I was driving up Euclid Avenue in downtown Ontario one evening when I thought that I spotted a record store.
Yes - a record store.
For my younger readers, imagine a CD that's - oh, wait, no one buys CDs any more either.
While vinyl records were once the dominant way in which people purchased music, they were already on the way out when Frank Zappa was testifying in front of Al Gore in 1985. The two were discussing the pros and cons of providing printed lyrics on the outside of shrink-wrapped record albums, but then-Senator Gore noted that any type of solution would also have to support cassettes, which are much smaller then long playing records.
But formats changed, and even cassettes and CDs began to fade away, as more people bought their albums online. (Was the shameless Ontario Emperor "Salad" plug subtle enough?)
Somewhere along the way vinyl was adopted by the hipsters, and there are enough hipsters and old people to support a few record stores here and there, something David Allen noted in an April 21 column that mentioned the opening of a record store in downtown Ontario.
That store - the one I saw - was The Record Mission.
I was in there this afternoon (Saturday afternoon), and the store definitely has an impressive collection of records. I didn't have the heart to tell the guys that I don't have a working record player, so most of the items they are selling wouldn't be good for me.
I say most of the items, because there were a few CDs in the back of the store, apparently from an indie artist (perhaps on consignment).
But if you're looking for records, and know the difference between an LP and a 45 (they have both), pay a visit to The Record Mission.
Bonus - Logan's Candies is just around the corner.
(Completely tangential - Hannah Rowley would be about 21 years old today, if she had lived. Time flies.)
