I went into a record store

…for the first time in decades. My son (mid-30s) said that he owns a turntable now and is looking to build a classic rock vinyl collection, so I found a record store – in Berkeley, CA, where I went to college, so doubly-nostalgic.

The physical act of standing in front of a bin of vinyl LP’s, and going flip-flip-flip-remove and inspect, replace, flip-flip-flip…something that I spent countless hours doing in my youth in the 60’s, but that I haven’t done in something like 40 years.

Also nostalgic, was seeing examples of LP’s from the German classical music label Deutsche Gramophon. All of us newly-minted sophisticates in Berkeley were building collections of classical music, and DG was the label of choice, with that classy-looking yellow logo, and often a picture of Herbert von Karajan on the sleeve.

Browsing in a record store used to be one of my favorite leisure activities. I do miss it; browsing online just is not the same. Bandcamp is the best modern analog I’ve found but you aren’t usually going to find major-label US or European artists there. If you’re just looking for music, tho, it totally fucking rocks.

I see Tower Records is back! Some of my favorite memories from my years in NYC.

You bungled the joke: When is a jsc1953 NOT a jsc1953? When it turns into a record store!

Most of my off school hours between the ages of 11 and 13 were spent flipping through the bins at Licorice Pizza. I never missed a chance to check out the Roxy Music albums. I had no idea what they sounded like, but I sure liked the covers.

I remember them well! Nice to see vinyl coming back, and stores that cater to the trend.

I remember riding my bike to the local record store just to browse the albums.

I never considered that a waste of time.

mmm

And – as distinct from, say, a library or a video rental store (RIP) – a lengthy session of browsing at the record store wrenched your neck in a totally different way.

It was like … cervical (C-spiine) cross-training.

Rock on !

Oh man, did that bring back memories. I have no idea if DG was higher quality than other labels, but it felt like class.

I practically lived in and loved the used record stores at Ohio State. Magnolia Thunder Pussy and the Singing Dog rocked! Finding the perfect obsure album at a redduced price ruled.

I still have many of my old Deutsche Grammophon albums.

I went into a record store…

With a priest and a rabbi?