Record Stores

Long time readers of the blog know how much I love the independent record store. That said, I try to feature as many stories as I can about these wonderful retail outlets, it is the home of vinyl and where memories and friendship merge. This story is about a record store in the Baltimore, Maryland area and the other about a record store in Florida. If you are in the area, please purchase your vinyl records at these outlets.

Never-ending summer

Back-room record store proves vinyl is alive and well

Written by Carrie Wood


If anyone ever wants proof that vinyl isn't dead, they need not look any further than Celebrated Summer Records.

Located inside of Legends Comics on York Road near the traffic circle, Celebrated Summer is a back-room record store that doesn't try to be "everything for everybody," according to owner Tony Pence.

While other, larger record stores have felt the crippling effects of the economic recession and the transition to digital music, Celebrated Summer has survived because of its niche market.

"It seems that those are the types of stores that are hit hardest by downloading and things like that, whereas a store like mine which is much smaller and specific… I can keep going like this," Pence said.

Pence opened his store in August 2006 after splitting off from his original employment at Baltimore-based Reptilian Records. He was also inspired after visiting Japan and seeing how similar stores are laid out there - in the back of other stores.

"Those things kind of coalesced and I just decided I would do my own thing in the county and I would base it off of smaller Japanese stores," he said.

After spending about six months looking for a place to establish his business, Pence presented the owner of Legends Comics with an offer.

"He had a back room that was basically filled with trash. I told him that I would rent that room from him, clean it and paint it, and turn it into a record store," Pence said. "He agreed, and that's really how it all started."

But after starting Celebrated Summer, it took Pence another several weeks to actually establish it.

"It probably took me a good two and a half months to make that room even look like the beginnings of a store, considering how it looked before," he said.

After opening, Celebrated Summer has had a steady flow of business and has remained relatively unaffected by the waning popularity of vinyl records. Pence said that the recent boom in vinyl sales, with stores such as Barnes & Noble carrying records and major labels reprinting albums in vinyl, hasn't had much of an impact on his business.

"There's always people there to support it, whether it's an artificial boom [or not]. There's always a solid base of people that seem to be collecting vinyl," he said.

Pence said he acquires what he sells both by ordering new material and buying other people's collections.

He said he sorts through the used records so that his customers don't have to sort through "crates of scratched-up garbage."

"I don't have room to have crates of flea market, crappy records," Pence said. "My soul section is the best of 60s and 70s soul. The rock section is the records you would want to have - The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, et cetera. I prefer to have small, concise sections."

The store carries mainly punk rock, hardcore and indie rock records and CD's - Pence said the store is "about 60 percent vinyl, 40 percent everything else." Although those genres may sound narrow to some, Pence said that there's more of a variety than a lot of people think.

"Because I'm the only employee, the store kind of directly reflects my tastes as well. I like Belle & Sebastian and I like black metal as well as a lot of stuff in between. I'll always order things for people, too," he said.

Celebrated Summer also carries international punk rock and has had several in-store shows with more to come.

Two of the bands that have played there have been from Japan and one of the upcoming bands is from Sweden.

"There's so much there, even though the store is so small," Pence said. "I try to have a good variety of forgotten and ignored music in one place."

SOURCE: http://media.www.thetowerlight.com

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Vintage vinyl is back in style

Jen Glantz

Rock 'n' Roll Heaven music store (a retail outlet in central Florida) is a monument to some of the greatest music ever recorded over the last century.

With vinyl records from artists such as Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and the Beatles, the store is heaven for music lovers young and old.

"People are attracted to this store because of the nostalgia it brings," said Jeff Nowlin, an employee at Rock 'n' Roll Heaven.

Rock 'n' Roll Heaven is home to many different genres of music, from a rap section with vinyls from Jay-Z to Tupac to a disco and soul section to a Top 40 section with names such as Pink and Madonna.

"Mom and dad's record collection and more," Nowlin said about the collection of music. "We offer something for everyone."

Rock 'n' Roll Heaven sells vinyls anywhere from $4 to $100. Jimi Hendrix vinyls go from $20 to $40, and Elton John vinyls sell anywhere from $4 to $40.

The store is also home to CDs, VCR tapes and cassette tapes.

"Things on vinyl sound a lot better," customer Ron Smith said. "Even with the advancement of technology and CDs, the sound is unbeatable."

The store has been around almost as long as the music it sells.

Operating since 1975, Rock 'n' Roll Heaven gets most of the items it sells from trades. The store also gets merchandise from people looking to sell, large auctions and state sales.

"The coolest thing I have seen in the store was a Velvet Underground vinyl with a cover done by Andy Warhol," Nowlin said.

Nowlin finds that a lot of young people frequent the store despite the age of technology.

"I think the younger crowd is burned out on the new stuff," he said. "In the '80s, it was quite an investment and time-consuming to get a variety of music. Now with technology, people can research all different types of music and find sounds and bands that interest them."

Nowlin also thinks that the younger generation is attracted to things that are blatant, which is why he thinks music is no different.

"There is nothing like holding a 12-inch record; nothing is comparable to that," Nowlin said. "The sound is clearer, and you can connect with the music a whole lot better."


SOURCE: http://media.www.centralfloridafuture.com