It’s been a fixture in the West Village for almost half a century but sadly, this month might finally see the end of Bleecker Bob’s Golden Oldies. The record store, which opened in September 1967, first announced it was likely to close in January 2012, due mainly to skyrocketing rents in the area. A yearlong search for new premises has proven unfruitful, despite business in the store being pretty brisk. “A lot of landlords want paperwork and guarantors we can’t provide,” explains John DeSalvo, who has worked in the store for close to three decades. “I guess being in business for 46 years doesn’t mean anything.”
DeSalvo is amongst the small team of employees who have kept the store going since founder/owner “Bleecker” Bob Plotnik suffered an aneurysm in 2001 that has left him in a nursing home.
Not only would closure deny vinyl junkies a place to get their fix, but A-list music lovers, too.
In celebration of the store’s most fantastic run, DeSalvo remembers some of the shop’s most famous customers and the vinyl they sought.
David Bowie, late ’80s
“Bleecker Bob knew Bowie and Bowie had come in plenty of times over the years,” DeSalvo says. “But one time, in the late 1980s, he came in while I was working. He was in disguise, with sunglasses and a beard which looked like he had been growing for several weeks. He asked me, ‘Do you know this band Neu! [an obscure experimental German band from the 1970s]?’ I said, ‘I love them. If you want to listen to them, I’ll give you my albums.’ So he gives me his manager’s address and I sent him all three of their albums — ‘Neu!’ ‘Neu! 2’ and ‘Neu! ’75.’ A few months later, he comes out with his first ‘Tin Machine’ album — some of the worst garbage he ever put out! If that’s what he put out after listening to my records, I oughta kill him!”
Cyndi Lauper, ’80s
“Before she was really famous, Cyndi used to be in a band called Blue Angel with a friend of mine named John. He came in to the store with Cyndi once and Cyndi — in the loudest voice possible — said, ‘Hey, you got any Judas Priest here!? I think they’re really great and their lyrics are really deep!’ She was joking of course. Cyndi was quite a character.”
Keith Richards, late ’70s-early ’80s
“He was a blues guys and really knew his stuff. He was either looking for that or he would ask what was new and what he should hear. Very much a musicologist. He would come in looking pretty normal and people might gawk at him but they didn’t bother him. He wouldn’t be able to do that now . . . ”
Bruce Willis, Late ’80s-early ’90s
“I’ve never waited on him myself, but he has been in a number of times. He’s a blues guy and would buy up lots of really rare blues records. By all accounts, he’s very nice and courteous and a very good customer.”
Prince, 1984
“After ‘Purple Rain’ came out, Prince was at the height of his fame, but I was so sick of hearing him. One day around that time, he came in with an entourage of about half a dozen people. He came up to the desk and before he could even say anything, I said. ‘What can I do for you, shorty?’ And he just scowled at me and stormed out in a huff! I actually really respect him now. I once saw him do a version of ‘Red House’ that I thought was better than the Jimi Hendrix version. So if you’re reading this, Prince, sorry!”
Lou Reed, ’90s
“He’s been in a few times, but I remember he came in once in the 1990s with [avant-garde musician and wife] Laurie Anderson. He didn’t say a word, but they went over to the doo-wop section and he started explaining all the groups to her, and he really knew his stuff. I think he was just trying to give her an education on things that he loved and knew.”
Rick Rubin, early ’80s
“When hip-hop started to become a big thing, people would come in all the time looking for rare records to sample. It always shocked me how much these guys knew about music. When Def Jam started, their founder Rick Rubin would come in looking for stuff, but he would always ask about the new unsigned bands that he could sign, too. For years, he told me to send stuff that I thought he should hear. I would send him stuff all the time, but I don’t think anything became of the bands I sent him. One time, he came in and gave me a Def Jam jacket, but it had someone’s name on it — something like ‘Greg.’ He said the manufacturer printed the wrong name on it so he decided to give it to me instead!”