Closeby record store

Any suggestions for a record store semi close by with a decent mix of stuff? I'm heading to my friend's birthday and his girlfriend said he loves playing records. She said he told her that I got him hooked on Modest Mouse. Now I don't ever recall this conversation, but the early 2000s were a bit  hazy for me. Anyways, I was going to look for Modest Mouse. Any suggestions for somebody that's a Grateful Dead, Dispatch, Mihali, and Beatles fan? 

Scotti's in Westfield?

I recall hearing about the opening of SOMA Sounds.

SOMA Sounds411 Ridgewood Road Maplewood, NJ, 07040United States (map)

I've heard of Almost Ready Records, Montclair

537 Bloomfield Ave, Montclair 973 746-0670

Thanks all! I can't imagine how many times I have driven past SOMA Sounds without seeing it. That's going to be my first visit. 

jfinnegan said:

Thanks all! I can't imagine how many times I have driven past SOMA Sounds without seeing it. That's going to be my first visit.

Second for SOMA, which I was going to visit this afternoon anyway.

I didn’t see any Modest Mouse, but if I were shopping for a Beatles fan, I would have grabbed any or all of these, depending on my budget: Moby Grape’s self-titled debut (with its great songs, controversial cover and tragic place in music marketing history), Thunderclap Newman’s Hollywood Dream (featuring future Wings guitarist Jimmy McCulloch), Vanilla Fudge’s self-titled debut (including Ticket to Ride among the over-the-top covers, a guilty pleasure from start to finish) and Stories’ self-titled debut (an under-the-radar McCartney-esque gem).

Prices for the used records are mostly $10 to $25, with some $5 and $8 sprinkled in. There’s a row of bins full of new vinyl, too. Hours tomorrow are 11 or noon to 6, I think.

DaveSchmidt said:

Second for SOMA, which I was going to visit this afternoon anyway.

I didn’t see any Modest Mouse, but if I were shopping for a Beatles fan, I would have grabbed any or all of these, depending on my budget: Moby Grape’s self-titled debut (with its great songs, controversial cover and tragic place in music marketing history), Thunderclap Newman’s Hollywood Dream (featuring future Wings guitarist Jimmy McCulloch), Vanilla Fudge’s self-titled debut (including Ticket to Ride among the over-the-top covers, a guilty pleasure from start to finish) and Stories’ self-titled debut (an under-the-radar McCartney-esque gem).

Prices for the used records are mostly $10 to $25, with some $5 and $8 sprinkled in. There’s a row of bins full of new vinyl, too. Hours tomorrow are 11 or noon to 6, I think.

Thanks! I'll check it out. My favorite place to go to growing up was Prime Cuts. It was a record store with 3 arcade games and an owner that looked and sounded like The Edge, if he had an American accent. I still haven't won the mega so I can turn the movie theatre into a combo movie theater/record store/arcade/beer hall. 

I love my Beatles vinyl. And my Hendrix, Stones and Doors. 

I should qualify the price range I gave for SOMA. There are plenty of $5 and $8 records; I think I just gravitate to titles and artists in the higher category. And the Stories album they have is About Us, their second release but just as Macca-worthy as their debut.

jfinnegansaid:

I still haven't won the mega so I can turn the movie theatre into a combo movie theater/record store/arcade/beer hall.

I’ll be pulling for you in a future Maplewoodstock raffle.

DaveSchmidt said:

I’ll be pulling for you in a future Maplewoodstock raffle.

There are worse things than standing right in front of the band with an ice cold beer from the cooler parked off to the side by the library. We're missing the afternoon because of a graduation. Very disappointed. My neighbor(DC & The Desperados) is performing. 

I made it to the record store. Got two Vanilla Fudge albums, Thunderclap Newman and Grateful Dead from the Mars Hotel. They had one Modest Mouse album, but I'm certain my friend already has that one. Thanks for the tips. As per standard operating procedure my daughter wanted to come and then acted like we had been in the Saharawithout water for six days instead of the sixteen minutes we were in the air conditioned store.

jfinnegan said:

I made it to the record store. Got two Vanilla Fudge albums, Thunderclap Newman and Grateful Dead from the Mars Hotel.

If the only thing the birthday boy knows of Thunderclap Newman is Something in the Air, or not even that, I envy his introduction to the rest of Hollywood Dream.

A renowned Philly DJ hosted a sublime weekly show in the ’70s called The Sunday Night Alternative, which added Take Me for a Little While to my Vanilla Fudge awareness, after You Keep Me Hanging On and Ticket to Ride. That album’s cheeky psychedelic extravagances still make me giddy. “Set pleasance control …”

When I think of vinyl, I think Scotti's in Summit, though truth be told, it's not something I'm a subject matter expert on.  We used to go there years ago, just to get the rush of flipping through album covers, and the kids loved it too.  Several people I know who have moved recently have sold albums to Scotti's to pare down what they had to move across state lines.  If I ever move, whatever I can part with will be hauled there to try to sell, rather than haul along wih me.  Just to add another destination/option to your list:

Scotti's Record Shop (@scottisrecordshop)

Instagram · scottisrecordshop3K+ followers

In another thread, I documented my very happy selling experience at Vinyl Addiction Records, after Scotti’s left me cold.

DaveSchmidt said:

In another thread, I documented my very happy selling experience at Vinyl Addiction Records, after Scotti’s left me cold.

Good to know.  Yeah, the staff never seemed all that warm.  My friends who went there were on a timeline, couldn't shop around and weren't particularly thrilled with what they were offered.  Thanks.

I like when there is somebody in the store that knows where every single album is, though their grasp of the alphabet may be slightly different than mine.