Log onto www.placematters.net and the Municipal Art Society website to learn about our featured place of the week, the Harlem Record Shack at 274 W. 125th St., Harlem, nominated by Bobby Sanabria….
Sikhulu Shange adopted NYC after coming here in 1964 to perform at the World’s Fair with a South African dance troupe. Four years later he opened the Harlem Record Shack, and four years after that moved the store to its present location, across the street from the Apollo Theater. All these years, he has been stocking the kinds of music that he and his customers have loved, whether or not the big companies or stores recognized its value. At the end of this month, the Record Shack will lose its lease, and Mr. Shange is trying to prevent it. Record stores like the Record Shack function like community centers for music and culture. Their knowledgeable proprietors, unusual inventory, and willingness to sell what might not be popular yet make them valuable. But discount stores, digital downloading, and development pressures are nearly doing them in. Bobby’s Happy House lost its right-off-125th St. location in January after being in business since 1946. Casa Amadeo (est. 1941, listed to the National Register of Historic Places) is struggling against outsized rent increases. One piece of good news is that Record Mart, a legendary Latin music store in the Times Square subway station, just re-opened after 9 years. Here are some things you can do:Shop:
Harlem Record Shack, 212-866-1600 (Mr. Shange invites you to sign his Save the Record Shack petition)
Casa Amadeo, Longwood, Bronx , 718-328-6896
Casa Latina, East Harlem , 212-427-6062, casalatinamusic.comListen:
WFUV, 90.7 FM, Cityscape visits Casa Amadeo and interviews proprietor Mike Amadeo, City Lore folklorist Elena Martinez, and community activist Lorraine Montenegro. Sat. Mar.8, 7:30-8am. Podcast available, www.wfuv.org.Follow the news:
To see the city’s rezoning plans for 125th St. , link to the Dept. of City Planning website. To read the Municipal Art Society’s critique of the plan and argument for protecting Harlem ’s local retailers, click here. For the full list of weekly features to date, log on to the PlaceExplorer and choose the Featured Search called “Place that Matters of the Week.” Or, log onto the Municipal Art Society. Please tell your friends about these places of history, memory, and culture and invite them to join the Place Matters e-mail list.Sincerely, Marci Reaven, City Lore/Place Matters (placematters@citylore.org)
Lisa Kersavage , Municipal Art Society/Place MattersP.S. Be sure to check out Hidden New York: A Guide to Places that Matter (Rutgers University Press, 2006).
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HW PROP SHOP!
