You may or may not be aware that today is "Record Store Day" (at least for a few more hours). The demise of the record store is one of the more unfortunate side effects of the digital age. Growing up, my main experience with record stores were limited to mega-retailer Blockbuster Music and Nader's Music in West Point, Georgia (the latter is where I would purchase the best new rap tape singles as a preteen before my musical tastes evolved). The first lasting experience for me in a record store took place in Athens, Georgia at Schoolkids Records. I remember walking through the door of this college town store, determined to make a "hip" purchase. What I walked away with that day was Whiskeytown's Pneumonia, which to this day remains one of my favorite albums. Ryan Adams, Caitlin Cary, and Company's third and final album was released two years after it was recorded among much controversy, and it stands strong among other alt-country masterpieces, such as Wilco's Being There and The Jayhawks Rainy Day Music. Below is the album opener and standout track Ballad of Carol Lynn. Share any good record store memories/stories in the comments section (maybe we'll be lucky enough for Ben to tell us about his Joan Baez purchase in Oxford, MS)Saturday, April 17, 2010
Happy Record Store Day
You may or may not be aware that today is "Record Store Day" (at least for a few more hours). The demise of the record store is one of the more unfortunate side effects of the digital age. Growing up, my main experience with record stores were limited to mega-retailer Blockbuster Music and Nader's Music in West Point, Georgia (the latter is where I would purchase the best new rap tape singles as a preteen before my musical tastes evolved). The first lasting experience for me in a record store took place in Athens, Georgia at Schoolkids Records. I remember walking through the door of this college town store, determined to make a "hip" purchase. What I walked away with that day was Whiskeytown's Pneumonia, which to this day remains one of my favorite albums. Ryan Adams, Caitlin Cary, and Company's third and final album was released two years after it was recorded among much controversy, and it stands strong among other alt-country masterpieces, such as Wilco's Being There and The Jayhawks Rainy Day Music. Below is the album opener and standout track Ballad of Carol Lynn. Share any good record store memories/stories in the comments section (maybe we'll be lucky enough for Ben to tell us about his Joan Baez purchase in Oxford, MS)
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Ben also has a story about a reggae cd he purchased off the street in jamaica.
ReplyDeleteThanks mom. Old Super Jerry was his name. He tried to sell me something else too, but at 12 years old ganja wasn't my top priority. Scott and I later burned that cd in the driveway in West Point. Ironically, during the opening of Capella, we had a guy here that is from Jamaica and happened to know who Super Jerry was. He informed me that Super Jerry passed away, so he cannot trick youngsters into purchasing his God-awful albums anymore. RIP Super Jerry...gone, but never forgotten.
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