The Loss of Tower Records and an Older Landmark Music Store, Wallachs Music City by Marcia

On her personal blog, Quantum Leaps, my celestial sister, Sonja, lamented the loss of her old friend, Tower Records. Tower was an old friend to many of us. I recall traveling and finding myself in a large city for the first time and seeing Tower Record's familiar marquee. Suddenly the city didn't seem strange anymore. But the subject of this particular blog is not Tower Records. The subject is another landmark record and music store that lost the same type of fiscal battle in the late 1970's. I would love to hear from anyone reading this blog who visited Wallachs Music City, on the corner of Sunset and Vine in Hollywood, California, 2 blocks west of RCA Records, 5 blocks south of Capitol Records, in the heart of Hollywood's music industry. In addition to the best selection of vinyl in the city of angels, Wallachs carried sheet music, scores, musical instruments, turntables, record changers, all grades of blank recording tape for reel-to-reel and a respectable stock of diamond needles for most popular turntables. But what is most memorable to me were the 12-15 individual sound booths along the window wall, facing Sunset Boulevard. Customers could actually take records into the booths and listen to them before deciding to purchase. The sound booths were marginally bigger than a phone booth. Customers usually stood while they listened and though the booths were built for one person, two people could cozy up close and listen together. It was in these sound booths that I first heard Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Ike Turner, Johnny Cash, Frankie Lane, Les Paul and Mary Ford, Stan Kenton, Stan Getz, Cal Tjader . . . not to mention RCA Victor Red Label classics and movie soundtracks. More than once my boyfriend and I would wait for a pedestrian to pass our window so we could steel a kiss. 45 singles started to become obsolete, 45 EP's and 33's were in and the payola scandel was hot. The closing of Wallachs Music City was the end of an era in Hollywood. Wallachs is featured in The Bruce Torrence Hollywood Photography Collection. It doesn't look like much in Bruce's black and white photos but Wallachs was king in Hollywood back in the day when sugar gave you energy, cigarettes calmed your nerves, meat and cheese were good for you and the sun was a good source of vitamin D.