Thursday, October 16, 2008

The Record Center






I mentioned "The Record Center" in the article about Dave Cochran. The Record Center was a dark seedy store on Main Street in Walla Walla that specialized in, of course, records. It used to have booth where you could listen to the records before you bought them. This was a "must stop" for teens in Walla Walla. Eventually the Record Center moved to a bigger store down the road, it eventually lost it's mystique. It later changed it's name to "Brumback's House Of Music" and was soon forgotten even by me. Right up to the point that I wrote the Cochran article.

4 comments:

Danny Barer said...

Brumbach's was distinctive because it sold both records and sheet music. It also had a friendly dog who would come out to greet the customers. It was a bit more "family friendly" than Hot Poop when HP was still in headshop mode.

joychi said...

Maybe the old store you're mentioning was near the bend in the street? I don't remember too well ... in 1949 a music store across from the Bee Hive and Book Nook changed my life. Dad bought my clarinet there, and I played in Pioneer Jr. Hi's first band and at College Place Elem. School. When I played in the Wa-Hi band I used the school's alto clarinet. From the music store Dad bought all my piano sheet music - I took lessons at Whitman Conservatory - teacher: Stanley Plummer. Also from that store we got our first record player - the new 45rpm changer stacked 12 disks. Dad hooked it up through his own handmade radio which he'd built in the 1920's. But that's how I first heard recorded classical music. All that, from the record/music store.

Mike Barer said...

That's a great comment and a neat story. It makes what I do worthwhile. I think that you are thinking of Bendix Music, which was a competitor across the street. Thank you for the comment.

Anonymous said...

I just found an old photograph in an even older book (Proust) of Bertha Cordiner it is mounted on a piece of heavier paper that is typeset in gold "Bertha Cordiner Bendix Music Co-Owner" Fascinating what I find in old books! I live here in Walla Walla and I did not know there was a Bendix Music Store...