Chicago area record stores past and present (with photos)

Discussion in 'Music, Movie and Hardware Store Guide' started by larry333, Mar 19, 2012.

  1. saturdayboy

    saturdayboy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    that crow's nest was awesome, also my favorite.
    not the biggest store, but they had stuff there that nobody else had.
     
    Quad Linda likes this.
  2. tengram

    tengram Forum Resident

    Location:
    State College, PA
    kevinsinnott and steelydanguy like this.
  3. Hogues

    Hogues Forum Resident

    I a big fan of Audio Archeology on Devon in Rogers Park. The record selection is not the best but it has a nice selection of vintage equipment and the owner is a good guy.
     
  4. This Heat

    This Heat Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    I found a Ludwig Zeppelin II there for 7 bucks
     
    Hogues likes this.
  5. Hogues

    Hogues Forum Resident

    Nice! it really is a cool place to just look around. I actually bought a vintage stereo console there. one of my future projects is going to be replacing some of the components in there.
     
  6. Gramps Tom

    Gramps Tom Forum Resident

    I dropped my allowance at several Chicago record stores while living in the south suburbs:

    Discount Records in Oak Forest, Matteson, and Chicago Heights on Halsted
    Hegewish Records, Richton Park (suddenly closed in 1992 or so....)
    Record Swap in Homewood on Dixie Highway
    Rose Records on Wabash and in Orland Park
    Tower (somewhere in the city)
    Rolling Stone Records, Harwood Hts.

    When I lived in Rockford:

    Apple Tree Records
    Union Hall
    Musicland
    Disc Records

    In college at S.I.U., Carbondale:

    Plaza Records
    Running Dog Records
    Wuxtrys
     
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  7. KevinP

    KevinP Forum introvert

    Location:
    Daejeon
    That was a good one (I assume it's gone). Lots of cool stuff I'd never see anywhere else.

    I remember they also had school letter grades (A+, C-, etc.) for sound quality on boots.
     
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  8. Gramps Tom

    Gramps Tom Forum Resident

    The Homewood location closed long ago, however I believe their Champaign store is till open.

    They were just a bit pricey-used cd's were mostly $10.99 +/- $1, and used lp's were mostly $3.99 in the mid-80's through the early 1990's. Discount Records priced their used cd's at $7.99-$8.99.

    Record Swap did have the best Import section going.
     
    Quad Linda likes this.
  9. Hogues

    Hogues Forum Resident

    Growing up my favorite record store was Round Records on the 6600 block of Sheridan.
     
  10. Andrew

    Andrew Chairman of the Bored

    Any place deemed "best" for classical ceedees in the Chicagoland area?
     
  11. kevinsinnott

    kevinsinnott Forum Coffeeologist

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    My personal favorite is Chicago Digital on Oak Park Avenue, in Oak Park.
     
    TheAbsentMind and Andrew like this.
  12. Andrew

    Andrew Chairman of the Bored

    Awesome, that looks like a great store! :shtiphat:
     
    kevinsinnott likes this.
  13. Johnny F

    Johnny F New Member

    First, I remember a small record store just south of Belmont on Broadway across from the Lake Shore Theater. I can't remember the name, but I do remember walking in and seeing all the records in bins on the left side, and on the right was the counter where I could pick up, for free, the WLS Silver Dollar Survey. I liked Pat Boone at the time, late 50's, and remember buying 45's there from Dot Records. Still have my collection.

    Second, R&S records, on Armitage, just west of Kedzie on the north side of the street was a popular place in the late 60's and early 70's. It was run by a father and son team. Somehow, they had the best prices on records. Coming home from college meant a drive to R&S where I would see many people I knew stocking up on LP's to bring back to school. I remember that the son was leaving the business to become a commodities trader. Good guy. Hope he was successful.

    Third, I ended up buying the house that Little Al had in the 1980's. He was the owner of Little Al's records on Devon.

    John
     
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  14. vicjoy1945

    vicjoy1945 Well-Known Member

    I use to buy 45s from a little hardware store on the south side of 95th St in Oak Lawn (I grew up there) back in the days of transistor radios. The radio stations WLS and WCFL put out a top 50 list and the shop had boxes on the wall behind the counter that corresponded with each number on the list. You'd tell the clerk which number you wanted and he pulled the 45 from the box.

    Later, I bought a LOT of LP albums from Tempo Records in Oak Lawn when they first opened...most of my earlier albums came from them. They had a back corridor set up with lots of the ole black light posters that you could buy from them too....fun times !!!
     
  15. Gramps Tom

    Gramps Tom Forum Resident

    Fun times is right......
     
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  16. KevinP

    KevinP Forum introvert

    Location:
    Daejeon
  17. Gramps Tom

    Gramps Tom Forum Resident

  18. br6388

    br6388 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Homewood, Illinois
    The Calumet City Hegewisch was my favorite store! :tiphat:
     
    Gramps Tom likes this.
  19. Hogues

    Hogues Forum Resident

    I was walking down the 69oo block of N. Sheridan Rd yesterday and noticed a small record store called Funk Trunk Records. It's a small shop with a small selection, but I spent a bit of time in there talking to the owner who seems like a really good guy. Picked up Nina Simone In Concert and Miles Davis. I'll definitely go back there again.
     
    Quad Linda, Rodz42 and kevinsinnott like this.
  20. oddsbodkins

    oddsbodkins Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    Shake Rattle and Read will soon be on this list. Only about 6 weeks left until Ric closes up shop and moves out to Florida.
     
  21. airstreamdriver

    airstreamdriver Forum Resident

    I worked at the Rose Records on Wabash in '88, and the Peaches on State & Divison in '87. Does anyone by chance have any photos of that particular Peaches? Not a great store by any means, but I have fond memories regardless.

    Just stumbled on this great thread and I'm fighting the temptation to comment on every third posting from three or four years ago. In leiu of that, I'll offer this relic from one of my favorites:

    [​IMG]
     
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  22. KevinP

    KevinP Forum introvert

    Location:
    Daejeon
    I was there frequently. If you worked checked out, it's inevitable that you rang me up.
     
    Quad Linda likes this.
  23. saturdayboy

    saturdayboy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    me too
     
  24. Henry Love

    Henry Love Senior Member

    Location:
    Chicagoland
    Anybody remember United Furniture on Milwaukee Ave. just north of Armitage Ave? They had a great record section in the 60's.
     
  25. airstreamdriver

    airstreamdriver Forum Resident

    I never worked the register, but was out the floor all day. Back when you had to have well above average knowledge to work at the mothership, I took it as a source of pride that I was one of the only people who was tapped for all three floors. Hope I helped you guys out!
     
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