Category Archives: Record Shops

Jack White: Vinyl Junkie

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One of the stops on Vinyl Road Rage 4 in Nashville was the most excellent Third Man Records, the boutique record store and home of the record label of the same name.

Jack White started Third Man after his recording contract expired with V2. The White Stripes signed with Warner to record Icky Thump, but Jack White pulled off a shrewd deal to keep the rights to vinyl pressings…and Third Man wasn’t far behind with reissues of the back catalog, plus new releases by bands like The Dead Weather.

If you’re into learning about the entire saga of Third Man, have a look at this excellent interview with one of Third Man’s major players, as published by Collector’s Weekly. It’s a pretty interesting look behind the scenes at Nashville’s prime iconoclast labels/record stores.

Shangri-La Records Memphis Tennessee

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One of the best stops in the December 2011 edition of Vinyl Road Rage was the Memphis Tennessee record store Shangri-La Records.

For those just joining us, Vinyl Road Rage is Turntabling’s annual cross-country road trip to find the coolest record stores in the USA. Shangri-La Records, at 1916 Madison Avenue in Memphis, was definitely a “mission accomplished” moment in that regard.

For some reason, most of the best record stores found during Vinyl Road Rage are basically converted houses. Maybe it’s the large number of rooms packed full of vinyl, plus the attention to detail that most of these stores pay to the whole record shopping experience….whatever the reason, Shangri-La Records is one of those stores that makes a road-weary traveler remember why an extended journey in search of cool vinyl records is a good thing to do.

Shangri-La Records has a very respectable 80s alternative/New Wave/Industrial section and the soundtrack selections were pretty excellent, too. There is a staggering amount of vinyl to look through here. Dedicated crate diggers, don’t bother coming in as a first-timer until you have an extended amount of time to marvel at all this.

And like all truly great record stores, it’s a friendly, chatty place. Shangri-La has a high pain threshold for vinyl geek chattiness–kudos to the poor soul running the show when the most socially awkward record shop denizens in the USA are firing non-stop questions at light speed. Maybe this store should be renamed “Patience Of A Saint Records” instead.

There were some excellent rarities, some common-but-collectible finds, and a great selection of new releases and re-issues. The Sun Ra spoken word titles on display there were of particular interest, and reasonably priced. All in all, a most satisfying stop indeed. Don’t pass up a chance to stop at Shangri-La, it’s aptly named.

–Joe Wallace

Memphis Tennessee Record Stores: Goner Records

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by Joe Wallace

After Vinyl Road Rage ended its too-brief Nashville phase, it only made sense to move along to Memphis to plunder the record stores there. Memphis Tennessee Record stores are, based on what was found there, basically awesome and well worth investigating.

The first stop in Memphis was Goner Records, located in a fun alt-culture district on the aptly-named Young Avenue. One look at Goner from the outside and I knew it was going to be great.

For starters, they have a nice collection of music-related print matter, books and mags that you probably didn’t stop in for but will want to look at anyway. Very hard not to be tempted there…but the vinyl selections were calling so the printed stuff had to wait. And with good reason.

For a collector of weirdness on vinyl, Goner is a gold mine.

Spotting the “soundtrack” to L. Ron Hubbard’s abysmal Battlefield Earth book was a surprise–it truly is one of the most godawful vinyl records of all time and here it is in all its glory at Goner. Bravo.

I dropped a nice packet of cash on the weird records, to be sure. But the usual suspects are all waiting for you, too…no shortage of great titles in all the genres you want to explore…and I must add there was a fairly impression collection of Ohio Players titles when I was there.

The store itself is laid out well, fun to shop and has great atmosphere–something I’d find sorely lacking on the next leg of the Vinyl Road Rage journey once hitting Arkansas. Needless to say, you won’t have that problem in HERE.

There are plenty of great places to shop, record store-wise, between Bloomington, Indiana and Arkansas, but I have to say, Goner Records was one of my favorite. That could have been clouded by finding so many bizarre record titles in one store, or it could have been that Goner reminds me of some other now-gone shops I’ve been to in Texas…either way this is a must-return store for me and you’ll probably feel the same way after a visit.

If you’re interested in learning more about my vinyl finds at Goner Records during Vinyl Road Rage, have a look at the video clip below, I mention Goner and the other most excellent Memphis record shop, Shangri-La Records.



Nashville Record Stores: The Groove

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For our newest readers–Vinyl Road Rage is our annual cross-country road trip to find great indie record shops, strange & rare vinyl, and all the odd experiences you have on a prolonged drive. In December 2011 Vinyl Road Rage went from Chicago to San Antonio Texas, and these posts are the record store reviews of all the places found along the way.

Nashville, Tennessee record stores are not scarce by any means, and the city should be considered a vinyl collector destination city. One of the highlights of our Nashville visit was the smaller, scrappy independent record store, The Groove.

Situated in a converted house in/near what an outsider might rightly call the bohemian district of Nashville, The Groove was fun to shop, friendly, and apparently getting ready to expand with a new stage planned. There’s nothing like a good in-store, and it’s easy to see how this record store would be even more fun to shop by bringing the bands in.

There’s a sizable jazz collection and plenty of oddities and obscurities. One of the best finds of the trip came courtesy of The Groove; the Black Mass album by Lucifer. It was a real thrill to score that one, so The Groove definitely took a big step higher in the Turntabling book for supplying such an exciting find.

During the visit to The Groove, something became apparent–a seemingly unifying thread between several really amazing record stores found in various places all over America.

At present it seems that some of the best record shops, the most friendly and fun stores are those found in converted houses. You couldn’t say that the ONLY great record stores are in former homes, but most of the shops IN houses seem to have more care lavished on them, more attention given to the atmosphere and the organization; this would be apparent again and again during the trip.

The Groove is obviously one of these and the homey environment you find yourself crate digging in is great. And of course, the unusual vinyl finds (lumped in with all the other great records by groups you already know and love) are a huge part of that.

 

The Groove is definitely on the Turntabling must-revisit list for next time, it’s fairly easy to find and chances are good it will be your first stop on the way into town if you’re also looking for Third Man Records or the Lawrence Record Shop on Broadway. Out-of-towners, be sure to check their website for info as The Groove frequently does listening parties, giveaways and other in-store events. You might just find something awesome happening around the same time as your visit.

–Joe Wallace

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