new "Euclid Records" location in St. Louis

[Rooster_Ties]

I was just browsing the Euclid Records website, and noticed at they're no longer located in the Central West End. They moved to a much bigger location on Big Bend, right near Webster University.

Back when I lived in St. Louis (where I grew up), Euclid Records was one of the two best record stores in St. Louis (along with Vintage Vinyl in University City, which is still there - far as I know).

Anyway, it looks like Euclid combined their smaller store (mostly CD's, with some vinyl) with an all vinyl store that I never did get to - as it opened up after I left St. Louis. The website says they moved only just in April of this year.

I still get back to St. Louis several times a year, since my parents still live there (over in Fairview Heights, near Belleville - on the Illinois side of the river).

I was just wondering if anyone here had actually been to the new Euclid store, and if it was as good as it looked on paper??? (Pictures and descriptions taken from their website: http://www.euclidrecords.com

The new Euclid Records at 601 East Lockwood Ave. in Webster Groves.

The CD department.

Overhead view of the Jazz department.

The Vinyl department.

It's probably not The Jazz Record-Mart in Chicago, but what else could be?? Still, it's a pretty good start!! (Even though Euclid was always smaller than Vintage Vinyl – I usually found just as much good stuff at Euclid, particularly import titles and greymarket jazz titles from Europe. For instance, I’ve found several great Miles bootlegs there, over the years.)

[Dan Gould]

Board member MikeB was there this weekend, perhaps he will post about it. FWIW, I think that Euclid has surpassed what Vintage Vinyl used to be, but when I lived in St. Louis ('87-'90) I definitely stuck with Vintage Vinyl, and not just because I lived in U. City.

[Rooster_Ties]

This copy may well have been written by the owner of Euclid, but for what it's worth - this was in Downbeat in April 2003...

From the April 2003 Issue of Down Beat Magazine

Down Beat’s Guide to the Music Marketplace - Where To Buy Jazz

St. Louis

You can find the latest major label releases everywhere in St. Louis, from Borders and the five Streetside Records locations to top independent Vintage Vinyl. But for hardcore jazz fans there’s only one place to go - Euclid Records. Founded in 1980 in the hip Central West End neighborhood, Euclid features a deep catalogue with plenty of great used bargains as well as hard-to-find European and Japanese imports. Owner Joe Schwab buys top quality jazz collections around the country and sends out regular e-mail set sale lists of the best items. Schwab opened the Vinyl Shack in Webster Groves in 1996 - a location specializing in LP’s, singles and 78’s, as well as vintage jazz magazines, books and collectibles. Plans are in place to open a large, consolidated location at 601 E. Lockwood in Webster Groves in April - creating what promises to be nirvana for jazz fans.

I'd say it's at least half true. Vintage Vinyl may have been bigger, but I always had better odds of finding the really cool stuff at Euclid.

That said, I used to buy a shitload of stuff from both places. Vintage Vinyl was always better at Rock and various other non-Jazz (and non-Classical) areas -- and probably will always be.

Two great stores - to be sure.

[DrJ]

I got my MD degree at St. Louis University. We lived not too far from U. City, in Dogtown (you know, the home of the big mutha Amoco sign and the Hipoint (sp?) bar!). My wife and I spent about 99% of our waking ours away from work at "the loop" in U. City. Boy did I haunt both of these places a lot. Back then, though, I was big into alternative rock obscurities - only light on the jazz. Do I wish I could go back in time, since the jazz reissue boom hadn't really hit yet - probably missed out on a ton of great vinyl opportunities!

BTW, I've always loved the Vintage Vinyl stickers with the Roland Kirk drawing on them...I have one still on my guitar case.

Edited July 28, 2003 by DrJ

[BERIGAN]

Man, the folks here with St. Louis connections gets larger all the time!

Born and raised there til 1983....I am drawing a mental blank about Euclid Records...was it there in the late 70's/early 80's??? I do remember going somewheres besides vintage vinyl http://www.vintagevinyl.com/ can't remember if it was Euclid records or not...peaches was kinda cool, at least it seemed so back in the day....

[montg]

I was there in early June--it had a "we're still moving in feel" at the time, but things were pretty well organized. New stuff in the front--a lot of jazz, of course. I picked up Booker Ervin and Brass in the new section, which is pretty hard to find. They also had a lot of the Spanish Blue Notes in stock in the new section--I think they were selling for 8.99 B)

In a larger adjoining room in the back there was a ton of vinyl. And all the used jazz CDs were located on shelves along the walls in this room. Again, a very good selection--even some used TOCJs (Horace Parlan is one that I remember).

I actually preferred Euclid to Jazz Record Mart. First, Euclid's easier to get to since it's not downtown. Second, and more important, the used CD selection is better at Euclid. I might be wrong, but I don't think JRM sells used CDs. I hate to say this, but just about anything in stock at JRM (CDs, not vinyl), I can find cheaper on the internet. Not so for Euclid.