Remembering Record Store Chains (The good ones)

Recent discussions here in another thread brought up "Peaches" Records and Tapes, which at one time was a large Record "Super Store", similar to Tower and others. (We all know of the little record stores that we loved, but my thoughts today are on the bigger chains)

I first encountered them when I was in the Navy in Virginia Beach in the mid-'70s. There were two really great record stores there at the time, there was "Tracks", which was my favorite, and "Peaches". They both sold record crates, of which I still own from both stores, but Tracks always had more quad and as I recall more records. These were really big stores, bigger than some supermarkets at the time.

When I moved back home later in the decade, I found there actually was a Peaches in Connecticut, but it paled in comparison to the one in VA Beach.

As time marched into the '80s, the New Haven Peaches closed, and all that was left around here were Musiclands, Record Worlds, and other Mall stores that always charged list price for CDs (at times $17.99!!!) which I feel helped to alienate music buyers and led to their downfall (as well as the eventual rise of Napster and the MP3 revolution)

In the '80s I traveled the world and found great stores like HMV and Virgin Records in London, Tower Records on Sunset Strip, King Karol in NYC, and smaller chains like "Licorice Pizza" in Pittsburgh among others.

The closest thing to these giant record stores in the SACD/DVD-A era were the Media Play stores, which were a part of Musicland. At least these stores did not always stick to the the Musicland policy of 'everything sold at list price.' They did support SACD and DVD-A very well for a time. Sadly, they folded almost simultaneously with the end of the big-label SACD and DVD-A releases.

To the new music fans, it's hard to explain the thrill of finding a new record store, looking through the racks and finding something that you did not know existed, that was rare but there, or a new release that you didn't know about.

Today with the internet, we know what's coming out months before its due, we pre-order and have it release day, and we can find just about anything music if the price is right, but those old days of searching through a stack of LPs and pulling out a rare gem that's been sitting in the rack for years is something that cannot be replicated these days.

Us old timers leafed through many stacks of worthless LPs looking for that Quadradisc or SQ Logo, scanned boxes and boxes of beat up 8-tracks hoping to find a red RCA, orange Elektra, blue GRT, or the "notch of joy", LOL.

If you have memories of old super-chains and amazing finds that you discovered in your travels, I'd love to hear the stories.

http://www.themortonreport.com/ente...ecords-tapes-warm-memories-of-a-fallen-giant/

I first visited the Peaches record store located in Overland Park KS
in March 1981. It was the first time I'd been to a record "superstore".

I remember the visit for 2 reasons, looking through their current copy
of Billboard, I saw an article that Panasonic has agreed to support the
Philips/Sony CD format (thereby assuring one world standard for a
digital audio consumer format) and also this Peaches still had a Quad
Record section (there were a few Columbia SQ albums in it).

I visited this location many times since then, it was one of the few places
to buy Laserdiscs, including one of the first Laserdiscs with the official
Dolby Surround logo (Real Genius). This location had several owners
and closed in March 2003.

Kirk Bayne

I wonder what happened to all of the concrete artist plaques?

The two retailers I miss the most were both the largest record retailers in their day: Korvettes and Tower Records.

Since it was the second largest city in the US back then, Chicago was a hotbed of record stores. Most chains had a presence here, often a very large one.

The first chain I had a love affair with was far more than a record store. It also had a full-blown hi-fi salon in all but one of its' Chicago locations. Of course, I'm beating the drum again for Korvettes, aka E. J. Korvette. All but one of their stores in Chicago was a behemoth Korvette City.



Korvettes sign directly across Harlem ave from Cermak Plaza, where the Ides of March played in the parking lot when they were in high school. Ten years later, the infamous "car-kabob" from Wayne's World was installed there:

note the bus destined for the suburbs of Summit/Argo. Sounds like a bad knock-knock joke.
Photo from Pleasant Family Shopping bloogspot: http://pleasantfamilyshopping.blogspot.com/2010_02_01_archive.html
On the linked page directly below the one of many posts Dave has created about Korvettes, there is a comprehensive article and photos of Cermak Plaza, including the "car-kabob." A SPECTACULAR weblog on US retail history. Lots of great photos!

For the uninitiated, you might feel that I just went off the rails. In fact, Korvettes was the largest record retailer in the US back then. Quad? They stocked EVERY domestic Quad LP, Q8 and Q4 reel. Many Quads had 20 or more copies in stock at any given moment. Where Target, Wal-Mart, etc have a small CD & DVD selection, Korvettes had a record department that was perhaps three times the square footage of your local mall's Musicland. Virtually everything in print in the US on EVERY format awaited the record buyer.





Korvette City stores here were all in their own plazas. None here were in malls. The stores had two levels. Although it was a discount store, it was laid out and merchandised just like the department and specialty stores of the day. Korvette City were several stores-within-a-store, some of which had even their own dedicated buildings. They had a pharmacy, a wig department, a supermarket, a home improvement store, a tire store, a furniture store, etc. These were all branded Korvettes.

Their prices and sales were legendary. You simply had to have been there to believe it. Their sales were advertised in newspapers and later on TV. The record department was the busiest place in the store. It was mobbed on a typical Saturday or Sunday. A Korvettes All-Label record sale TV ad is coupled with a Sears ad for "crumb packs." The Korvettes ad is 35 seconds into this clip. It has a panoramic view of a Korvettes record department:

[video=youtube;-I7l-jntCeQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-I7l-jntCeQ[/video]

Perhaps slightly off-topic: their hifi salon, again a store within a store, had both name brand hi-fi components and their own proprietary brand, XAM. There were also separate departments for appliances, TV and portables/"crumb packs." I bought a portable AC/battery TV for my boat at Korvettes, and my first cassette deck.

Tower was late to the game in Chicago. They opened here in the mid-90's. Although there were only four Towers here, they were all among their their largest stores. They carried every domestic release, and had an import selection that was unparalleled. I was heartbroken when they closed in '06.

Clark Street, the first and largest Chicago Tower:


Bloomingdale:


Two shots of Schaumburg, across from the behemoth Woodfield Mall. More about Woodfield and it's chain record stores in later posts:

Photo from Getty Images.



Both Tower and Korvettes had lots of in-store appearances by major recording artists.

Both independent and chain record stores are also featured in the "Remembering Record Stores" thread: https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/fo...rd-Stores&highlight=remembering+record+stores

There is also a thread with a vintage Tower Records video, along with other reminiscences of Tower:
https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/fo...1-Video!!&highlight=remembering+record+stores

We're headed to Milwaukee today. I'll discuss many of the chains that did business in Wisconsin in a later post. Besides the two Exclusive Company ("Say it with Me") locations, we'll hit a few used stores.

Ah yes, E. J. Korvettes. One of my best memories was there in Maryland, Loch Raven and Perring Pkwy.
My best buddy and I were combing through the wax when we first heard over their speakers "Klaatu"
We both bought a copy that day and were hooked on the mystery. Who the hell were they?

Other chains from that area "Waxie Maxie's, Sam Goodie's and Record and Tape Traders" are sadly missed.

Frantic said:

Ah yes, E. J. Korvettes. One of my best memories was there in Maryland, Loch Raven and Perring Pkwy.
My best buddy and I were combing through the wax when we first heard over their speakers "Klaatu"
We both bought a copy that day and were hooked on the mystery. Who the hell were they?

Other chains from that area "Waxie Maxie's, Sam Goodie's and Record and Tape Traders" are sadly missed.

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"Gort"! Klaatu - nickto - barada-opcorn

Most of my record/book buying was done once or twice a year in the 70s-80s. Entering Sam Goody's (and Doubleday, the bookstore) in Manhattan was almost as visiting temples.

I worked in Tower Records in Boston 1987-88 , which was considered at the time the biggest record store in the US (or was it the world?)....I worked on the "Rock"(2nd) floor- the first floor was videos (and Laserdiscs- still have the Criterion edition of Blade Runner with the sticker on it), and the third floor was classical music... saw a few locals there like Peter Wolf and a few who signed records like Carly Simon; also, Michael Palin (John Cleese, being the diva that he is, pulled out at the last minute) promoting "a fish called Wanda"....and some visiting artists that "abused" their record label advances by buying EVERYTHING they could on CDs, like the guys from Wet Wet Wet who bought a RIDICULOUS amount of CDs one day...but my favorite place to go was "Newbury Comics" next door...they also went to hell in a handbasket...

I think the Newbury St Tower Records popped up just after I left Boston. In my day that space was occupied by the instrument retailer E.U. Wurlitzer. They would also host clinics/signings including Tony Levin and Peter Erskine. I adored Newbury Comics. At the time they had an impressive import LP section. Still remember the thrill of picking up XTC English Settlement on the day it arrived.

kap'n krunch said:

I worked in Tower Records in Boston 1987-88 , which was considered at the time the biggest record store in the US (or was it the world?)....I worked on the "Rock"(2nd) floor- the first floor was videos (and Laserdiscs- still have the Criterion edition of Blade Runner with the sticker on it), and the third floor was classical music... saw a few locals there like Peter Wolf and a few who signed records like Carly Simon; also, Michael Palin (John Cleese, being the diva that he is, pulled out at the last minute) promoting "a fish called Wanda"....and some visiting artists that "abused" their record label advances by buying EVERYTHING they could on CDs, like the guys from Wet Wet Wet who bought a RIDICULOUS amount of CDs one day...but my favorite place to go was "Newbury Comics" next door...they also went to hell in a handbasket...

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blue.monk said:

I think the Newbury St Tower Records popped up just after I left Boston. In my day that space was occupied by the instrument retailer E.U. Wurlitzer. They would also host clinics/signings including Tony Levin and Peter Erskine. I adored Newbury Comics. At the time they had an impressive import LP section. Still remember the thrill of picking up XTC English Settlement on the day it arrived.

Click to expand...

IIRC I also remember EU Wurlitzer, but it was not the same building. Tower was in a "new" building" they were either restoring or building by the time I got to Boston. I remember going to BOTH Tower and Wurlitzer...
Haven't been back to Baaahsston since Dec 20 1989...so much has changed!!! (duuuh!)there even a T station in it!!!

And yes , Newbury Comics ROCKED..best place to get import LPs and CDs -much of my Kate Bush and Peter Gabriel 12" were from there...I even have a Newbury Comics T-Shirt (..a WICKED good time...")

I rather liked Mother Murphy's in Normal, IL. Frequented that often back in the 70's. Oh wait....they were more of a bong shop I guess. LOL! But, they sold albums as well.....

Didn't they make table candles, too?!?

GOS said:

I rather liked Mother Murphy's in Normal, IL. Frequented that often back in the 70's. Oh wait....they were more of a bong shop I guess. LOL! But, they sold albums as well.....

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Quad Linda said:

Didn't they make table candles, too?!?

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Oh yeah...and incense....and all sorts of goodies....

How about the Camelot chain? They always had unpredictable bins with quad LPs and import vinyl back in the day. Their larger stores had an enormous selection of expensive Laser Discs, too.

DoctorO said:

How about the Camelot chain? They always had unpredictable bins with quad LPs and import vinyl back in the day. Their larger stores had an enormous selection of expensive Laser Discs, too.

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Wallich's Music City kept stocking new Columbia SQ releases long after other stores had quit quad -- at a whopping $8.98 but if you traded in a used LP, didn't matter what title, you did get a buck off. And they had reels never seen anywhere else too, like the Concert From Bangladesh on Apple ... wish I'd bought one. I think it was something like $17.99 (half a day's pay back then). I think Wallich's closed down before laserdiscs were invented.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallichs_Music_City

Camelot! It was a reasonably nice store, as I recall. Camelot had a small presence in Chicago, and opened way after the Quad era. They had stores in the now-gone Randhurst and Lakehurst mega-malls, in Mt. Prospect and Waukegan, respectively. I believe there were a few others, but can't recall the locations. A great source for cut-outs!


Image from C3 Nostalgia: genius.com Store location unknown.

DoctorO said:

How about the Camelot chain? They always had unpredictable bins with quad LPs and import vinyl back in the day. Their larger stores had an enormous selection of expensive Laser Discs, too.

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Yeah, we had Camelot downstate as well.....and we also had Musicland.

Believe it or not, we had a small music store called Laser's Edge. You got it....they pretty much only sold laser discs...which might seem odd considering the niche factor. Needless to say, they weren't in business too long...but that's where I bought 100% of my laser discs.

Spec's Records & Tapes
An independent Florida & Puerto Rico chain, later acquired by Camelot Music. Great selection!



Photo of Coral Gables location, which I shopped in when vacationing in Florida, as well as before/after Caribbean cruises.

Spec’s Records & Tapes, a mainstay in Coral Gables since 1953, was a casualty in the development of Chase Bank, the Miami Herald reported. Demolition began on the property at 1570 South Dixie Highway last week, after the music store closed its door in February. The bank is expected to open later this year, next to Swensen’s restaurant, the newspaper said . Spec’s was founded by the late Martin “Mike” Spector in 1948, eventually expanding to 80 stores in Florida as well as Puerto Rico. The Spector family sold it in 1998 to Camelot Music Group, and it was later acquired by Trans World Entertainment Corp. The chain was hit hard by Hurricane Andrew in 1992, and struggled to compete with other music chains. [Miami Herald] –Mark Maurer - See more at: http://therealdeal.com/miami/blog/2...se-bank-in-coral-gables/#sthash.d6QAp6uv.dpuf