I have vivid memories of Tower Records at the corner of 4th and Broadway… standing near that corner, deep in my mind’s eye I can almost see an overlay of what was once there, the orange neon of the sign, the enormity of music to explore inside.
Back then, I could not afford to buy music on a whim, so studying the album covers was serious business. To buy a record was a major transaction. Not just big financially, but in my teenage years one’s choice of music was a huge statement of personal identity. It means a lot to be “the kind of person who listens to” a particular band.
Unlike most music stores, Tower Records would often have a few LPs or CDs set up with headphones for listening. The ability to hear an album before buying was a very big deal. When I pass that corner now, the building is still there, but the part that was magical to me is gone.
In other neighborhoods, where small old buildings have been replaced by tall modern apartment buildings or offices, I am entirely unable to even summon the old memories any more.
I remember Tower well… I loved their 12″ dance singles section. They usually had cool, if despondent, employees, great music literature and some good CDs by bands that couldn’t be found elsewhere. I wasn’t a fan of the later era’s hip hop dudes bothering everyone coming and going from the store though.
I think we (my gf and I) saw it on opening week. We did not know but it was this new, huge store in the village. Some time later, I saw it in the news. Tower was a semi-regular stop for us, to look at records and know more about music and how our favorite artists were doing in the charts, which were posted on the wall. I did not buy much – music was expensive to a poor teenager. I was a little sad when I heard they left.