Record Store Day 2022 is finally upon us. I hope you're all out there being safe while you try to get this year's Cure picture disc. I still think about when I was a kid, and my dad would drive me out so I could shop. Sometimes, it was just a short drive to Sounds Like Records in Riverside. That store bit the dust (came back as something else, but I forgot the name), and then it was CD World/Red Planet Records that he'd drive me to. Sometimes Red Planet was a bust and I'd plead with my dad to take me "just a little further" to Mad Platter down by the college, 'cause I knew they'd usually have something good. Every once in awhile, he'd refer to it as, "the far one?" when I'd ask if he could take me to there. We'd stop at a 7-11 on the way, so he could get a newspaper to read in the car while I spent a good 30 to 45 minutes shopping at Mad Platter. Sometimes, I'd be short on cash and would walk out to ask my Pop for a couple extra dollars and he always obliged because he spoiled me. Then he got sick and for a couple years I stopped going to Mad Platter.
When my wife entered the picture, she became my new Mad Platter shopping partner... or should I say, observer? Much like my dad, she spent more time watching me shop rather than shopping herself. She'd passively watch as I bounced back and forth between the "New Arrivals" and sifted through every used record and CD looking for a bargain. Instead of reading newspapers though, she indulged in Haagen-Dazs. We'd stop by the ice cream shop across from Mad Platter so she could get herself a couple scoops to enjoy while I'd, once again, spend 30 to 45 minutes crate-digging. Sundays were often our day of choice so we could see a movie at the theater for 5 bucks before or after going to Mad Platter, but she was always kind enough to agree when I wanted to go down just to browse and hope I find a good deal on something. Mad Platter even indirectly made it into her vows at our wedding. That's what it meant to me.
I'm sad to say that Mad Platter is no more. It became another store that died due to the effects of Covid. It was where I spent all of my RSD mornings. I haven't really participated in RSD the past couple of years. There hasn't been a store that felt the same since. Not even its sister-store, Rhino Records, which is located about 45 minutes from where Mad Platter stood. It's great that there's a day dedicated to record stores, but I implore you to support your favorite shops all year round. RIP Mad Platter and Happy Record Store Day!
