Category Archives: vinyl road rage

Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Record Stores: Jerry’s Records

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I have been looking forward to this particular post ever since I walked in the door of Jerry’s Records–the Pennsylvania record store that wins hands down for size, selection and overall coolness. And I mean that literally as well as figuratively–Jerry says his air conditioning bills are $1300 a month for this staggering collection of vinyl.

As you can see, when you get to Jerry’s, at 2136 Murray Avenue
in Pittsburgh PA, you’re in for quite a treat. The 78s section advertised on the door is sure to draw out the obsessives in that part of the vinyl junkie kingdom, but I thought the main store was more than plenty to keep me going–no need for me to obsess over a whole new undiscovered country yet.

A newcomer to the store really cannot prepare themselves for the volume of vinyl here. If you’re into post-punk, 80s new wave and related sounds you will spend all of your money and all the money you’re GOING to make in the next year at Jerry’s. No contest.

And the prices are extremely reasonable, I might add.

Soundtracks were a bit frustrating to wade through as there was a filing system at work there that completely escaped me. I was looking for the horror stuff, naturally, but found so much broadway mixed in with the other titles that it made things quite difficult. The soundtracks section was full of the old standbys and in the short time I was able to spend back there (in a labyrinth all its own) I couldn’t locate anything I didn’t already have–the curse of the collector rather than an indictment of Jerry’s, really.

Don’t go into Jerry’s Records in Pittsburgh for the first time if you aren’t able to spend at least 90 minutes. Seriously. You WILL be late for whatever appointment, rendezvous, tryst or meeting you’ve set up for the day. There is too much, too too much here to skim over or simply glance at.

What I loved best about Jerry’s, aside from an excessively fussy classification system that lists MANY bands by name (even obscure ones that might be better in the general alphabet sections) is the attention to one of my favorite genres—weirdness on wax.

Jerry’s breaks down the weirdness into subdivisions I’ve never found in any other record store–I was soooo grateful to find the strange vinyl handled as lovingly as all the other genres—no short shrift given to THESE records just cuz nobody but me wants to buy them. I mean, really–they listed all the weird records with ANIMAL COVERS.

Jerry’s Records was one of my absolute favorite record stores on the entire Vinyl Road Rage 2 trip. I say you’ll be hard-pressed to find another shop that is as large, exhaustively stocked, and fussed over. Jerry himself is on duty at the store, which tells you something about how he likes to run things…and he told us he’s got a whole warehouse of vinyl that hasn’t even made it into the shop yet, so you know this place isn’t running out of the good stuff anytime soon.

I highly recommend Jerry’s, in case you couldn’t tell from all the breathless hype. I will be back there and soon, I hope.

–Joe Wallace



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Vinyl Road Rage is Off the Road

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It’s official, Vinyl Road Rage is off the road. It was a HELL of a trip–25 record stores between Chicago and New York City. There are still plenty of record store posts from the trip to come, including Philadelphia, Allentown, Toledo, more Pittsburgh, and New York City. But the road trip itself is done. I am back in Chicago, safe and sound.

Many, MANY thanks to all who retweeted, posted on Facebook and blogged about Vinyl Road Rage. There were many highs, a few lows, and a LOT of great record stores along the way.

Quite possibly the largest, most daunting and overall amazing record store of the trip was the mighty Jerry’s Records in Pittsburgh. It was absolutely staggering in every way and you’ll marvel at the size and scope of the place when you read the review.

Biggest disappointment of the trip? Fun as it was, I would have to say that from a vinyl junkie’s point of view, the Andy Warhol Museum (also in Pittsburgh) was a major letdown–from the lack of a return call when I phoned to get press access to the Warhol archives to a serious neglect of Warhol’s involvement in the music business from the Velvets to the Rolling Stones.

I had high hopes for the Warhol Museum, but maybe it was just a case of bad timing…I certainly hope so. I loved the place, vinyl gripes aside, and will be very happy to go back.

As I mentioned, there are MANY more posts bearing the Vinyl Road Rage logo to come…just wait til you see the record shops I found in NYC. I’ll post many more of these record shops this week, but next week the remaining posts will go up combined with our usual WTF bad album covers, vinyl blogs to watch and other features. THIS week, it’s ALL about the Road Rage.

–Joe Wallace

Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Record Stores: Eide’s Entertainment

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The Pittsburgh Pennsylvania record store Eide’s Entertainment is an institution. The shop, at 1121 Penn Avenue in the downtown part of Pittsburgh, got its start in 1972 as a comic book shop. Today it’s a massive storehouse of albums, memorabilia, DVDs, books, and the comics that gave the store its start back in the day.

Newcomers might overlook the stairs which lead up to the vinyl paradise…but once you know you have to go to the second floor to find the good stuff, don’t make the mistake of bypassing the first floor where the CDs are located–there is a nice collection of music-related books and mags that is definitely worth a look. Yes, there are more books on the second floor, but make sure you see that collection of titles on the first level–very cool indeed.

Yes, those are Re/Search titles you spotted in that not-so sharp photo above. Nice selection! But once you get upstairs, the real challenge begins.

Eides does have an emphasis on the collectibles, it’s true. In fact, it’s totally obvious that the people who make buying decisions for the store know their stuff and love the music. It’s unfortunate that some of the staff isn’t as well-rounded.

Queries about Robyn Hitchcock titles were met with a blank stare…I don’t expect everyone in the whole world to love or even pay attention to Hitchcock, the Soft Boys or the Egyptians, but anybody who works in a record store might be tempted to learn a LITTLE something about recent music history…or is that my inner curmudgeon manifesting itself? No matter–don’t go into the shop with questions, just do your crate digging and brace yourself for the total. There’s a LOT here to help you part ways with your hard earned cash, especially serious collectors.

Regardless, Eide’s is a worthy stop on any vinyl hunt, and cinema buffs will have plenty to distract them from the stacks as there’s a massive collection of DVDs for sale across a variety of genres.


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Youngstown Ohio Record Stores: Indiewax Records

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Indiewax Records, at 6961 Market Street in Youngstown, Ohio, has a collection of hard-to-find vinyl titles (see the albums on the wall first if you’re looking for the collector’s stuff) and a giant pile of for-cheap sale vinyl.

Collectors of punk and post-punk 45s should be pleased, and there’s a selection of the usual used vinyl titles alongside the new releases. Indiewax also has gear, so a new collector could do some one-stop shopping here. They sell Audio-Technica turntables, cartridges and preamps, along with the usual slipmats and cleaning gear.

I’m not a seven-inch collector, but looking at the Indiewax selection it’s easy to see why people get lured into it. There are new seven inches coming out left and right, and the old stuff seems just as fun to seek and find as full length albums.

The sale bin is probably the most important spot for the noob collector, and there’s a doozy here at Indiewax. Youngstown Ohio doesn’t know what its got in the “five for a buck” bin…this is priceless for some of us crate-digging mashup artists who like to mix and match on the fly with the turntables.

Indiewax Records is friendly, fun, and I’d definitely come back. I say that practically anytime I have a pleasant experience in an indie record shop, but I really mean it–especially in light of the store’s support of local and regional artists.

Did I mention that any fan of The Dwarves should have a look in here? Behold this selection of Dwarves seven inches:


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