There were so many awesome record stores, from the tiny holes-in-the-wall shops to the huge chain stores, that I actually had a schedule at one point to make sure I hit every store just in case one of them came up with a gem for my collection.
I mean, let's face it, the music is what got us to the clubs in the first place right?!
Anyway, I was such a record geek that I can STILL remember the "big scores" at particular shops to this day. I remember finding a stash of Death In June and Current 93 vinyl at one shop who had no clue what they had, and even though they had four or five copies of each record, they were priced so low I bought them all.
I remember another shop that had these removable price stickers, and I simply switched one sticker with another and walked out of there with a Sisters of Mercy "Damage Done" 7" for $5!
Remember when the "Valley Girl" EP was a sought after piece of vinyl back in the day? I scored mine after walking into a shop that had it on the wall as a decoration. When I asked how much it was, the dude just asked, "You want that?! $5". Score!
But the best HAD to be the daily, yes DAILY trips to both Venus and Sounds on St. Mark's with Rob Xian, sometimes even TWICE a day once Alan Sanctuary hooked us up with the fact that new stock was rolled out early, then AGAIN later in the evening.
The records I found at those two shops for dirt cheap prices were just incredible. From the rarest 4AD one-off projects to the most obscure industrial or punk 7"s. Those two places were goldmines for the rabid collector. The only thing that sucked was that obnoxious round pink "Sounds" price sticker they'd slap of LP's. Getting them off without destroying the sleeve was a mission in itself.
I remember once downstairs at Venus, I was chatting with Howard who worked there, flipping through a box of 7"s and suddenly found myself looking at three copies of Crispy Ambulance's 1st (pre-Factory Records) 7" AND two copies of Modern English's 1st (pre-4AD) 7", all for dirt cheap. Needless to say, I bought all of them and skipped all the way home...Hey, this was before Ebay so that type of find back then was heart-stopping.
Record collecting was so much fun then. I remember giving Jeffo and Pete hundreds of dollars and a "want-list" every time they went to the U.K. They always came back with stuff I "needed".
I also remember scouring through every new issue of Goldmine magazine with all those ads of record stores around the country and their miniscule type. I remember getting hooked up with "Used Kids" in Ohio and this other spot in New Orleans. I literally completed about 75% of the rare 4AD catalog just from those two spots alone.
Anyway, here's a list of what I can remember as far as shops to hit back then in New York City, let me know if I missed anything:
Bleeker Bob's (not that you'd ever get a "score" there! everything was overpriced and known)
Second Coming (scored the Factory videos there, both Joy Division and the "Factory Outing")
Venus (I swear I got most of my Factory discography there for under $5!)
Free Being
Sounds (everything from goth to punk to hardcore to industrial-and CHEAP!)
Downtown Music Gallery (the place mentioned earlier with all the C93 and DIJ vinyl!)
Rebel Rebel (never really cheap, but what a New Wave stash there)
Record Runner (same as Rebel Rebel-the random New Wave shit you could find there was endless)
Vinyl Mania (I found some sweet rare 4AD vinyl there in the late-80's)
Finyl Vinyl
Stooz (around '92 on St. Marks between 1st and A I think? Tons of great stuff there)
Strange (That was the shop Colin <who worked at Bleeker Bob's> opened about 1992)
Generation (they were the main reason Bob's started "sucking"-great vinyl in the beginning)
Sonic Groove (for all your dance/trance/techno needs. Mr. Frankie Bones and crew)
Kim's Video West (the absolute best for finding the rare noise cassettes and 7's! Just amazing)
Subterranean (the infamous "Damage Done" switch I mentioned earlier. Tons of 7's)
Hideout records
Midnight Records (awesome spot on 23rd street. Scored tons of Spacemen 3 and Factory there)
Howdy Doody (actually a fun vintage shop but had collectible vinyl come through every so often)
Bleeker Street Records (you never knew what you'd find in there when you walked in)
Lunch for your Ears
Academy records (scored some rare Swans and Coil there once-I walked out hyperventilating!)
Tower Records (actually had an amazing selection of vinyl in the mid/late 80's! Just awesome)
Rocks in your Head (great spot a bit later on for hard to find CD's. Always surprised me)
99 Records (one of the first spots I ever went to-punk, hardcore, you name it)
Revolver Records (yet another place that was good for 4AD and Factory "scores")
Revolution Records
I'm sure I forgot a spot or two, but that's as good as I can remember at the moment. There were many times that Rob Xian and I went to whatever club we were going to that night straight from the record-hunting missions.
