It’s rare these days that I post on a Saturday, but it’s an important day for music enthusiasts that goes along with this upcoming week’s musical themed blog posts. Today is Record Store Day. I discovered this event by accident last year when I ordered Depeche Mode’s Remixes: 81-11 (posts seen here and here). Because I purchased the CD at an independent record store here in San Diego called Lou’s Records, I received a very rare promotional Record Store Day, four song, limited edition “Personal Jesus” 12″ single (my copy pictured below).
Record Store Day is a day that celebrates the indie record store and the culture surrounding them. When I was a teen, I remember the thrill of getting that rare British or European import from my favorite local record store called Blue Meannie Records. They have since gone out of business, but I would rather still shop at stores like Ameoba Music in Los Angeles, Lou’s Records or M-Theory here in San Diego because of the type of music available at these stores, which includes rare, used and new vinyl records. To this day, I miss Tower Records and I’m a backer of the documentary All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records, produced by Colin Hanks (post here). I’m also saddened by the recent closure of The Ideal Copy, an independent online store where I purchased my favorite rare, out-of-print CD’s or vinyl by groups like Aztec Camera, Blancmange, Red Rockers, Roman Holiday and Vitamin Z.
I didn’t see anything in this year’s list that I would go out of my way for, like that Depeche Mode treasure from last year. But here is a link to the full list of releases on PDF that you can download, and maybe you can find a nugget of your own by one of your favorite artists. Whatever your flavor, please continue to support independent record stores to celebrate not only the art of music, but the art of collecting and appreciating music. Happy Record Store Day!
(Top image courtesy of the Record Store Day official website)
Note: A sad “So long” to Mr. Dick Clark, who was an icon. I loved American Bandstand growing up and I think he was the quintessential TV show host. He will always be “The Eternal Teenager”.
