Car City Records, Detroit: is it gone now?

Courville: that's south of Whittier. It's one of the cross streets in that area--Duchess, Whitehill, Lakepointe, etc. all cross it; Laing was between Duchess and Whitehill. I know someone who grew up on Coram, which is a few blocks north of Moross and west of Kelly on the Detroit side (I think Elkhart was on the Harper Woods side). Her grandmother lived on Somerset south of Morang, and her parents both grew up closer to Whittier on some of those same streets.

One memory I have from the early 90s was when a gunman held up the Comerica bank on Morang, shot someone, and was "at large" in the neighborhood. I was afraid to go home for lunch that day.

 

That makes me wonder if there are any music shops in the downriver area. I recall seeing a small shop on West Rd. somewhere near Trenton back around 2000 or so. I'm sure it's gone now.

Lots of good info in this thread, BTW! It'll be saved for future reference...

 

Anyone remember Tom's Tunes on Harper between 9 and 10 mile? When I moved to Detroit in late 90's this guy had tons of old pressing CDs, many Gold DCC's etc. His store was small and a complete mess but I recall a few good scores I had in there over the years. Seems like he closed up shop in 2001-2002 time frame.

 

After a friend moved into an apartment in that area, I found out about that place. Every time I stopped there, there were no cars. Finally I walked up and looked in the windows. All the stock was still in there, but in disarray. Next time I stopped, it was all cleared out.

 

The Groove Shop used to have vinyl boots back in the day. I also really enjoyed the Harmony House on Mack. I have fond memories of working for my Dad and him taking me there to "pay me" instead of giving me cash. Was one of the greatest days of my life. It's interesting to think that nowdays kids can just stay home and steal much more music in just a few minutes. I can't imagine that it means as much to them though.

C

 

I spent a few lunch hours there as well. They were a buck or two more than other stores on some items, but they were truly a "record store" in that they'd take time to special order something for you, or look it up in the Phonolog book. I grew up near the Hoover 11 store, though, and I still remember when they had the 45s on and along the walls in the back corner, and 12" singles were up near the front by the cash register. They all had ticket counters, too.

Does anyone remember the name of the chain record store that used to be in Eastgate (11/Gratiot) around the early to mid 80s? I remember stopping in there in 1983 and buying my first three CDs. I also remember they had a few "head shop" items in a counter up by the cash register.

BTW, I still drive past Masonic and Groesbeck and mourn the passing of Peaches Records. My folks had to drive me there (as it was too far on the bike), but it was the first place I discovered cutouts. I have a few from back then, that I still remember buying there. I also remember buying a few LPs when they had their store closing sale.

 

The owner was a serious oddball. The store would be open whenever he decided to work in there. It was a total mess toward the end, dust everywhere, LPs scattered all over but like I said, it you did happen to go in there when it was open there were things to be found.

 

Good trivia quesiton! I hit that store in the Eastgate shopping center many a time, but for the life of me can't remember the name...

Tom's Tunes...yeah, a strange little hole-in-the-wall shop on Harper in St. Clair Shores. But I miss it!

Peaches...basically a supermarket-sized record store! Ah, those were the days...

The best Harmony House store was the one on Woodward. Tons of cool imports, Japanese mini-LP editions, etc. Now it's a generic FYE store...

 

Music Stop



Mike

 

That's it!! Unfortunately...they stopped.

I remember that big Woodward Harmony House store, and they'd turned the old one on Woodward into the classical store.

 

I stumbled over this old thread and wanted to reply to this.

That store ( I don't remember the full name, it was "Record ________", but who knows...) but that was the first record store I ever went into or bought anything from in the 1976-78 era. It was in the strip mall and had a large round window in the front. I went in there and bought Toys In The Attic at age 11 like a big shot.

*Don't remember any head shop items, but then again, at that age I would not have had a clue what that stuff was*

 

You had me worried for a moment, Jose Jones....I saw this thread had been bumped, and thought Car City had closed up for good. The last two times I've been back home and dropped in to do shopping, the place is dead.

 

Car City Records is closing September 30th. I learned this from a friend last night.

http://www.recordstoreguide.com/blog/275/car-city-records-st-clair-shores-mi-closing-sept-30th.html

 

What a shame. You could see it coming. The store has been empty just about everytime I went there.

 

I only stopped in once, around the holidays in 2009. It was dead.

 

I picked up so many gems at Car City CLASSICS years ago - a mint copy of "A Package of 16 big Hits" (volume one) for an insanely fair price way back in the 80's. They had been doing eBay mail sales recently.

Does anyone remember heading to E.J. Korvettes for their "label" or "all label" sales? I have so many albums with the price code stickers, all bought the first week of release.

Federals back in day: $.69 45's.

In the mid-60's we also had Arlans in Lincoln Park. I recall picking up original Marvelettes albums there at bargain prices. (Kat and Wanda still live near me. Kat is active in various pursuits but no one sees much of Wanda.)

My personal best was "Desirable Discs" when it was still in Garden City. The owner used to call me whenever he got a stash of Motown because he knew I would snap them up. It wasn't quite as collectible or "desirable" as rock in early 80's. I obtained several WCHB DJ collections for chump change. The owner helped me fill in some items missing from Supremes collection. The focus of his shop changed to rock when he moved farther east into Dearborn.

Repeat the Beat's original location in Dearborn was much larger than the later Royal Oak store, and was a fine source for new and used.

Sam's Jams had opened a store in Livonia for several years and was a regular stop, as well as Ferndale's original location.

Ron Murphy (RIP) lived and kept his studio a mile from me, and was one helluva resource for Motown insider info. He pointed out the errors that were made in the first Hip-O TCMS collection, such as the incorrect tape used for the Contours "Whole Lotta Woman", among 20-something other mistakes. He was kind enough to create a cd with the corrections for fans of his lore. He said that "they didn't ask him" to participate, otherwise he would have shared his knowledge. He was consulted in the subsequent volumes until he passed away. He is missed.

We still have the venerable Dearborn Music, where I spend too much on my long lunches, but I have such bad luck buying used CD's. Pinholes plague my used purchases and make me wonder if most of the used items are there because of flaws...

Westsider for life!

 

Shame...



I found lots of great discs over the years. Lots. All the old Robin Trower and UFO disc on Chrysalis.

Oh...and my KC Three of a Perfect Pair WG Target!

Good Bye, Care City Records. You will be missed.

 

Desirable Discs had three locations and I went to them all. I haven't seen Jeff in a several years now and wonder how he is doing(and the big guy who used to be his buyer(was it Coy?))

Dearborn music is all we have left and I've been going there for forty years.

 

I haven't heard anything from or about Jeff in years. I spent more time in the Garden City store myself, of course it was the only location for a number of years.

There are still several of the older local guys selling from eBay. The guy who used to have that old shop on 8 Mile on the West Side that was entirely old vinyl? Was it "Ron's"? I can't recall now but he once sold me a nice copy of the Contours "Whole Lotta Woman" 45. I think he's working out of Hamtramck.

There was a substantial shop in Old Redford that stuck it out a long time.

Anyone remember the Foxhole in Garden City? My uncle bought me some Skeeter Davis records there in 1964.

 

Way back when my older brother asked if I wanted to go to a record store with him. He said it was a "used" record store.

Id' never been to, or even heard of, a used record store before. We got on our bikes and rode to what was then known as Car City "Classics". It started a lifetime obsession with record and CD collecting.

In my high school and college years, i.e., the early days of CD, I bough most of my first CDs there -- used. I also sold quite a few there for beer money.

Sad to see my first used record shop close down. RIP, Car City.

 

RECORD TIME

 

is also gone

 

Dearborn Music is all we have left ?
not so !

Stormy Records
Flipside
Solo (all used i believe)
P.J.'s
Wazoo
Underground Sounds
Melodies & Memories
Record Collector
Encore

there are others as well

 

Foxhole became Music Music
for many years , closed some time ago

 

Repeat The Beat was the last used record store I remember visiting regularly in Michigan. Telegraph between Cherry Hill and Ford Road. Quality was dropping off when I left for Nashville. (I was glad to find "Decades" on 2nd Ave downtown here.)