I don’t know of a more colorful shop or more colorful proprietor than Fantastic Andy’s in Kewanee IL. I first visited last fall and I came away with a mountain of scores. The place is touched by God I think – my luck continued and my spirits were generally lifted upon entering.
I now require only the debut from 5th Dimension after picking up this mint condition (I actually saw more than one copy!) copy of album #6. Well, technically there are more albums in their discography but as I already have #7 and 8, I feel that best covers their ‘golden years’. Better yet, the gatefold remains unopened – the shrink is peeled back but the gatefold is still a closed gate. I joked that when it opens you will get to breathe deeply of some wonderful 1970s air – my girlfriend’s 7 year old daughter was quite interested by this proposition and begged me to tear it off. No no my dear – not today, and maybe never at all! (I do have one other record I purchased in the same condition, it too remains sealed!)
I have long had an eye out for ‘Super Session’ – yet to come across a thrift store copy but I was plenty pleased to find the follow up with still original inner sleeves and generally great condition. Already tore through disc #1 last night when I got home, I was not disappointed.
But like my time in Morris just a few hours earlier, I was patient enough to dig through the 45s once again. The instrumental B-side is alternately hilarious, disturbing and evocative. What production! But alas, it is a picture sleeve it seems and I purchased without. Oh well. I also scooped up a 7″ to add to my roster of 80s soft rock hits, great use of falsetto here.
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| I found these ‘special order’ slips mixed in with the 45s, dated circa 1985. Shirley Hudson – I respect your love for music and vinyl! |
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| She grabbed the Ray Price album visible above her head – as a spare for framing. |
After initially leaving it behind due to condition (please leave your Pyrex out of the dishwasher people!), I went back grabbed the green 403 I need to complete my second ‘Multi Color’ set of nesting round bowls. And already used it to help cook tonight’s dinner. My girlfriend came away with an equally beat up casserole that we used to bake a truly perfect fritatta (and I’ve eaten and cooked my share) the next morning, as well as a really obscure pattern 404 (‘Americana’).
I had heard about the ‘other building’ but did not visit last fall as it is not heated. It was indeed filled with things of no use to me but genuinely added to the delight of the day’s hunt.
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| I got one of these flyers with a gifted record years ago, before I even had this blog. It still sits in the outer sleeve of that platter – don’t know how I bothered not to grab one last fall and scan for that post! |
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| I had to start taking notes on the back of the flyer from Andy’s to keep track of all the places we hit and the scores we grabbed! (notice we did hit Goodwill in Kewanee but I did not mention it here. A scant ~15 records, none purchased, all junk – it would only insult the important part of my visit chronicled above! |