Detroit Record Stores of the Past

[LodgeDodger]

Ward's at 7 and Gratiot, Harmony House and Kresge at Eastland

Wow, we used to shop at the same places! Bought a lot of my Donny Osmond records at Wards. I always thought the layout of that store was odd--the long corridor to get to...where did that lead? Garden Center? I don't remember.

Also, why was there a second Federal's building across the alley from the Gratiot store?

[LodgeDodger]

Yeah, but that didn't matter at the time. It was still music. And I wanted it.

I was a member of the Columbia Record Club, too.

What was the name of the record store across the street, but on the same side of Montgomery Ward on Gratiot?

[Corn.Bot]

Yeah, that was him. I think the "blond" I got from the Styx guy, not him.

How cool is that? I'll have to tell him someone remembers him. Ken still lives/works in the area. He's got more solar panel than hair on his head now, though. Matter of fact, just had a big shindig to-do in Eastpointe to celebrate his 25th wedding anniversary.

[corvax]

almost every saturday afternoon in the spring and summer in the early 70's, would ride our bikes from where we lived near 6 and john r up woodward to a place in ferndale called, i think, the "record house" run by what seemed to be a bunch of hippies.

remember buying mc5 [[kick out the jams and time out), all the ccr, the seger album w/ the great 2+2 [[why did he decline as his popularity increased?), firesign theatre, never forget the cover of the mothers of invention "weasels ripped my flesh".

[Gannon]

[[I'm still trying to figure how I forgot Sam's Jams...)

[LodgeDodger]

Never did get into buying records cause they were on their way out when I got to my preteen years. When I did buy them it was a Harmony House usually at Wonderland. Got most of my CD'S by mowing the lawn at the old MusicMusic in Garden City.
At one time back in the 90's there were 3 record stores on Ford Rd in Garden City, with plenty more around the area. Sams Jams in Livonia was a neat place to go, never made it to the Ferndale store.

You little Whippersnapper...

[DW313512]

I have a Firesign Theatre album. What a blast from the past! Too bad I don't have a working record player.

[Bobl]

My favorite entry in months, from jcole:

"...It was still music. And I wanted it..."

Reminds one of a famous quote:

"One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple."
Jack Kerouac

Well put, jcole!

[Ravine]

EJ Korvettes - Telegraph near Joy

Hah!! And I was doing nearly all of my buying at the Korvette's on 12 Mile right near Gratiot.

Different cool sales every week: Sometimes based on label, sometimes on genre, and I'm sure, Uke, that you remember the letter-coding.

*sigh* Nostalgia

[East Detroit]

Oh, the other place I forgot to mention was the record shows.

That's where I got my original Stooges and MC5 albums...

They still have one at the VFW on Gratiot.

[jcole]

Wow, we used to shop at the same places! Bought a lot of my Donny Osmond records at Wards. I always thought the layout of that store was odd--the long corridor to get to...where did that lead? Garden Center? I don't remember.

Also, why was there a second Federal's building across the alley from the Gratiot store?

I remember the store, but not the name. let me ask around.
As to the Federal's annex, I think it was just that, an annex. For overflow and discount stuff, like Hudson's Rainbow store.
I bought my first bendable Barbie at the Federal toy store.

[Detroit_uke]

DW313 - Why, oh why did you have to mention Firesign Theatre???? Now I have an earworm - Porgie Tirebiter! He's a spy and a girl delighter...Orgie Firefighter - He's just a student like you! Arghhhhhhhhh...you're no fun - you fell right over

[jcole]

I was a member of the Columbia Record Club, too.

What was the name of the record store across the street, but on the same side of Montgomery Ward on Gratiot?

Was it Stereo City?

[Pontiac6000]

White's Records on Ferry Park and 14th; Kendricks Records on Fenkell and Steel; and Coachmen's Records on Charlevoix and Mt Elliott...

[fanniemae]

Around 1971 or 72 went to the Korvettes at 12 and Gratiot to spend my 40 dollar paycheck from a fast food joint on the latest records. Wanted some Who and Stones. They had a big wood board with the albums displayed of what was on their play list. There was a red light that was either on or off, telling you what was playing. The coolest stuff I had ever heard was playing, the red light was on the Kris Kristoferson album, Silver Tongued Devil. Could not wait to get home to play it. Drove my VW bug home at fast speed. Played the record. Worst stuff I ever heard. The store must have had the red light on the wrong album. They would not take it back. It was a Traffic album that I had heard. Wecome to the Canteen. Bought that , still have it. The Kristoferson album I could never sell at my yard sales. Trashed it. Oh well, still love my vinyl.

[Jimg]

Well, I became a jazz fanatic around 1968. I would take the Det yellow pages each Saturday and cover different areas each week. So I found some really interesting shops, and because "older" jazz wasn't too popular - older meaning pre-electric Miles - I found some amazing shit. Most stores I went to, like Horn's Records and Tapes on Woodward at Clairmont, had long since consigned their Prestige and Blue Note and Riverside LP's to the back room or the basement. Most momandpop stores had jazz records in the basement or back room which they sold to me for not too much dough.
Most places would allow me to rummage through those dusty stacks in search of Gold, and I struck pay dirt OFTEN. Horn's was my favorite place for most of a year - Mr. Horn liked me, and we hung out diggin' Trane and Monk, etc. He also had a little side biz happening - numbers, which, he confessed, paid the rent on his shop most months. He sold me many early Prestige, Blue Notes, and even a couple of Transition LP's - if you are a fellow jazz crazy, you know how rare those discs are.
I also frequented Green's, on Grand River just behind Hudson's. They specialized in imports, and I secured many Polydor reissues of early Bebop. It was a standard record store, they wouldn't let me rummage. White's records was pretty good, too, as were Korvette's [[amazing stuff in their cut out bins) and even Hudson's had jazz if you looked hard enough.
I also hit Fortune Records one Saturday. What a trip that place was. Jack Brown let me rummage through huge piles of old used jazz records - found some late 50s Blue Notes - and spent most of my paycheck in one day. He had a steady flow of customers from God knows where, and most of them bought his Fortune LPs. I was too dumb at the time to appreciate his artists, but I did find several Coltrane Prestige sides in near mint condition which he gave up for a song, provided I organized massive piles of Fortune records for him.
The true record collector or jazz crazy knows that when you left a shop after a hard day of searching [[browsing is too mild a verb for what collectors really do) you would be covered with record jacket funk and smell like a moldy LP.

[Jimg]

Bob Mays, proprietor of a bona fide record collector's store. His shop was on E. 8 Mile near I75, first on the eastbound side, then, for a few years until he was finally forced to close, on the westbound side almost across from the original.
When I went in around 1968, Bob looked old to me [[most everyone over 30 looked old to me, I was 18) and seemed to drink "a bit." He had a solid grasp of jazz records and their worth. I bought my first 78s from his store - a Bird Dial, and a Tatum Decca - and went back many times over a 30 year period, until I actually had most everything I wanted due to the advent of CD's.
Bob is one of those guys who seemed designed for and destined to sell used records. He would have looked odd selling groceries, or car insurance, but was totally right for the record job. Thin as a rake, long bushy beard, smoked a lot, always dusty boxes piled high in corners and most everywhere else in his modest sized space. To borrow a quote about Duke Ellington, Bob looked like he'd seen it all, and done most of it. He still has a table at record collector shows.
Now Cappy was different - stocky guy rough voice, friendly but didn't take crap from anyone. Always thought Cappy was an ex motorcycle gang member for some reason - just had a slightly menacing air about him, but once you talked with him for a while he turned out to be a really nice guy. And he knew his records, especially his Detroit records. I asked him once if he had any disco records, and he looked at me in disbelief before bursting into laughter for a solid minute. I wasn't joking, but I was too insecure to fess up and tell him I wasn't joking, and we moved on to other topics.
Cappy had to pack up most of his 'special collection' for some reason which I've forgotten, and wasn't in a big hurry to unpack them - if you've ever moved a lot of records, you know the effort involved. Cappy closed his shop a few years ago, and I that was a major loss for Det record collectors. I only hope he gets the chance to channel his amazing knowledge into a Det business of some sort - maybe selling records?? LOL.

[Detroit_uke]

It was nice buying all those records - but after all of these years I've decided the albums can stay - but two boxes of 45's are going out for bulk trash day!

[Pam]

It was nice buying all those records - but after all of these years I've decided the albums can stay - but two boxes of 45's are going out for bulk trash day!

Why don't you try giving them away or selling them first? Better they go to a collector than the landfill.

[Detroit_uke]

Pam - I gave away boxes of 45's...but then I find more - anybody want them?

[East Detroit]

What are some artists represented?

[Detroit_uke]

Well, EastDetroit - I had to go downstairs to grab some of the records - SURPRISE - basement flooded...so I swam as fast as I could and grabbed a few off the top of box one - CashRecords - Ernie Freeman combo, Money Label - The larks, Philles records - The Ronettes, Polydor records - James Brown, Perception records - The Fatback Band, Boyd records - Philip Upchurch, Enjoy records - the rinkydinks, Wand re cords - Maxine Brown....there are alot and I'm not going back downstairs till it dries!!!!

[East Detroit]

That's some good stuff. I want them.

[Detroit_uke]

EastD - send me a private message

[Pam]

Did you guys work out a deal? I'll feel better when the records find a good home.