Back in the late '70s and early '80s, I used to spend so much time record shopping in Orange County that I rarely did anything else apart from go to school. I never went camping, never went bowling, never went dancing and didn't get into a whole lotta trouble. Heck, I never went to a strip club, either, and I always wanted to do that! But, there were records to be bought, music to be heard and mixtapes to be made. Hmmmm... come to think of it, I've still never been to a strip club! Any recommendations?
When I went to record stores, it was always with the people that I loved the most: friends and family. Mostly friends, though. My family didn't seem to share the same passion that I had for music. Sure, I'd go to Beggars Banquet on Beach and Ball with my brother Michael and I'd walk to Licorice Pizza on Brookhurst and Chapman with my little sister Kristin, but most of my record shopping was spent with very cool friends.
Below, I've listed a few of my favorite destinations, all of them gone now (apart from the mediocre Pepperland). So many memories attached to the music, the friends and the stores we used to spend so much time in......
MUSIC MARKET: Costa Mesa
I'd go to Music Market (on Harbor and Adams) with Jeff George, Chuck Reddick, Jannette Arnold, Bill Damron, Dana Gohs, Matthew Cibellis and many others. We always had a great time sharing our newly purchased treasures.
Memorable purchases at Music Market include an import copy of Badfinger's Straight Up LP plus hundreds of import and domestic albums by the new wave bands I loved like Four Out Of Five Doctors, The Farmer's Boys, Dexys Midnight Runners, Icehouse, The Keys, Hawks, The Elektrics, Naked Eyes, The Fixx, A Flock Of Seagulls, Fischer Z and many other bands you either don't remember or don't know! Horizontal Brian, anyone?
CAMEL RECORDS: Huntington Beach
I'd go to Camel Records on Beach Boulevard with Jeff, Jannette, Chuck, Matthew and others. I even went to a Fixx instore there with my sister Kristin, I believe? I also remember a Split Enz instore that was cancelled!
Memorable purchases at Camel include China Crisis singles, the XTC/Three Wise Men Christmas single, Wang Chung 12" singles, The Fixx "Saved By Zero" 12" single and much more!
(P.S. During our trip to Camel, we'd always stop by the Mad Greek over on Chapman and Beach. )
LICORICE PIZZA: Garden Grove, Anaheim, Fountain Valley
I would also hit each of the Licorice Pizza's in town on different occasions with Jeff, Jannette, Matthew, Chuck, David Wilcox, Gerardo Marti and whoever else felt like coming along. I remember skipping school ONCE in my senior year and going to the Licorice Pizza in Hollywood with Chuck and his friend Lisa. Didn't have $$, but saw some cool things there. I ended up working at the one on Brookhurst and Chapman.
At the LP in Garden Grove, I remember buying an import copy of the Jam's "Going Underground" double seven inch single when it first came out. And albums from Yachts, Bram Tchaikovsky, The Records, the Clash, The Jam, and many others. At the Fountain Valley location, I bought albums by The Nits, Captain Sensible and more.
RECORD TRADING CENTER (RTC): Orange
Record Trading Center on Tustin was always a favorite, but I'd usually forget how to get there since I never drove in those days! So, I'd usually tag along with a friend of they were going!
Don't remember too much that I bought there cuz they were often times too expensive, but I do remember finding the import copy of Secret Affair's Glory Boys album with a totally different cover (glossy, too) and tracklisting.
MUSIC PLUS: Garden Grove, Westminster and ?
There were a few Music Plus stores we'd go to: Harbor Ave in Garden Grove, the one near Goldenwest College and a few others that slip my mind. Music Plus was almost always good, but it was never an important stop for us. We'd usually go when we'd already hit every other store that week. I remember times with Chuck, Jeff G. and others.
I do remember buying Depeche Mode's A Broken Frame import when it first came out. And The Jam's "Start" seven inch vinyl when that first came out. Both of those were purchased at the Goldenwest one. And I remember a Music Plus on Brookhurst, where I bought the 2nd Laughing Dogs album
TOWER RECORDS: Buena Park
The Tower Records in Buena Park was the place I'd go to before even knowing about all these other record stores (bar Beggars Banquet). Sometimes, I'd even walk there from Garden Grove with a friend or two (namely Fred Grindle, who got egged once while we were walking back from a trek to Tower and Beggars). Tower was the bomb.
Bought albums from A Flock Of Seagulls, Haircut 100, Badfinger, The Rutles, The Residents and so many more. Hell, yeah. I bought TONS of stuff there!
BEGGARS BANQUET: Buena Park
Located on Beach and Ball, Beggars Banquet was the real first 'collectors' store I'd frequent. Obviously, I used to buy Beatles, Elvis and Badfinger stuff there, but then I'd scour the bins for the latest Punk and Power Pop/New Wave releases. I later worked there once a week for about a year (my day off from the bank!)
Totally remember buying the very first Plimsouls EP, Zero Hour. Heard them on Rodney On The Roq and never thought I'd be able to find their record. Lo and behold, there it was up on the wall rack, just waiting for me to buy it
PEPPERLAND: Anaheim
Pepperland was OK, and I went there with many friends but they were usually a last choice unfortunately. At this point in my life, I wanted more than just rare Beatles and '60s releases. It wasn't until later that they began to expand out of the 'collector' realm and into normal, every day releases.
I used to buy a bunch of seven inch singles from there, but don't remember much until the CD age...
Then there was always the great Zed Records in Long Beach, but I don't really consider them part of this immediate area we'd always travel in....
There's so much more to talk about, but I can see that you're getting a tad bit bored, so I'll stop there.
Nowadays, heading out to Amoeba in Hollywood is an amazing trek. It's like combining all my favorite elements from the above record stores into one. But I must admit that it's not quite as magical anymore.
Maybe it's because I don't have $$?
Maybe it's because I don't have time?
Maybe it's because I don't have friends?
Maybe it's just because music isn't as exciting as it was back then?
Hmmmm... give me some time and I'll figure it out...
Happy record shopping!
Stephen SPAZ Schnee
Thanks for the memories. I worked at the Licorice Pizza downtown Long Beach when I was 19 yrs old. I remember reading that Bohemian Rhapsody was the #1 song in England (Melody Maker magazine) and so I played it in the store...this was before it became a hit here in America. A few months later it went to #1 here also.
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