Just returned to CONUS from my first ever trip to Hawaii. I managed to sneak in some CD hunting while there and wanted to share my experience as the other Hawaii threads here are all closed. I went to a total of six stores, four of which I'd recommend visiting if you're in Honolulu. Please bear in mind that this feedback is from a CD only (no vinyl) perspective. The Hungry Ear - This was the only proper record store that I found on my trip. Good selection, well organized, (mostly) fair prices and friendly staff. Hungry Ear Records Idea's Books and Music - This store had the largest selection of CD's of all the stores I visited. It also had the highest prices. Most CD's are priced at $8-9. That being said, the (presumed) owner noticed me meticulously going through the CD's and asked if wanted to see the "Two dollar room." Of course! He took me down a hallway to a separate room that had a bunch of vinyl, cd's and tapes. All CD's in the room are $2 each. Overall, this store was my favorite due to the vast selection. https://www.ideasmusicandbooks.com/ Bookoff - This was cleanest, most well lit and easiest to browse store that I visited. I intentionally left out "well organized" because the alphabetization was by band name or artist's FIRST name! So Bob Dylan can be found in the "B's", for example. I've never seen that in a store before. That said, it was an overall pleasurable shopping experience, and I was hoping to find a bunch of CD's here, but only walked out with two. Village Books and Music - Essentially, this is an extension of the Hawaii public library system, with all profits going to support the library. From what I could tell, the inventory isn't ex-library copies, but rather donations from the friends of the library. This store had the best prices of all that I visited with most CD's being in the $2-4 range. Village Books & Music - Friends of the Library of Hawaii
I don't recall if Aloha Got Soul had CDs, but I really enjoyed that store when I was in Honolulu a few months ago. +1 on Hungry Ear.
Having lived on the island of Oahu for the last 8 years, and being a dedicated used CD hunter, I agree with your assessment of our meager options. I've found that Idea's has some great deals, but also some weirdly inflated prices on some used CDs. I think Hungry Ear has a better handle on consistent and reasonable pricing, although their selection is much smaller.
Thanks for the feedback Tom. Good to hear from a local that I didn’t miss any stores of significance. I also went to two thrift stores - a Goodwill and a Savers - but the selection at both was pretty poor, so I didn’t recommend them. Your state is beautiful and the people were very friendly. I can certainly see why people refer to it as “Paradise.”
The owner of Idea's (“Sheriff” Norm Winter) is a really interesting guy. I grew up in Hawaii and spent many an hour persuing the wares (comics when I was younger and cassette tapes and books in my high school years) at the store (Jelly's) he ran back then. He would let kids bag the comics to earn a free issue or two. I remember talking to Norm when I was maybe 12 and convincing him to try selling used video games (Atari 2600 cartridges) in the store. In the early 90s, he was the mastermind behind a radio station called Radio Free Hawaii which only lasted a few years, but was really something special. Great DJs, and the programming was decided by popular vote (with ballots distributed to music and bookstores all over the island). It was the most eclectic, inspring, and fun radio station I'd ever heard. Here's a 2014 article/interview with him for anyone who's interested. So glad to know Norm's still at it!
Aloha Got Soul has a great store on Bandcamp also. They reissue a lot of Hawaiian artists (and others) in various formats, including digital downloads.
Any CD/record shops on Maui these days? I will be travelling there next week for my first return trip since living on the island back in the mid-90s. I pretty much started my CD collection when I lived out there, as I left all my vinyl with family on the mainland and this was that weird time when cassettes were still ubiquitous but CDs were starting to really dominate as primary physical media for music. All I had was a boombox and a few discs when I flew out there, but now the collection numbers in the thousands! I remember buying overpriced CDs at a store in the Kahului mall, but the pickings were slim even back then. Would love to find some shops if they exist today.
Not much when I was there a couple of years ago. I bought a few things at Request Music on Market Street.
In addition to Request Music, it looks like the Maui Friends of the Library stores sell CD’s, just like in Honolulu. https://www.mfol.org/mfol-maui-bookstores-locations. Happy hunting!
Just got back from my trip to glorious Maui. Had time for a quick stop at Request Music in Wailuku and found a few gems among the junk (including a CD reissue of "Only Want You For Your Body" by 70s Aussie hard rockers Buffalo. Typically goes for at least $25, but this copy was $8. Worth the trip for that alone!). Cool store but you definitely need time to scan the stacks. I also went to a slack key guitar festival while we were there and bought a great CD of slack key interpretations of Grateful Dead songs. Maui No Ka Oi!