Get ready to pull out your record collection: this episode is going to send you running to your turntable! Or remembering to go buy one!

Eddie Bruce left his management job of 25 years to open a vinyl record store in his hometown of Cartersville, Georgia, northwest of Atlanta, a story that feels straight out of a movie. He now spends his days talking music, helping people find and restore their lost treasures, and selling great music in high fidelity.

Ken approached Eddie with the suggestion of coming on the podcast to talk about life as a record store owner in the 2020's, and to bring his own, personal list of favorite 25 albums of all time.

You'll be reminded of lots of great classics, along with a few surprising gems that often float under the radar. With back stories and context to go with them.

Eddie tells us how vinyl records are cleaned, when is a record too damaged to keep, where they get the highest quality vinyl for the real audiophiles, and how many copies of Dark Side of the Moon and Rumours even his little shop continues to sell every year.

If you're in Cartersville, there's lots to see! It's known as the Museum City of Georgia, perhaps even the South, including three that are acknowledged by the Smithsonian. And, you can wander through the trendy downtown, go past the quaint train station, and find RocknShop Vinyl Records: drop in and say hello!

Resources from today's episode:

RocknShop, 21 N. Wall Street, Cartersville, GA

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RocknShopCartersville/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/rocknshop.cville/?hl=en

Chapters

0:00 Introduction

03:35 Eddie’s path into music and RocknShop

08:19 What the shop buys and what’s playing in-store

10:21 The album-list format and the one record to save

14:21 Foundational picks from the ’60s and early ’70s

21:01 Seventies classics: Led Zeppelin, Allman Brothers, Pink Floyd, and more

34:55 Late-’70s essentials: Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Billy Joel, and ELO

44:14 Eighties favorites: U2, Def Leppard, and Tom Petty

47:35 Nineties and 2000s picks: R.E.M., Tom Petty, and Coldplay

52:01 Closing thoughts and visiting RocknShop

Visit weareoldpodcast.com to learn more about Ken and the show!