news via social media, putting the style shift down to his “never ending curiosity for great music.” Although details on the first releases are still unknown, he says the first white labels have been approved and will be revealed in the next few weeks. Edit.Futurum is the latest Clone imprint, alongside the likes of Royal Oak, Clone Basement Series and Clone Aqualung Series.

Brighton, UK | This is very sad – Brighton record shop is no longer: Two years ago Vinyl Revolution record shop co-owners Simon Parker and Rachel Lowe were simply buzzing, as they swung open the doors to their brightly painted pink store located at 33 Duke St, Brighton. BN1 1AG. Clearly they were on a mission to assist in bringing vinyl records back to Brighton, along with a few other decent record stores in town. They pulled out all the stops during their first Record Store Day on Saturday 21st April 2018, when they secured live broadcasting from the premises by BBC Sussex, when DJ Danny Pike joined them to present his morning show which was broadcast over BBC Sussex & BBC Surrey. It was a milestone event, as it was the first time in over 20 years that Danny had played all the music on his show from vinyl records from the decks in Vinyl Revolution’s window. The shop was packed with customers, the future was bright, the future was pink!

Legend Ebo Taylor’s missing album found in Nigeria, set to be released September 13: A missing album of Ghanaian guitarist, highlife and afrobeats legend Ebo Taylor has been discovered in Nigeria. The album recorded in 1980 by the “Love and Death” singer is said to have been found in a warehouse in the West African country. BBE Africa, a music publishing and store, reportedly found the masterpiece of the legend. Popular Instagram account ‘Goldcoastghana’ broke the news on its platform. Titled “Palaver”, the album will be released on September 13, 2019, on CDs, Vinyl and digital stores. It shared the old copies of the album found in Nigeria with the caption: “This is great news for Ghana, our own uncle Ebo Taylor recorded an album in Nigeria in 1980 and this record never came out but all thanks to @bbeafrica who discovered this hidden record of the legend Ebo Taylor laying around in some warehouse in Nigeria and will be releasing this September 13, 2019. Let us celebrate this music legend while he’s alive.

Manchester, UK | The Manchester institutions everyone should visit at least once: …Established in 1978, Piccadilly Records has outlived every music format that’s come and gone in the last forty-odd years. The Oldham Street shop is a specialist in new and niche release records and usually has the most extensive list of Record Store Day titles – and the biggest queues. Across the road, Vinyl Exchange is another long-standing resident that’s been here since 1988. It prices its records according to their condition (from mint to poor) and marks them down the longer they’re in stock – resulting in plenty of bargains. Around the corner in Stevenson Square, after a couple of moves, Eastern Bloc was at the centre of the Madchester scene in the late 1980s and remains just as relevant today with its impressive house, techno, dub, funk and reggae selection and late night DJ sets and events in-store. Slightly newer but no less part of the fabric of the city is Vinyl Revival on Hilton Street, which opened in 1997 at the height of the Britpop scene and dedicates a good percentage of its shelves to Manchester music from the 60s to the present day.

Southgate, MI | Stormy Records to celebrate 20th anniversary with big bash: Stormy Records opened in the summer of 1999 when the musically included Windy Weber and Carl Hultgren decided Dearborn needed a record store. According to Weber, the business has changed a lot, both in physical locations, and in the way the record business has been a roller coaster of ups and downs. “The one constant, through all 20 years, is the support of long-standing customers and the friendships forged with them,” a release from the store said. “Stormy Records prides itself in knowing their customers by name, and their dog’s names too!! As dog lovers, their current location is adorned with a collection of record covers that all feature dogs. The store, at 13306 Michigan Ave., is hosting a celebration of its first two decades July 20.

Streaming Now Accounts for 66% of Germany’s Total Recorded Music Revenue: Last year, despite the growth of music streaming in the country, German’s music industry remained stagnant – at best. German music association Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI) revealed that the country had recorded 79.5 billion streams. Music streaming had grown by 40%. Meanwhile, and thanks to its reliance on physical media, Germany’s recorded music revenue actually fell 1% year-over-year. CDs declined with 48.2 million units sold, down 23% over 2017. In a shocking drop, vinyl sales also fell 7%, with BVMI tracking only 3 million records sold. In short, the German music industry brought in €1.6 billion ($1.8 billion) in recorded music revenue, down 0.4% year-over-year. Music sales came from all available formats – streaming, CDs, digital downloads, and vinyl… CDs continue to crash, falling 11.7% year-over-year. As with most countries around the world, vinyl experienced a strong boom, growing 7.4% over H1 2018. Physical formats now make up 34% of Germany’s recorded music revenue, down 11% year-over-year.

Brighton, UK | Vinyl Revolution in Brighton is ‘forced to shut down’: A POPULAR record shop is to close because the owners can no longer afford to run it. Vinyl Revolution, in Duke Street, Brighton, will shut its doors for good this weekend. Owners Simon Parker and Rachel Lowe blamed the closure on the chaos caused by Brexit, £22,000 in business rates and high rent. The couple have posted an impassioned video on YouTube saying they have no choice but to shut. Mrs Lowe said: “We’ve been forced to close because the Government has created an environment in which it’s virtually impossible for a small independent shop to survive on the high street.” Mr Parker said: “Hundreds of shops are closing every week and the Government is doing nothing. “When the banking crisis happened the Government invested billions to save the industry and we want to know why they’re doing nothing to save independent retail.”

The String Cheese Incident and Keller Williams Announce Vinyl Release of ‘Breathe’ at Red Rocks: To mark their upcoming Red Rocks collaboration, The String Cheese Incident and Keller Williams will release their 1999 joint LP Breathe on vinyl for the first time ever. “As many of you know, Saturday night [July 20] at Red Rocks, SCI will be joined by our longtime compadre, Keller Williams,” the band wrote via Facebook. “As we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Breathe record, which will be played in full… and we are pleased to announce that a limited run of Breathe vinyl will be available for the first time!” The limited edition Breathe vinyl will be printed as a 180g double LP, available only at Red Rocks merch stands next weekend. Tickets for the band’s special Saturday night Red Rocks show with Keller Williams are still available, although SCI notes that they are “nearly sold out.”

Bay City, MI | Charity pinball event taking place at Bay City record shop during Tall Ship Celebration 2019. Any pinball aficionados who happen to be checking out Bay City for the upcoming Tall Ship Celebration have an opportunity to showcase their supple wrists within a downtown record store. Coinciding with the celebration from Thursday, July 18, through Sunday, July 21, a four-day pinball event is taking placed within Electric Kitsch, 917 Washington Ave. Three music themed-pinball machines — think Aerosmith, Metallica, and Rob Zombie — will be on the shop’s in-store stage. The machines are provided by Crazy Quarters Arcade, located at 1304 Kosciuszko Ave. in Bay City. The games are 75 cents per play, with all proceeds going to Major Chords for Minors. The Saginaw-based nonprofit provides free private instruction on piano, guitar, and drums to pupils who range from third to 12th grade. Crazy Quarters Arcade wanted the funds to go to a charity for children and Electric Kitsch owners suggested Major Chords, they said.

Brighton, UK | Independent record shop tragically closing: A much-loved independent record shop in the heart of the Lanes is tragically on the verge of closing. Despite their best efforts, co-owners of Vinyl Revolution Simon Parker and Rachel Lowe have conceded defeat in the uphill struggle against the big names on the high street. It’s an all too familiar story; independent retail outlets battling against business rates and the rise of online shopping, amongst other things. Simon had this to say, “Independent retail is in crisis, the government is doing nothing. When the banking crisis happened the government invested billions to save the industry.” The well-known shop is situated on Duke Street, and sits side by side with huge brand names as well as fellow independents. Whilst acknowledging that they do sell online, the owners pride themselves on great customer service, the interaction between staff and customer and also the experience of rummaging through their shelves before buying.

Saskatchewan, CA | Saskatchewan record collector reminisces about his life’s soundtrack: As the needle touches the spinning vinyl, a soft crackle spills from the speakers. A jazz song, recorded almost 70 years ago, floats through the air and brings a smile to the 83-year-old listener. Dave Doolittle has been collecting records for almost his entire life. And by his count, he has 35,000. “It goes way back to when I was about 17,” he said. “[I] always liked music, any kind I could get back then. I especially liked jazz. And I just started collecting; I’m sort of the collecting type.” For the past 20 years, he’s been storing all of his records in an old bank in the village of Maymont, Sask. After a recent disagreement over the rent schedule and payment, though, he was given six weeks to move.

Te Puke, NZ | Te Puke record fair at Anann this weekend: Vinyl, 45s, LPs, records — whatever you call them, they are part of many people’s past. They are also, once again, part of the present. Records have made something of a comeback in recent years, and that has sparked a rebirth of the record fair. Brian Wafer has organised several and, on Sunday, is holding one with around half a dozen vendors at Te Puke’s Anann – Pineapple Bar on Palmer Place. “I’ve done a few of them — just for a bit of fun really. This is my social life,” he laughs. “You get like-minded souls and you meet like-minded people.” He has organised fairs at Mount Maunganui’s Totara St venue and The Jam Factory in Tauranga, but this is his first in Te Puke. “I spend a lot of time in the Te Puke area at Little Waihī, so I thought let’s do one. I was having a beer [in Anann] and talking about it and I said ‘we should do one here’, and they said ‘OK, let’s do it‘.”

Read More »

Ann Arbor, MI | Encore Records shop to move to Kerrytown, offers big sale: A decades-long used-record shop that placed its footprint near the University of Michigan is moving to Kerrytown by the end of the month. Encore Records, previously called Liberty Music Shop, was at 417 E. Liberty St. for about 60 years but the future of the building is causing owners Jim Dwyer and Bill McClelland to leave sooner. “The situation is that our current landlord is basically doing a ground lease on the space and this building is kind of dilapidated. It’s probably going to be torn down in a couple of years,” Dwyer said. “An investment firm from out of town secured a lease … they have a plan … to build something huge and wonderful … it’s probably gonna be a hotel. So we were going to have to move in a couple years anyway…“We’re really fussy about the condition of records. Not all used-record stores are as fussy. We don’t buy records if they’re scratched up or dinged up,” Dwyer said. “We have a dedicated staff who are knowledgeable and enthusiastic and see what we do as religious missionary work. Our job is to help them find the music that makes them happy.”

Richmond, VA | Southside Johnny started collecting records in second grade. Now he has more than half a million: The joy of discovery is what drives John Wood to keep looking for his groove. “It’s organized chaos,” Wood said. “That is why I like it here because I never know what I’m going to find digging through the boxes.” Like a miner sifting for gold, Wood’s prospects remain high of finding precious metal, rock and roll, and rhythm and blues. “There is a bunch of Four Seasons, Aretha Franklin. I love Aretha Franklin,” Wood said. Wood’s vocation is vinyl — volumes of vinyl. “If it has a beat I like. If it has a sound I like or a lyric I like, I’m going to buy it,” Wood said. His favorite hunting spot is far from flea markets and swap meets. John’s honey hole under his own roof in Chesterfield. The one-time DJ known as Southside Johnny has amassed a collection of records that is rarely matched. Wood says he has probably 10,000 or 15,000 78s, 500,000 45s and about 75,000 albums.

Gallatin, TN | Gallatin community fights to save Randy’s Record Store: The fight to save a once-famous building in downtown Gallatin isn’t slowing down. Sumner County historians said during the 1950s that Randy’s Record Shop on West Main Street was the world’s largest mail-order record store. But when the abandoned building’s roof collapsed last year, it was deemed dangerous. Last week Gallatin Council members voted for the building to be demolished in 90 days. A Facebook group and GoFundMe page have been created in hopes of saving the building. Residents are working to raise $250,000 to create a foundation in the original owner’s name. So far just over $2,000 has been raised.

St. Joseph, MI | Vinyl, jukebox store coming to downtown SJ: Kerstin Peterson is in the midst of bringing her dream to downtown St. Joseph. Peterson on Saturday will open 4A Song Vinyl and Jukeboxes at 416 State St. The process has been a long one as Peterson – along with her husband, Tim – has been transferring the original store’s inventory from Illinois to Southwest Michigan. The opportunity to reopen the vinyl and jukebox store in St. Joseph happened within a 10-day period, Peterson said. “It was something we wanted and we went for it,” she said, upon discovering the store’s owner was selling their spot in downtown St. Joseph. “Our five-year plan turned into a five-week plan.” On her trips to and from Chicago, Peterson is bringing more than 4,000 records of various genres. About 10 percent of the stock will be new vinyl. 4A Song sells new and used vinyl records, along with CDs and cassettes. They also do sales and rentals of jukeboxes.

Read More »