Record Store Day 2010 – Music fans turnout worldwide

Originally conceived in 2007, Record Store Day celebrates the culture of the independent record store, and over the years has spread internationally, getting a little better each time. It is a chance for music fans to meet artists, for artists to play DJ and share their favorite records, and for a whole lot of love and "thank yous" to get passed around. This year we were pressed for time, so we focused on Amoeba Records Hollywood. Anticipation was high, as the official RSD website had published a list of exclusive albums available for the holiday, and it was an end to end list of titles to covet. Would we get there in time? Would there be any Joe Strummer left? Was Amoeba even getting any of the 1000 RamonesMania re-issues on 2-coloured vinyl?

The store was set to open at 10:30, so we planned to get there as early as possible. As we approached the intersection of Sunset Blvd. and Ivar, our hearts sank a little, as we saw a sheer mass of people stretching around the building and down the block in both directions. On approach though, we discovered one line was for pre-order of the new Smashing Pumpkins album, and the other, shorter line was for the store, not yet open. So we headed around the corner, and settled in to wait. 30 minutes to opening. People in line were friendly, but a little edgy. Let's face it, none of us are at our best early in the morning, and some of the people around us had driven in from the Inland Empire, Orange County, and San Bernardino to stand in line an hour earlier for the Smashing Pumpkins. Still, the chatting and joking made the time slip quickly by, and before we knew it, the line was moving.

Amoeba employees were at the doors shooing everyone inside, and others were standing on podiums shouting directions to the two bins of exclusive releases, one in front and one by the Jazz room in back. The bins were quickly and utterly mobbed. Despite the population density, and the certain knowledge that there weren't enough records to go around, people were surprisingly friendly. There was jostling, but no actual shoving (this wasn't WalMart after all), and people stuck at the back of the crowd who couldn't reach the front were yelling out titles, which those who could reach the bins then passed back. Once our arms were full, we dashed to the regular stacks to pick up odds and ends, and a few replacements for fallen records no longer in our collections.

The highlight of the day was probably snagging one of the limited presses of Tutu and the Pirates, possibly Chicago's first punk band, and one of the acts featured in the documentary "You Weren't There". If you're not familiar with the band, they have a G.G. Allin sort of humour to their lyrics, and the frenetic rock sound that popularized so many Chicago bands like Naked Raygun. Oh, and to my knowledge, they never had an official release when they were playing back in the late 70's, so this was your first chance to get your hands on the long-lost demos of this excellent band.

But that wasn't the end of the fun. Check out came with the nice chat you always get at Amoeba, but today it also came with a goodie bag packed full of freebies, including Runaways posters, free CDs, pill boxes, pins, stickers, and even a reusable shoulder bag. Since we hadn't gotten tickets for the 2 pm Slash signing, we decided it was time to run across the road to down some hot chocolate and dig through the goodie bags to see how we made out. Answer? Like bandits.

If you missed Record Store Day, you don't necessarily have to wait for next year to get your mitts on some awesome music, Amoeba is also holding their first ever "garage sale" May 2-3 from 10 AM to 6 PM with 25 cent vinyl, and $1 LPs, as well as a load of books, VHS, magazines, and albums from the warehouse. If you miss that, then there's really not much I can do for you.
 

-Jo Problems-
Big Wheel Music Scene Reporter
 

         More photos from Record Store Day can be seen HERE

   Also check out the Record Store Day Report from the UK HERE

Other staffers stop in at Headline Records in Los Angeles and brought back this video message
    www.headlinerecords.com