BeatNonStop A Weblog by Chris Macias Bee pop music critic Music geek (n. myü-zik 'gEk) 1: A person who proudly wore KISS commemorative pajamas in third grade. 2: A person who owns multiple copies of the same album, still buys vinyl and has a room dedicated to 2,000 or so CDs and records. 3. A person who wrote a five-part series about traveling with a local band in their stinky van - and loved every minute of it. 4: Chris Macias, the Bee's pop music critic, serving Sacramento's music scene since 1999.

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October 19, 2006

Bargains and bitterness

Did you check the front page story in today's Bee about the Tower Records liquidation sale? It's a sad read for us music fans, that Tower's once mighty stock of merchandise is getting its final pick-overs, and soon it'll all be gone. This going-out-of-business sale does not come with a smile for many of us.

Here's what some BeatNonStop readers had to say in reflecting about Tower:

When I heard that Tower Records was closing, I was overwhelmed with emotions. It was a place where my father was so happy. He loved his music and his movies. Like my father, his children, his grandchildren and great-grandchild all have a love of music. And all have been to, and will miss Tower Records. My father passed away this year. The closing of Tower Records is very sad, but it has brought my family many beautiful memories. And many a happy time for Dad.

- Connie Brainard, Sacramento

I too visited Tower last week, and the mood was somber. The experience was like visiting a dying friend in the hospital. While there I reflected on all of the great music Tower allowed me to find and experience. I grew up in a small town, so our only record store was a family-owned place that was catering to the Top 40 and whatever catalog of recycled hits K-Tel or Ronco was hocking at the time.

When I moved to Sacramento Tower became THE destination for me most weekends. It was an oasis and introduced me to music and people I would not have met anywhere else. I also appreciated Tower's earlier editions of "Pulse." I would pick it up and dig through it for anything interesting --the writing was sharp and the content eclectic. I was rarely disappointed.

My fondest memories are of visiting Tower when certain new releases arrived. I remember the giddy excitement of friends as we watched them open boxes of U2's "Unforgettable Fire" the day it was released --it was like a scene out of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. I also remember looking for obscure artists that few other record stores even knew, but yet Tower always had a copy of Blind Willie McTell or The Lime Spiders at the ready.

Clearly, the company made some bad business decisions and customers have ventured elsewhere for their music needs. I'll admit that I still frequented Tower, but found the selection limited over the last five years, and therefore visited less and less often.

I'm sorry to see the business go, but thanks Tower for all the good times.
Thanks Tower Records.

- Ken DaRosa, Sacramento

Posted by cmacias at 12:31 PM | Comments |