In the age of digital streaming, independent record stores are an important facet in keeping physical music, local scenes, and community alive. Record stores offer music fans a place to browse music of all genres, new, used, and perhaps discover something great they’ve never heard. Ventura County has a vibrant array of independent shops, each with their own purpose and variety of music.
Salzer’s Records is the music and physical media powerhouse of the county. The Ventura location, started by Jim Salzer, has been in business since 1972 after a slow start in South Oxnard in the mid-60s. After his passing in recent years, the company is still owned and operated by his son, James, to this day. Salzer’s has become an icon of the county as its two-story location stands overlooking the 101 freeway. Many people who have lived in the county know of Salzer’s. Whether they’ve heard the name or have passed by the building on their commute, it’s always the first look inside that people really realize what a special place it is.
Institution is the word I would use to describe Salzer’s. An institution through and through is a place that has stood in its community for decades, offers a sense of community, and truly makes the place it’s located that much more special. Taking a walk inside is like stepping into a time capsule. You find the style and architecture of the place to bring back memories of something you may have once known. T-shirts, stickers, books, memorabilia all line the walls and the paths are paved with bins upon bins of any music you could imagine. CDs and vinyl are both mainstays of Salzer’s with people from all over coming to sell or trade their own collectibles here. The second level is almost like a completely different store. All sorts of holistic accouterments, socks with your favorite cartoon character or a witty joke perhaps, incense, candles, any sort of smoking device that may suit your needs, and a room near the back that definitely draws eyes. Perhaps the biggest draw of Salzer’s comes from the (bi)annual event called Record Store Day. RSD as its frequently called is an event in which independent record stores receive special releases, reissues, represses and specific vinyl only available on these days. Smaller record stores may only get a few of these very special releases so trying to seek out something you’re looking for can be difficult. But Salzer’s is known for getting many of them each year, garnering lines out the door and around the building of people trying to get their hands on something rare. It becomes a destination for many each year for this reason and It’s beyond just being for music lovers to congregate but truly a stand out part of the community as a longstanding business that really has something for everyone.
Grady’s Record Refuge, located in midtown Ventura, opened its doors in 2003. Grady Runyan is a music enthusiast who sought to bring collectible vinyl, fair prices and a wide array of genres, media and equipment. Some record store visits can feel like you’re searching for a diamond in the rough. Flipping endlessly through bins of artists trying to find something eye-catching or maybe something you’ve been searching for; Grady’s is anything but. Coming here is like walking into a goldmine. The store has an incredibly diverse catalog of genres and artists from anything like 60’s hard-bop jazz, traditional English folk, psychedelic rock, no-wave, obscure punk compilations, garage, hip-hop, you name it.
Flipping through the various bins can be almost too rewarding and if you’re trying to not break the bank, you’ll have to force yourself to just stop looking, otherwise you’ll end up spending all your time and cash in your wallet rounding off your collection. It’s a place where you walk in and feel like you’re transported back in time to when you didn’t have all the music at your fingertips and finding something new was just a matter of looking hard enough. Grady’s is the record store for true collectors and music fans alike.
American Pie Records is the newest edition to the county’s music paradises. Located in old town Camarillo, the business opened back in 2022. Although it’s still new to the area, it filled a gap in what was missing from this part of town. Specializing is rare and used LPs, American Pie is another store that makes you feel connected to. The music playing through the speakers might be an ultra rare Rolling Stones record where you can hear all the pops and static in the wax. The bins are lined with jazz galore and psychedelic deeps-cuts from the 60’s onwards.
American Pie Records proves that a new record store can make waves in the community and really become a place for people to sit around, talk about, listen to, buy, and sell music. In the past year the store added a second location, just 2 doors down from the original.
This not only expanded the music inventory but doubles as a coffee house in the afternoons and a jazz club on the weekends. Styled and decorated as the sort of coffeehouse feel of the 50’s the drink menu still connects the store to its music roots with drink names referencing iconic records or artists, such as a milkshake called “The birth of the cool”. The new location offers customers “the 45 lounge”, a separate lounge room in the back of the store that lets people relax, play records, and hangout with any drinks or desserts ordered at the store. It’s a fantastic inclusion to an already very unique store. Having a “hangout” area is something that is absolutely needed in a community space such as his. It drives people to talk to others about common interests which is something that is so needed in today’s world.
Each of these stores holds their own purpose in the community. Whether it be a one stop shop for all your music memorabilia, t-shirts, albums, patches etc. Or a spot to go sip coffee, flip through record bins and hear live music. Or even dig for some real gems you can’t seem to find anywhere else, all record stores are important for keeping people’s love of music alive.
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