Record Store Day 2019 Roundup

Well, it's been nearly a year since my last blog post. Fittingly that was about my then new turntable. Ever since I received that wonderful gift I have been increasing my collection of vinyl records. This year when the list of records was released for Record Store Day I became very excited. There were several releases which I was looking forward to purchasing.

1. Bingo Hand Job - Live at The Borderline 1991
2. Green Day - Live at Woodstock 1994
3. The Minus 5 - Stroke Manor
4. Rush - Hemispheres (40th-anniversary picture disc)
5. Various Artists - Music From and Inspired by the motion picture South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut
6. Violent Femmes - Hallowed Ground

Each of the records is a special edition released specifically for Record Store Day 2019 and are limited in quantity. This is what makes this day so special to someone like me. 

I started my Saturday, April 13, 2019, at 4:00am. I arrived at the first store of the day, Schoolkids Records, there was already a substantial line at 4:45am.

The morning was, as you may be able to tell from the photo, rainy at times. Soon before the store opened at 8:00am and employee came out to talk the line of people waiting to enter. He mentioned that there were some issues with the distributor and many of the records they had ordered either didn't show up or the quantities were fewer than they had expected. In particular, he mentioned The Grateful Dead. Once I entered the store, around 9:30, I looked through the bins of records and found most of what I had come for. I was able to buy Green Day, The Minus 5, Rush and the South Park record. When making my purchase I asked about the most important record on my list, Bingo Hand Job. It turns out they did not receive even one copy of that record.

While waiting in line I was speaking with some other patrons about the day and the records which they were hoping to get that day. During one of those conversations I was told about another record store nearby, that was participating. I traveled the short distance to that store. While standing in that line I saw one patron purchasing a copy of Bingo Hand Job. I asked him if there were any more left in the bins and replied there was one left. So I decided to stay and see if it would remain. Unfortunately, it was gone by the time I reached the Record Store Day bins. 

I knew there was one more store nearby that would not open until 12:00pm. It also happened to be my favorite record store in my town, Sorry State Records. More conversations ensued, some with the same person I had seen and talked to at the previous two stores. Once inside the store again I saw another person purchasing not one, but TWO copies of the Bingo Hand Job record that had eluded me all morning. It was at this time that I left the store, without even looking through the bins. 

I went home to pick up Gina who had agreed with me to go to one more store closer to our house to look for what had now become my white whale. We made our way to The Record Krate in Wake Forest and again, the record was not to be found. 

I took a trip over the Easter weekend to Lansing, Michigan. While there I visited all my favorite Lansing record stores, Replay Records, Flat Black and Circular, and The Record Lounge. I could not find either of the final two records on my want list. I also visited Schuler Books, a local independent book and music store in Lansing. There I did Hallowed Ground by The Violent Femmes and purchased that record.

It was looking as if I would never get the record that I so desperately wanted. However, if we go back to the beginning of the morning of Record Store Day, I could see a ray of hope. The first few people to walk out of Schoolkids had bags full of records. It was clear to me that they would not be the only people buying bags upon bags of records and would probably end up reselling many of their purchases. In fact, as I was standing in line at Sorry State I was already seeing records on sale in Europe. I kept an eye on both Ebay and the Discogs marketplace for a decent price on the Bingo Hand Job record. I eventually ended up buying a copy from Germany. It turned out it would be cheaper, even with international shipping, to buy from Euope than from the resellers in the USA.

For those of you that don't know, Bingo Hand Job is an alias for R.E.M. They played two shows in London in 1991, when they were not touring much after releasing Out of Time. This is the first time the show has been officially released.

Finally, my record arrived yesterday. Now my first Record Store Day adventure, while actually in possession of a turntable, is complete.

Bingo Hand Job - Live at The Borderline 1991

Bingo Hand Job -  Rear

Bingo Hand Job Record Sleeves

Green Day - Live at Woodstock 1994

The Minus 5 - Stroke Manor

Rush - Hemispheres

South Park

South Park - Interior (Cartman and Kenny)

Violent Femmes - Hallowed Ground