Los Angeles, CA | LA’s oldest record store hits the market for nearly $5 million: Los Angeles’ oldest record business has officially hit the market, and it could be yours for a cool $4.9 million. The Record Collector, located in the Melrose Arts District, houses over 500,000 rare and irreplaceable records. Owner and seller Sanders Chase has amassed the collection over a span of 60 years. The original Record Collector first opened on Highland Avenue when Chase was just 22. At that time, he started with just 10,000 classical recordings. Famous faces have been through the Record Collector’s doors, including Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra, and Bette Midler. “The Record Collector” has carried the analogue torch for 50 years. Sandy is ready to pass the torch to someone for the next 50… The Record Collector has made its groove and is here for eternity,” the listing said in part. The property spans 3,338 sq feet on the north side of Melrose Boulevard.
Pittsburgh, PA | From cassette tapes to vinyl records, physical media is trending in Pittsburgh: Cassette tapes brought Veronika Cloutier to Pittsburgh. Vinyl LPs have kept her here. Before moving to Pittsburgh from North Carolina in 2021, the former vocalist and guitarist for the band Attack Cat measured the city’s livability by connecting with a local indie label that releases cassettes. “The fact that there was going to be a music scene that was accepting was important,” said Cloutier, 26, of Allentown. “It was good to know I could come here and do my thing.” Within weeks of arriving in Pittsburgh, Cloutier landed a job at The Government Center, the popular North Side record shop, bar and performance space. Today, she aids music aficionados as they snap up LPs at The Government Center Outpost, a satellite of the original location that recently opened on Dormont’s Potomac Avenue. “What people buy is all over the board—I’m always surprised by the stuff that people pick up,” said Cloutier, the shop’s manager.
Albuquerque, NM | Six local record stores to check out in Albuquerque: With vinyl records making a comeback, the question is: “Where can I find a local record store in Albuquerque?” 1. One Long Groove One Long Groove focuses on restoring old records to help bring that vinyl back to the community. Collectors can purchase a vinyl to add to the collection, sell any vinyl collections at the store as well. Before selling, One Long Groove also machine cleans the records to ensure the best sound quality. 2. LongHair Records LongHair Records holds a large stock of vinyl records, cassette tapes, VHS tapes, compact discs and more at their store. The store even holds a small collection of books with vintage pressing. There is a wide variety of genres in stock for every listening platform someone might be interested in, and all devices and stock are tested before being sold. LongHair is also available for small repairs on audio equipment. Besides selling a wide range of music, the store also hosts music events…
Hawkesbury, AU | Behind the Counter: How One Conversation Led to Owning a Record Shop: The sweet songs of Richmond Records have been serenading the Hawkesbury since the 1980’s, with the store being pivotal to our local music scene. But this year the store is getting some fresh paint, so we would like to welcome to the stage the new owner… Spyda! Spyda, or Paul, is a retired Police Officer of 32 years, who has always held a passion for music. He said he is still “giggin’ around” and that on a typical Sunday afternoon you can find him playing in a band at a local pub, or writing his own music. Spyda becoming the owner of the store seems like it was fate. He told us the story of how he and his wife Laney fell in love with the store in early 2023 while adventuring through Richmond… “Laney said ‘oh look at that cool little shop on the corner!’ so we pulled over, walked in, and just fell in love with it”. With his love of a chat, Spyda got talking to the former owner Mark and his son Zac, and even did an interview with them both. Not long after that day the shop went up for sale, so the pair got talking to Mark again and ended up becoming the newest owners.
Los Angeles, CA | Slash To Perform At Amoeba Music In Hollywood To Celebrate His New Blues Album: Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash will visit Amoeba Music in Hollywood, California to play a special acoustic set celebrating his star-studded new album “Orgy Of The Damned”, out May 17 on Gibson Records. On Wednesday, May 29 at 5:00 p.m., Slash and his blues band vocalist/guitarist Tash Neal will perform live at the legendary record store. Capacity is limited, and tickets are required for entry to the event. More details can be found here. To guarantee admission to the live performance and get a commemorative show poster “Slash – Live at Amoeba Hollywood” hand-signed by Slash, pre-purchase your copy of “Orgy Of The Damned” on CD or double-LP starting May 17, in-store only at Amoeba Music in Hollywood.
Hightstown, NJ | Looking for vinyl and bands in NJ? Randy Now’s Man Cave has them. Some of my best memories growing up in New Jersey involve record stores. We had some of the best right here in the Garden State. Places like Sam Goody’s, The Music Den, Harmony Hut, and of course Tower Records. These were places where we could lose ourselves in the album playing throughout the store put on by the guy who just knew what to play, while we thumbed through the inventory looking for our favorite albums and bargains as well. Those memories come to life at Randy Now’s Man Cave in Hightstown. It was opened in 2022 by Randy “Nowakowski” aka Randy Ellis. Nowakowski was the name he gave to his Trenton State Peeps back in the day. Randy Now’s Man Cave previously spent 11 years in Bordentown….“When I was in High School I used to DJ at the lunch break time and I always wanted to be a DJ.” Says Randy” I became friends with a DJ at WPRB the Princeton University radio station named Bob Baker who helped me get a show on the station at the age of 16.”
Denver, CO | Record scratch: Vinyl company fires and sues CEO, CFO over RiNo plant: The Denver record company Vinyl Me, Please has ousted its top executives and sued them for allegedly funneling company funds to their pricy pet project in RiNo. Vinyl Me, Please was founded in 2012 and has become a popular record-of-the-month subscription service in the dozen years since, with 20,000 subscribers today, it said. CEO Cameron Schaefer and Chief Financial Officer Adam Block led the company in recent years. But the company’s board fired them, along with Chief Strategy Officer Rich Kylberg, in March. And on Wednesday, all three were sued by the company they led. The stated cause for their ouster is a new 14,000-square-foot vinyl record production plant at 4201 N. Brighton Blvd. That plant, which started pressing records this year, has been hyped by national and local media, as well as Schaefer, Block and Kylberg, since 2022. …Behind the closed doors of Vinyl Me, Please, the plant is not seen as such a fun success. “To date, the pressing plant has not demonstrated the ability to press vinyl records in a timely or professional manner,” according to the company’s lawsuit in Denver District Court.
Benton, AR | Arkansas Vinylcon is back and bigger than ever: The Arkansas Vinylcon will return to the Benton Event Center on May 11. The popular event for audiophiles begins at 10 a.m. While the first convention was held at the Arlington Hotel in Hot Springs, the event moved to Benton for the first time last year. Presented by Retro Rose, a record store in Downtown Benton, being able to hold the event in Benton is important to the store’s owner, Audra McAnally-Parsons. “I think the event center was a better and easier venue to access. The convention went a lot smoother last year, and it was a lot more spacious,” she said. The first convention had eight vendors selling record collections, the second had 20 and this year McAnally-Parsons is expecting nearly 30 vendors. This year’s group of vendors includes people from Louisiana, Texas, Tennessee, Mississippi, and, of course, Arkansas. “We have several vendors returning. A lot of the crowd favorites from last year are coming back,” she added.
Portland, OR | Record Store Owner Reshingles Roof With Years of Unsold Record Store Day Releases: Owner of local shop Tunehoundz Records Steven Southwell recently decided to use old Record Store Day vinyl releases to replace the dilapidated shingles on his store’s roof, audiophile sources report. “I honestly thought I’d never get rid of those lousy Record Store Day releases that were somehow growing mold in the backroom,” Southwell explained. “This was probably the most efficient way to get rid of those Gin Blossoms picture discs and limited edition Mötley Crüe ‘Red, White and Crue’ records. Not to mention I saved a ton of money on actual shingles. Actually, I broke even on those. Turns out, finding a contractor who will work exclusively with limited edition records is pricey. Anyway, I look forward to constructing a much-needed load-bearing beam after next year’s Record Store Day.” Long-time customer Angela Gonzalez loves the idea of a vinyl-based roof.
