A new Mt. Gilead music store is bringing the vinyl resurgence to local residents and seeks to rekindle the love for the medium.

Legend Records (a nod to the owner’s nickname, Larry “the Legend” Landis from his days playing volleyball for Kent State University) opened earlier this year and is Landis’s second location, but first in the Buckeye State.

“It all started about 10 years ago when my brother-in-law and I bought our first collection, about 250 thousand records,” Landis said. “And now this store has anywhere from 8-10 thousand pieces of music on display.”

Landis, who still lives and works in Indiana as an analytical chemist, operates Legend Records with his brother-in-law, John, and fellow Crestview High School Graduate Tami Russell.

He credits his brother-in-law with first sparking his interest in vinyl, and Tami, who convinced him that downtown Mount Gilead would be a good location for their store.

“I was bored,” Russell shrugged citing her reasoning for persuading Landis to open the store.

“Tami’s father actually built my family’s home that I lived in through high school right next to theirs, we were neighbors,” Landis states. “We got back in touch and she had just sold her business, Fargo Herbs in Marengo, so she brought all the crates that you see the records in from her store, as well as the business mindset.”

“Our typical position is that this is a hobby to us. Making money is not that big of a deal. We’re about fun. Music is fun.”

According to the owner, about 99 percent of the records in the store are vintage while the remaining 1 percent are modern press.

The store’s vinyl collection spans all eras and genres of the music world including favorites in Rock, Country, Hip Hop, Jazz and Soul stylings.

Legend Records’ vintage inventory hasn’t prevented the store from reaching an audience new to the discovery of vinyl, including frequent Legend customer 7-year-old Leah, whose mother, Brandy Klein, said she and her daughter “love going here”.

“Leah is definitely an old soul, she prefers vinyl,” Klein explained. Legend Records recently awarded Leah with a free Joan Jett record (her favorite) in exchange for winning Student of the Month.

“Leah is into the classic rock, when she gets her report card her grandma brings her in and lets her pick out any record she wants,” Klein explained.

In addition to vinyl, the store also carries other music themed nostalgia including 8-tracks, cassettes, CDs, as well as turn tables, power sources, speakers, posters and T-shirts.

Landis states that the store’s goal is “the best customer service you can give, and the greatest products around, cause this is a pretty unique product especially in the area. Every record on the shelf is professionally cleaned and sleeved.”

Legend Records is located at 37 South Main Street and is open Thursdays through Sundays, from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Adam Hutchinson | The Sentinel Legend Records boats a large collection of vintage vinyls in downtown Mount Gilead.
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2016/03/web1_image1.jpgAdam Hutchinson | The Sentinel Legend Records boats a large collection of vintage vinyls in downtown Mount Gilead.

By Adam Hutchinson

The Sentinel