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No One Else - Odyssey

Respect - Rotary Connection

Mos'scocious - Dr. John

I Walk on Guilded Splinters - Johnny Jenkins

Corinna - Taj Mahal

Plain Old Plainsman - The Easy Riders

Seeds and Stems (Again) - Commander Cody

Jim, I Wore a Tie Today - Waylon, Willie, Cash & Kris

Push & Shove - Willie Wiley

Evil Ways - Willie Bobo

Girl From the Mountain - Ghetto Brothers

Telstar - The Tornados 

Folsom Prison Blues - Gil Trythall

Hey Baby - J.J. Cale

To Each and Everyone - Gerry Rafferty 

Whenever You're Ready - The Zombies

The Man Who Sold the World - David Bowie

Soul Sister - Allen Toussaint 

Open Your Eyes - Bobby Caldwell

Oakland, CA

Today I went to Groove Yard.

Groove Yard is a nice little record store. They have a great selection of jazz records there with a little soul and a few other genres. The owner, Rick, is a really nice guy too. I told him I was looking for some local records and he pulled out a bunch for me. I think he said his record player was being fixed so unfortunately I didn't get a chance to listen to anything; but luckily I found this:

This is my favorite Duke Ellington album ever. It was recorded after Billy Strayhorn, Duke's long-time collaborator and confidant passed away. Strayhorn wrote many classic jazz compositions and worked with Duke for decades. He was also black and openly gay in an era that was very intolerant of both to say the least. This is some of the most beautiful music ever played and I have been looking for a vinyl copy of it for years. Do yourself a favor and listen to it, Billy Strayhorn was a great American musical mind.  

San Francisco, CA

I love SF. A little burnt out and having slightly exceeded my budget in Portland, I found myself on Haight Street in proximity of a few record stores. I was pretty much forced into checking some of them out. First was Groove Merchant.

Groove Merchant is a small store with a well selected stock. Good jazz, soul and rock records. The guy there was nice and after seeing me picking through 45s asked what I was interested in. He then pulled out some records from behind the counter and gave them to me to listen to. He picked out some great funk that I had never heard before. I also picked up an old Zombies compilation which included their first two albums for $14, Odyssey and Oracle being one of my favorite all-time rock records.

Next was Rooky Ricardo's Records.

Rooky's is a big store with a lot of records. Walls of 45s, tons of LPs. Dick, the owner, was very friendly and helpful. As soon as we walked in he asked what we were looking for and not in a condescending or rude way. He then started pulling out records and gave me a stack to listen to. 

Rooky's is cool because they have 4 turntables set up for listening and it really invites you to check out the music there. There was no pretentious eye-rolling bullshit, and there was a great vibe there. Just people hanging out, listening and talking about music. The prices were average- not super cheap but not overpriced either. After I bought a few things he told me that next time I come, to call in advance and that he would pull out more records he thought I would be into. 

I got a few things there, including this Marva Whitney single featuring the J.B.s, and this Funkadelic song:

Portland OR, Day 2

Today I went to Crossroads Music.

Crossroads is a big store with a lot of different collections being sold by dealers who rent out space there. The prices there vary, but are generally pretty reasonable as has been the case with almost all the stores I have been to here. They have a huge volume of music of all genres there and I was pretty tired after looking through the first quarter of the store. I picked up a few things and was on my way out when I struck up a conversation with one of the dealers there. Turns out he used to run a separate shop in town but downsized to a few tables at Crossroads. He showed me his collection, which I had quickly glossed over earlier, and pulled out some real gems. Records that I have been looking for for months as well as some funk, soul and records with breaks that have been sampled by some of my favorite hip hop producers. He was super friendly and had a deep knowledge of music. Got this super heavy funky electric Muddy Waters & this Area Code 615 album of Nashville studio musicians playing pop and soul tunes, among others.

 

Last place I hit was Little Axe Records. 

Little Axe is very similar to Mississippi Records. They reissue a lot of old and rare records, a lot being from abroad. They also do online distribution for Mississippi. A small store off of NE Alberta, it is very comfy and well curated. Great blues, world music, soul, funk, folk and rock. The prices were great. Really nice guy was working and we chatted about records for a little while on the front porch. Got this classic Mighty Diamonds record and this Eddie Kendricks I have been looking for.

Portland OR, Day 1

I had a blast in Portland today. It is a beautiful lush green city with great food, coffee, friendly people and lots of record stores.

First place was Jump Jump Music.

Dan is the owner and a knowledgable & helpful record guy. He has been open in the same location for over 20 years. Everything is priced well and he even gave me a deal when it was time to settle up. Not a huge mess, everything is well organized and labeled. I came out with a nice little stack of 45's including:

Another shop I always like to visit in Portland is Mississippi Records. 

Mississippi is a small but well curated store. They have new and used records as well as reissues, some of which they release themselves on their label. I recently got their limited reissue of Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music & Abner Jay's, True Story of Abner Jay. On my visit today, I spent most of my time going through their 45's, of which I never realized they had so many. Found this Duke Reid-produced rocksteady classic there, and a new Daptone release:

Sacramento CA

Today I rode my bike to Records, a well known spot here. Not only did R. Crumb design their signage/letterhead, but also the iconic photograph from the cover of DJ Shadow's classic, Endtroducing....., was taken there. They have great records there and they are priced very reasonably. The guy working was nice and gave me a good deal. 

Las Vegas NV

Went to Record City today. Nice little store off the strip. Friendly lady.  Highlights were:

This record swings hard. As much as I love Duke, it is cool to hear Johnny Hodges playing with a different band. Really soulful stuff (as you can probably tell by the cover).

Classic record. Jimmy Smith's playing on "James & Wes" is absolutely jaw-dropping.