Record Alley
| Founded | 1978  |
|---|---|
| Defunct | January 2021 |
| Headquarters | |
| Owner | Jim and Shelly Stephens |
| Website | www |
Record Alley is a record shop at the Westfield Palm Desert in Palm Desert, California.
History
The Record Alley originally opened in 1978 on North Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs, California and founded by Jim and Shelly Stephens.[1][2][3][4][5] Missing Persons had an in-store signing there attended by hundreds of fans.[1] Later in 1985, the store moved to the then Palm Desert Mall.[1][4] Since then, it has been visited by such musical artists as Alice Cooper, Billy Gibbons, Barry Manilow, and New Boyz.[1] New Boyz had an on-site dance contest that caused a riot and subsequently covered by KESQ-TV.[1]
In April 2011, during the Big 4 concert featuring Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, and Slayer; at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, the Record Alley suffered a shortage of Anthrax shirts.[6]
In November 2013, the store's Record Store Day featured special performances from local performers.[3]
In April 2015, a few hundred people attended the store's Record Store Day.[7]
In December 2016, the Record Alley received significant sales after Christmas.[8]
In October 2017, the Hellions' first official release Hymns From the Other Side was made available for purchase at the Record Alley.[9] The band, Reborn by the Sunshine, which includes hair and make-up artist Chelsea Dorris on banjo, played there as well.[10]
In December 2020, the company announced that it would be going out of business, in part due to the coronavirus pandemic.[11]
Reception
Billboard's Ed Christman said the Record Alley was "unusual, if not unique, by two counts [...] one of the only independent stores still operating in an enclosed mall."[2] Former Record Store Day ambassador and Queens of the Stone Age founder Josh Homme endorsed the Record Alley.[12] The Record Alley also received Coachella Valley Independent's award "Best Retail Music/Video Store" for 2016.[13]
References
- ^ a b c d e Breeding, Ashley (March 28, 2014). "Spin Doctors". Palm Springs Life. Desert Publications Inc. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ a b Christman, Ed (July 7, 2007). "Still In The Mall". Billboard. Eldridge Industries. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ a b Lalli, Mark (November 27, 2013). "Record Store Day, The Record Alley & The 9 Lives of the Vinyl Record". Coachella Valley Weekly. Coachella Valley Weekly. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ a b Morgan, Lisa (August 7, 2012). "Record Alley, an Independent Business and Culture Preserved". Coachella Valley Weekly. Coachella Valley Weekly. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ Trent, Eddie (December 22, 2011). "Record Alley Reliving Music's Past". Palm Desert, CA Patch. Patch Media. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ Tewksbury, Drew (April 25, 2011). "Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax at Big 4". OC Weekly. Duncan McIntosh Co. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ Bradley, Rob (April 18, 2015). "Record Store Day brings big business to local record store". KESQ-TV. Gulf-California Broadcast Company. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ Galli, Joe (December 26, 2016). "Mall packed with post-Christmas shoppers making returns, using gift cards". KESQ-TV. Gulf-California Broadcast Company. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ Blueskye, Brian (October 2, 2017). "The Lucky 13: Angel Lua, Frontman of The Hellions". Coachella Valley Independent. Coachella Valley Independent LLC. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
- ^ Chavous, Emily (October 2, 2017). "This Butterfly is Freea". Palm Springs Life. Desert Publications Inc. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
- ^ Blueskye, Brian. "'Closing on a high note': Record Alley will end 42-year run in desert". The Desert Sun. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
- ^ Bennett, J. (April 18, 2010). "Vinyl Fetish: Josh Homme is your Record Store Day ambassador". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ Coachella Valley Independent staff (November 28, 2016). "Best of Coachella Valley 2016-2017: Readers' Picks". Coachella Valley Independent. Coachella Valley Independent LLC. Retrieved April 20, 2017.