Licorice Pizza

Above, my "relic" from the original Licorice Pizza record chain. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

A post was made in the Valley Relics Group about record stores of yesteryear. 

One of them listed was Licorice Pizza. I used to spend a lot of time (and money) at the Lawndale, California Licorice Pizza. They had a great selection of 45 rpm oldie singles.

The chain of Licorice Pizza stores were acquired by Sam Goody.

However, there is a Licorice Pizza store in Studio City, California that's not part of the original chain. According to their website:

Licorice Pizza Records, an independent label in Studio City, CA, is helmed by Kerry Brown, an award-winning, RIAA multi-platinum certified music producer, artist manager, and event producer. His wide-ranging career spans more than three decades, encompassing performance, production, and marketing, with total worldwide sales of more than 50M records including works by such iconic superstars and legendary artists as Smashing Pumpkins, Miley Cyrus, Cheap Trick, Courtney Love, the Afghan Whigs, the Twilight Singers, and Ziggy Marley.

The boutique record store of the same name continues the legacy of the original, famed Southern California chain opened by James Greenwood in July 1969. New releases & vintage albums line the walls, while handpicked playlists - and free licorice - add to the atmosphere. Nurturing the local music & art community in Studio City, fashion designers and craft vendors sell their art during monthly Flea Markets. At weekly Licorice Pizza Party in-store events, local artist showcases feature our staff and their friends, many of whom grew up hearing about their rockstar parents and how cool the original Licorice Pizza was in the 1970s and 80s.

Expanding to more than 34 area locations by 1986, the chain was an integral part of Southern California’s influential rock scene, featured prominently in 1982’s Fast Times at Ridgemont High and later giving title to Paul Thomas Anderson’s critically acclaimed, Academy Award-nominated 2021 film. It was more than just a record store; it served as a meeting place and haven for fans of all ages, a club house where music obsessives – including a teenaged Kerry Brown – could hang out and discover a spectacular range of new and classic music, from punk and glam to hard rock, metal, and more. A new generation is rediscovering vinyl for the first time. It's the tastiest music in town, where you get it nicer.

I still have a 45 rpm singles Licorice Pizza rack that I bought back in the 1980s at the Lawndale store. 

Rain Has Arrived

Above, the deck a few minutes ago. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Well, just as the National Weather Service forecast, the rains have arrived.

I also hear the rumble of thunder. 

It is a good thing I went into Gallup this morning when I did. After unloading my groceries, I went down to the post office at the Flying J to pick up my mail and the rain was just beginning on my way back.

Right now, I am relaxing and listening to "Waylon Jennings: Greatest Hits" on LP. It was released in 1979 and that's probably when I bought, it either at Sam Goody or Licorice Pizza.

The forecast for today:

 This Afternoon

Scattered showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 75. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

Tonight

Scattered showers and thunderstorms before 9pm, then isolated showers and thunderstorms after 3am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. South wind 5 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

007 On Vinyl

If one is a fan of a particular movie genre or franchise, they also would pick up tie-in merchandise.

Ever since my parents took me to see a double-feature of From Russia With Love and Dr. No, I have been a James Bond fan since.

I have a few records (vinyl LPs and 45 r.p.m. singles for those of you born after CDs took over.

In the old days, vinyl records were easy to find. One of my favorite places to find new and older 45 r.p.m. singles was Licorice Pizza (now defunct). I bought a lot of singles there. Tower Records (mainly the Sunset Blvd. store) was another great source for records.

The first 007 record I bought was in 1965 right after the release of Thunderball. It is the soundtrack album:

The next soundtrack album I bought was sometime in the 1980s, Dr. No, the very first James Bond movie:

A few years later (still in the 1980s), I picked up this compilation album, James Bond Greatest Hits:

I have four James Bond singles in my vinyl collection:

Above, from upper left to right, Live and Let Die (Paul McCartney and Wings), Octopussy
(Rita Coolidge), Never Say Never Again (Lani Hall) and A View To A Kill (Duran Duran).

I have other Bond albums on CD, but I just wanted to concentrate on vinyl.

45s and Licorice Pizza

Above, a 45 on the turntable. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Earlier this evening, I was in the mood from some barbecue beef at El Paso Barbecue restaurant in Tarzana.

Before going there, I stopped two doors down at CD Trader, a shop who sells new and used CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and LPs. As I was on my way out from browsing, I noticed some shelves tucked away full of used 45 r.p.m. records. I decided to come back after dinner to thumb through them

I did come back and bought a few records. Since I bought a little Crosley portable turntable last year, I figured that I would kickback tonight and play my new acquisitions and old records on it.

Above, the Licorice Pizza logo. 

I keep my 45s in a wooden rack I bought at the late, great Licorice Pizza record store in Lawndale back in the late 1970s or early 1980s. They had a big selection of 45s at about $1.00 each. I miss Licorice Pizza stores.

Licorice Pizza was bought and sold a couple of times in the mid-1980s and eventually was absorbed by the Sam Goody record chain.

Above, my Licorice Pizza 45 r.p.m. rack. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

So that's how I spent my evening (Denise is still hurting from her surgery of last week and from a fall she took yesterday while mopping, so she spent today resting at home).

It was a nice nostalgic night for me as I was listening to the old records.