anc282 said:

why is that? do their kids drop them in the warehouse?

No, they keep the discs behind the counter in plastic slips....and that wrecks the disc.

It doesn't affect the playing, but hey, when I buy a new disc I want a new disc, not a scratched one!

anc282 said:

last few discs I bought were straight from the artists websites

Yes.....at times I buy stuff from cdbaby as well, which is also direct from the artist.

There's nothing quite like the instant hit of finding an album you have been after for AGES or finding a CD at a really low price when you've been holding back on it for a while, or picking up a disc you didn't even know about...


But let's face it in the UK we are left with very few record shops and mostly now just HMV, which is OK and has its place but the internet has kind of spoilt me - I know that if a record is out there, I can find it online for a good price, whereas HMV usually won't have what I want in stock and if they do it'll be more expensive usually.

There is a great rock/ metal specialist shop nearby, though, which I am hoping will continue to thrive. It's always busy when i go there, so fingers crossed.

Yes, I miss the good ole days. The nostalgia of it.

angel345 said:

I live in a small town where there have never been big record stores. I remember coming to London and America for the first time and seeing the huge stores. I loved it. I had to go in. I didn´t even care that much to see the sights.

SoulAlive said:

Revokes Funk Card for also not going to the Amoeba in LA!

There was once a Tower Records located less than 4 miles from my house and it was replaced by a shoe retailer. When I drive past it, I still linger for while and think about the good old days of seeing new releases on the shelves, posters galore, rare imports and box sets. Nowadays I find myself at Best Buy and Target searching in vain for a department assistant.

OH MY GOD YES!

Slave2daGroove said:

When I've traveled north, I hit both Amoebas, the one in SF and the one in Berkley Can't imagine not hitting up a record store if I have access to one.

It's been a while since I've gone on a good vinyl dig...I hope the stores I went to are still around. Something tells me Encore, Melodies & Memories and Record Time won't die without a fight...I hope (it's been about a year or so)....

I miss record shops greatly. What I actually miss more than anything are the actual proper albums and the pixs that you could actually use as posters.

We're lucky enough to have Soundgarden and Record & Tape Traders here

Record stores....as in vinyl? Hell yes. In my area, there is only one full fledged "record store" that actually sells a big selection of used vinyl and it is waaaay out in the county in a small town outside of the city. I go out there about once every six months or so because it's such a long drive and I don't exactly drive a new car.

A local record store I shop at which is Be-Bop Records (formerly vinyl back in the day but has been CDs since the format changed) has a very small section of used vinyl that I check from time to time but it's usually the same stuff as the last time I checked. Then there are the flea markets. That's about it as far as vinyl goes in my area. I wish there were lots of stores that sell it in my area.

As for CDs, I shop at Be-Bop Records in the shopping center in front of my house. It's an individual owned store. I never shop at big chains like Best Buy for CDs because they never have shit worth a damn. Lately though, I've been ordering hard to find CDs from Amazon.
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[Edited 2/24/09 12:13pm]

Slave2daGroove said:

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Me too

You have to go to some little dingy store that has "used" vinyl.

HMV has some vinyl up on shelves though

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

If I ever see you in the Berkeley, I'm gonna throw something at you, just so you know it's bboy87

dag said:

I remembered there is a big record store in midtown Manhattan that has just about all the music you're looking for, including sheet music. I am not sure if it's still there.

Just as I had predicted, but much sooner than I thought.

Union Square area losing its Virgin-ity
Victoria Colliver, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, February 26, 2009

(02-26) 20:27 PST -- The Virgin Megastore in San Francisco will shut its doors in late April, adding a large vacancy at Stockton and Market streets to a growing number of empty storefronts around Union Square, the retail heart of the city.

The music and video retailer, which opened its estimated 45,000-square-foot store 14 years ago, will start liquidation sales sometime next month, company officials confirmed today.

Union Square is still considered one of the country's most vibrant shopping districts and a destination for international tourists. But one of the worst holiday shopping seasons in recent memory, low consumer confidence and an overall dismal economic scene have made retail among the hardest-hit sectors of the economy.

"It's a tough time. It's probably as tough a time I've seen since I've been in business here," said Ken Brownell, partner in Blatteis & Schnur, a retail brokerage firm that manages and owns some buildings in Union Square.

But he remained optimistic. "In San Francisco's history, the retail comes back sooner than the rest of country. We're the last ones to get hit and first to come out of it," he said. And the economic downturn has opened up opportunities for retailers to readjust their rents and for new businesses to come into the area, he added.

The landscape, however, paints a different picture.

The closure late last year of Shoe Pavilion left an empty storefront at 838 Market St. The Escada boutique, formerly at 259 Post St., and Ann Taylor, at 240 Post St., closed a couple of years ago, and their spaces remain vacant. The former Disney Store at 400 Post St., which shut its doors last year, has yet to be filled.

In addition, a number of retailers are considering downsizing or not renewing their leases once they expire. Those include Talbots at 126 Post St., Mango at 117 Post St. and Rockport at 165 Post St., which wants to sublease a portion of its space.

Rite Aid Corp. announced earlier this month that it was pulling out of San Francisco, selling all seven of its stores to Walgreen Co. Since Walgreen already has a nearby store on Market Street, the future of the Rite Aid at 779 Market St. is in doubt.

But all is not bleak. Amid the retail shakeup, there are newcomers to the area. Bulgari is on track to open a 13,600-square-foot store at 200 Stockton St. CB2, Crate & Barrel's lower-cost home-furnishing outlet opened in the fall. And a lease has just been signed for the former Sharper Image site in the 200 block of Post Street, though the brokers involved declined to reveal the new tenant.

Meanwhile, renovations are under way at 800 Market St., across from Virgin, to accommodate a new Diesel clothing store. BCBG just renewed its lease at 331 Powell St., and British designer Sir Paul Smith is planning to open his store at 46 Geary St. in the coming weeks.

As for Virgin Megastore, it had been affected in part by a shift in music-buying habits to digital downloads - the same trend that led to the demise of such mainstays as Tower Records in 2006. In recent years, however, Virgin diversified its offerings to include DVDs, clothing and accessories.

The Virgin Megastore in New York's Times Square also will close and will make way for trendy clothing retailer Forever 21. The company said Thursday it also would close its store in New York's Union Square.

The closures of the San Francisco and New York locations will leave just three Virgin retail stores - in Hollywood, Denver, Colo., and Orlando, Fla. - from a peak of 23 stores in 2002.

Part of the empire started by Sir Richard Branson, Virgin Megastores were sold to the Related Companies and Vornado Realty Trust in 2007. At that time, the company operated 11 stores. Officials from Related Companies did not return calls for comment, and a Vornado representative referred all calls to Virgin.

"It's sad Virgin is going, but nobody is really surprised," said Vikki Johnson, principal in the San Francisco real estate firm Johnson Hoke Ltd. But, Johnson said, the site has a future because that corner of Market Street is a far more attractive location than when Virgin Megastore opened in 1995.

San Francisco resident Mark Nichols stopped by the Virgin Megastore today after trying to take advantage of book sales in the final days of the iconic Stacey's Bookstore, which is closing up shop at 581 Market St. after 85 years in business.

Nichols, 50, was unaware of Virgin's pending closure. "That's pretty sad," he said of the news, adding that he planned to return for the going-out-of-business sales. "I think we're getting the repercussions of the economy. The dominos are falling."