Last April, Dodds’ Record Store Day celebration was cut off by authorities mid-stream though no arrests were made. Most of the day across West Michigan shaped up as a vinyl lover’s dream. (Photo gallery, video.)
Rockus Interruptus: Grand Rapids Police pull the plug outside Dodds Record Shop on Saturday afternoon just as a rock band was about to rev up for a sidewalk set. (Photo/Kendra Kamp)
EDITOR’S NOTE: Local Spins last week launched a series recapping the music website’s Top 10 most-read stories of 2017. Today, the countdown is at No. 4 with a look back at Record Store Day 2017 in April, a celebration of vinyl and independent record shops that also just happened to draw the attention of Grand Rapids Police due to outdoor performances at Dodds Record Shop on the city’s West Side. This story first was published at Local Spins on April 23.
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Outside Vertigo Music in Grand Rapids on Saturday (April 22), folks started lining up before 9 a.m. in hopes of snagging special vinyl releases and generally just celebrating Record Store Day with several hours of live music and DJs, refreshments and the camaraderie that comes with a community-minded indie attitude.
Scouring for Vinyl Gems: Folks flocked to Corner Record Shop in Grandville. (Photo/Kendra Kamp)
It was much the same story at Corner Record Shop in Grandville, where seven West Michigan bands and solo artists revved up the back room while vinyl aficionados flipped through record bins in several sections of the sprawling store.
That love was repeated at Green Light Music in Kalamazoo, which ramped up its celebration with DJs and giveways.
But local authorities weren’t necessarily on board with all the Record Store Day hoopla.
At Dodds Record Shop on Grand Rapids’ Northwest Side, a planned day-long Record Store Day celebration – complete with a makeshift parade and band performances on the sidewalk in front of the Bridge Street NW shop – got cut off midway through the festivities by the Grand Rapids Police Department. (Check out the video below.)
After police first interrupted a rollicking parade procession led by record store owner Rev Charles Preston Smith and fellow revelers about a block down Bridge Street, they returned to the store just as the rock band … And the Bullets was about to unleash its planned set for a small cadre of fans.
In-Store Set: Vertigo Music once again hosted live music indoors for Record Store Day. (Photo/Kendra Kamp)
Police informed Smith that he couldn’t proceed with live entertainment outside the shop without a permit, forcing cancellation of the rest of the day’s performances. Still, it didn’t keep Smith from considering how he might handle Record Store Day next year.
“Now I’m actually going to have to think about getting a permit,” he told Local Spins, after bantering somewhat good-naturedly with police officers about the situation. “Where do you do that?”
Smith, who had to get ready for his band the PotatoeBabies’ performance at Jake’s Music Festival at the Orbit Room on Saturday evening anyway, noted proudly that two acoustic acts (Honest John Kowalko and Dale Wicks) and two punk bands (Slumlord Radio and The Westside Rebellion) managed to complete their sets at Dodds before police shut things down.
Check out the photo gallery and a Record Store Day video below.
VIDEO: Record Store Day in Grand Rapids, Grandville (4/22/17)
PHOTO GALLERY: Record Store Day in West Michigan (4/22/17)
Photos by Kendra Kamp, Anthony Norkus, Anna Sink, Derek Ketchum, John Sinkevics and Lisa Oldham
