I tell people that if you are going to go record hunting you should try not to be so steadfast in what you want and do not want that you ever walk away empty handed. You should have a list in your head of releases you are definitely on the search for but it is good to have artists that you like and you can slowly build on their discography when all else fails and you can’t find anything you want. Well this simple rule failed even me during my visit to Dusty Groove. Having brought my bike with me on the Metra, I departed for Dusty Groove immediately after my success at Permanent Records which is just a mile or two away.
I felt intimidated as soon as I walked through the door – even from the outside this place looks modern, clean and well put together. Once you get inside, it is far more apparent. The genres this store carries are quite limited in their scope but by no means do I hold that against them. And in my case it does not matter as jazz makes up nearly half of my collection.
As soon as I walked in they asked me to check my bag at the counter – I am ok with this though it was a bit odd in comparison to the quite casual vibe of my other favorite stores. But after I had been in there 10 minutes another boss poked their head out and demanded that I check my coat also. Am I going to stuff 12″s down the sleeves or what?
However as I briefly mentioned in a previous post, I am not a snob for condition but I also don’t want junk – well they do not seem to have anything less than mint in this place, and the prices reflect that.
The only thing I seriously looked at was ‘We Are Not Amused’ by Straw Dogs – an old out of print heavy rock album (ironic stylistic choice in this place) I had on cassette as a kid. But even in battered condition it was nearly $10 – no thanks.
So I walked away with nothing – except my coat and bag which I retrieved before I hightailed it out of there. See ya, wouldn’t want to be ya, Dusty Groove.