I'm a bit of a regular here at Canterbury Records and stop in on a regular basis, it is my go to local record shop! I stopped in yesterday August 17, 2019 and went through the large laserdisc selection they have. I found some great titles on laserdisc for some good prices, one in particular was priced previously when it was worth more. I asked Rusty about the price on that specific LD and as always he was quick to look it up and offer me a better price as things change! He's always patient and gracious enough to accommodate me and pleasant about it. Everyone is friendly and helpful, this is a great place. Remember to support your local businesses! read more

More CDs and DVDs than I would have hoped, but I can tell there's a long history of the shop having great records. I stopped in one day after years of driving by saying, "I should check them out", and started trawling through their piles of old (fragile) 30s-50s records, looking for something great -- you never see that kind of stuff! I found a couple really great selections, but then upon closer inspection, found all 3 of the records I'd carefully chosen were significantly chipped and unplayable. I left a little bummed, but will certainly stop back in sometime. read more

Picked up a couple records that were priced reasonably, but was told by the shop owner that they would not honor the price on one of the records because someone who worked there mislabeled the price tag and it was "a mistake." I told him that was his mistake, not mine and he should honor the price. When he refused I told him to expect a poor review on Yelp. He said to make sure I told him that record was priced below list price. I told him it didn't matter what the list price is, he should honor the price on his price tag. What kind of business doesn't honor the price tag on an item because an employee made a "mistake?" Maybe he should look at legal code. California B&P Code, 12024.2. (a) It is unlawful for any person, at the time of sale of a commodity, to do any of the following: (1) Charge an amount greater than the price, or to compute an amount greater than a true extension of a price per unit, that is then advertised, posted, marked, displayed, or quoted for that commodity. read more

For a record store, they sure seem to have a lot of CDs. I mean, that's practically all they've got here. There's a meager vinyl selection that encompasses all of a few racks, and they've got a decent selection of Record Store Day exclusives (probably because no one comes in here to buy any vinyl), but outside of that it's just lots and lots of CDs. And nobody buys CDs anymore. They've also got a lot of DVDs and shitty VHS tapes. No treasures to be found here. read more

Want to go to a record store that is far from the madding crowd of the gigantic blob in Hollywood ? Canterbury Records is your haven. Locally owned and operated from it's inception, this is a very cool place to shop for cd's, dvd's, and LP's - both new and used. And their used vinyl section has always been a source of delight for me (one of my favorite finds was the Argo boxed set of the Hobbit read by Nichole Williamson - long out of publication). Whenever I hear something on KUSC or KJZZ that gets my attention, Canterbury is my go-to spot - yes, even before Amazon or other online sources because, after you pay for shipping, the onlines ain't all that cheap. Plus, I get the music then and there and can listen to it that day. I'm writing this in mid-November '09 and want you to know that they have a terrific selection of all kinds of Christmas cd's - lot's of fun to go thru the bins. Good people there, no 'tude, very helpful. Think globally, but SHOP LOCALLY - especially these days ! read more

*My apologies to the owners of this wonderful music store for not singing Canterbury's praises long, long ago.* Could Canterbury be the best music store per square foot in all of LA county? The answer is an appologetic "Yes" but with in certain limits. Though some fault the fact that this store has large gaps in its inventory, I feel that the owners have completely tuned in to their regular clientals' musical wave lengths and tastes. This store is beautifully suited for the following genres: Classical Older Blues greats Jazz Experimental/ Off beat The Gold Standards of Rock Alternative/ Indy new releases. Here is why I love killing time in Canterbury- they have a really helpful and kind staff. You get the feeling that they wouldn't stock anything that they themselves would want to listen to. That editorial edge is rare and their strength. If you need to buy a certain piece- say Brahms Symphony 3, they only stock the best recordings- so you won't end up wasting your time and money buying some half-assed Fresno Symphony Festival orchestra version. Are you looking for recordings of Paul Bowles work? They will know how to procure that rarity. I always end up leaving with three times as much as I came in for, but that is just fine by me. read more

I've never thought much about this place in the 4+ years I've lived in Pasadena. I've always gone to Penny Lane, which I actually didn't like very much. Well, Penny Lane has moved and Record Store Day had me itching for new records. I was EXTREMELY happy with my visit to Canterbury. They had/have great selections, unbelievably nice and knowledgeable staff, easy parking, great location, good prices etc. They gladly checked on a Record Store Day release that they were out of, ordered it for me, and called me when it came in. I am really happy started going here and look forward to many visits in the future. read more

I love a good record shop, so while I was in Pasadena to see the Showcase of (Rose Parade) Floats, I dropped in. I had a sinking feeling as I looked at the window display and my eyes spied some kind of auditory ode to Fifty Shitstains of Grey, which I imagine I would approximate to being raped in the ear. Was this really the best thing they had to show in their window to represent the contents of the store? Yep. I swear it looks like somebody cleaned out a tone-deaf grandma's attic to stock this place - what stock it has - and then priced them all while just laughing and laughing and laughing. I'm sorry, Pasadena. You've such a beautiful city, you deserve a better record store than this blight right on your lovely, famed Colorado Boulevard. After walking in here, I can't wait to get back to San Diego's own Thrift Trader and buy some goddamn music at proper second hand prices. read more

Canterbury is another great record store in Pasadena. Great selection of LPs, 45s and CDs. I've bought many, many records from them when I lived in SoCal. They even sold needles (stylus for turntables) too. Not sure if they still do that. I am glad to see that they are still in business after all these years. I always make it a point to stop by Canterbury when I am in town. read more

Really good local record shop. I have only gone here for vinyl but it seems like they have a lot more options if you are looking for CDs as well. They have a pretty good selection for vinyl and typically have any popular new releases. If I had one grip I would say that they used collection could use a little more attention but other than that, highly recommended unless you want to take the drive to amoeba. read more

I've been a devoted customer to this place for at least the last twelve years. Countless paychecks have been wasted here while I browse and carouse the store. They have most of what I look for and if they don't, they'll promptly order it for you. Not only that, but there classical section is the best in Los Angeles. Who ever works there knows that to get! And forget it, the prices usually are able to compete with what you can find online. Hopefully, they bring back used LP's. I've already spent several hundred buying the beautiful Sundazed 180-gram reprints of Bob Dylan, The Byrds and rare garage rock, but I love being able to find gems at a fraction of the price. Their DVD collection is pretty good too. A lot of it is crap, but usually you can find great films like "The Phantom of Liberty" and "Stagecoach" for ridiculously low prices. The owner, Rusty, is a very friendly guy, this other guy who I think is called Mark (short with a mustache) and this tall older gent are all very helpful and happy to help. I'm all Jewish and never got discriminated against. I suppose I'm not black enough. But aside from that, my favorite record store to buy new products. Used is a different story... read more

I have been going to this store for decades. I not sure which store the memebers of Two Star Club went to or how often they went but my experiences there have always been quite favorable. The collection is massive and they will order what ever they do not have, if they can get it. It is diverse and covers a lot of ground. However it is the staff that makes me return over and over. On the phone or in person, they are efficient, very well informed and helpful. They go the extra mile, and if yours is a special order, you get a call letting you know the item is in. Finally I think that Pasadena needs indpendent music stores and I am willing to pay a bit more to support this. There is more to smart commerce than just prices. Keeping money local is always a good idea. read more

This place has a strange layout, but that's not the issue. It's true, it's messy and dusty, so is the merchandise, it looks like it's been here forever. They do have vinyl, DVD-s, CD-s, not great of a selection, prices a bit high. Customer service isn't that good, the lady that works here behaves like she doesn't care if she sells anything, went back on pricing (higher than what she initially told us). The place is a bit depressing, not fun to browse. Street parking. read more

Being an old skool DJ, I have dug through my fair share of vinyl in shops allllll over the place.. so I was excited when I stumbled upon this one while I was just roaming around Pasadena... sadly, that was disappointing..the store is well-organized, however, it's a hit or miss on music genres. (you either love it or hate it).. oh well.. read more

If you're looking for new vinyl than this will work for you, but if your looking to dig into some used stuff, I would look elsewhere. I figured a place this established would have a strong second hand selection. Kind of a let down for me but I'm sure it works for a lot of others. read more

There is a lot of street parking in the area when I stopped by on a Wednesday evening after work. It's also right next to the giant Target, so probably could park there too. It's a decent sized store, but mostly filled with CDs/DVDs. There was one row was for vinyl, which I would probably finish browsing in an hour max. They had a large selection of classic/rock and pop, as well as a separate box for RSD records from previous years. Apart from bands/artists, the records aren't really divided very extensively (like genres). The person working wasn't notably bad or good, they got the job done. I purchased 2 sealed records that were moderately priced. Not sure if it is always like this, but the day I went there were some older people and homeless people inside...made me feel a little unsafe...not as trendy as other records stores I've been to. I probably wouldn't go back when it's dark outside... read more

I bought a factory sealed new 7" here and found it was un-listenable due to deep scratches in it out of the package. Although this can't be blamed on the store, they were not particularly helpful with me. It seemed like they were open to exchanging it, but they didn't have any other copies in stock. They wouldn't return the item and I was left with a defective record that was inflated in price to begin with. With an understocked vinyl selection and dispassionate staff I won't be returning here. read more

I found this place because I foolishly didn't try hard enough to buy the new Bowie album on vinyl until the day after his unfortunate passing, an event which naturally sent every vinyl-loving Angeleno into a collector's frenzy! I must have called 20 record stores that day, was even willing to drive to long beach or somewhere to get my hands on a copy, but everyone was sold out and saying it could be weeks or months before more were pressed and issued. The only glimmer of hope was these guys said they were expecting more the following day, and would be happy to call me when they got it. Well, sure enough they called me the next morning to tell me they had received copies and were holding one for me. I was so happy and drove there on my lunch break to pick it up, thinking I'd be in and out, only to look up and realize I'd been browsing the store for almost an hour! They have a well curated selection of new vinyl at very competitive prices (read: at least a couple bucks cheaper than Amoeba) and a really solid collection of used classical LP's too. I didn't even get to the vast used movies and cd sections! I will be back to browse soon when I'm not under such time constraints. Thanks again for coming through for me so soon, especially when nobody else even offered to call me when they received more copies. Keep on rockin'! read more

Extremely friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable service! I was impressed by the variety they had within their collection, and insight that one of the owners and one of the employees had into discussing and suggesting music. They were well-versed in everything from the industry to production of the music. It's not easy to maintain such a selection of vinyls, CDs, cassettes, and even VHS tapes, and this store simply left me surprised. Thanks to them, I have been introduced to many underground jazz artists and brilliant opera soundtracks! Their passion for music shows within their collection, willingness to help, and ability to suggest new titles to explore! If you're not in the mood to trek a 90 minute ride in LA heat and dish out $5 for parking in Hollywood for Amoeba's store, this record store is perfect for any northeast LA dweller. read more

It takes me back to wandering through the Peaches Record Store on Hollywood Blvd. I like sharing the exploring experience with my kids that they will never have on I-Tunes! read more

They had a large, LARGE amount of music, yet, none of it being anything I (or the person i came with) would ever listen to. it was as if someone came in and bought everything worth listening to and not only is it now gone, they replaced it with crap. who knows... read more

I'm definitely coming here more often to buy my music... I say F Best Buy or whatever megastore conglomerate people usually buy cd's from. This place is a REAL classic mom 'n pop record shop run by some really down to earth, friendly people. I spoke with the guy who runs the place and he said his pops opened it way back in the 50's. You can tell just by looking at their store sign. Nice and vintage looking. It's pretty much a Pasadena landmark... Overall, they have a good mix of music to choose from. They're weening off of records and more into cd's...They also have a decent collection of old school music and contemporary stuff. Well-organized cd's, but NOT so well-organized vinyl. I say support OG record shops like Canterbury's! Yeah, iTunes is cool and all, but there's nothing like walking into a classic record shop and holding a vintage jazz record in your hands... read more

I have tried to order new vinyl records from this place, to support the small business, and they never come in! Months later I ask about my orders and they always tell me how slow the pressing process is... Well, I guess I'll just keep going to Amoeba where they have what I want in stock. The staff is nice, but not very helpful. They always seemed puzzled that people want to buy new music. read more

Canterbury is a great place to shop for records. They've got a great variety of CDs and, while they usually only have one of each, the selection is immense. The prices are definitely 'right' as well and I often can only find cheaper prices by buying things used. read more

It's where you have to go if you: a. can't remember exactly what you want, b. need them to actually have it, c. need the highest quality recording read more

It's a cozy little independently owned record shop that's cheaper than Amoeba with a great selection of CDs for classic rock, indie-electronica, house, pop, jazz and hip-hop. The owners are very helpful and nice and will offer to place an order for an album they may not have in store. Ask them anything, about any record or artist and they've heard of it! read more

Canterbury Records is a fun place to just go look and be surprised as to what you will find. Our son is really into music and loves to look, so we stop by here on our way back to the hotel. They have a very large selection of new and used, vinyls, cd's, and even some used VHS. The store is very organized and the staff seem to know where everything is, which in itself is amazing to me to take a task of organizing new and used, but they manage to do a great job of it. I do enjoy supporting the mom and pop type stores instead of Best Buy. We found some great oldies but goodies and had fun along the way. read more

Spent some time in the new CD section, had good enough luck, but overall the selection was a bit lacking. If you're genres of choice are metal or hip-hop (which are mine), I'd find another shop. They have some of the bigger names in rap (Nas, PE, etc), and some slightly obscure metal off of the bigger labels (Century Media, etc), but mostly you're looking at rock. Staff was... meh. read more

Canterbury Records - Taken on Record Store Day 2013. - Music & DVDs Near Me - Pasadena, California

Good inventory of straight-ahead (mainstream) back catalog of Rock and Classic Rock artists. Canterbury is the record store to go to if looking for the new Paul Simon release. Although I am sure you could find all of these records at Amoeba Hollywood. Other genres such as R&B Soul, Jazz, International, etc represented too. No luck getting exposed to new and interesting music; experimental, indie-rock, electronica, dance, underground, european imports, and other genres - that I like. (deduct two stars) read more

"Meh. I've experienced better" sums it up perfectly (that's the 2-star caption). My rating here is based entirely on their selection of vinyl LPs, which is remarkably poor when juxtaposed with the wealth of 5 star reviews this place has. The only thing saving this place from 2 stars in my book is that they had the reissue of the Feelies' album Crazy Rhythms. It was sufficiently overpriced ($16.99), as most new records are, here and elsewhere. Seriously, they've got roughly 400 new records in stock, half of which are pretty typical reissues and new releases. Nothing spectacular. Their used record selection was embarrassing. There were maybe 20 or 30 records in the used rock/pop section, amidst a wealth of emptiness in the bins. No dollar bin or anything. Their CD selection could be second-to-none, but since I don't buy CDs, I didn't take the time to find out. For vinyl, Canterbury isn't the place. read more

Great Selection, Great Service. I live nearby, so it's so convenient compared to Amoeba. I went a week ago to see if they had the new PJ Harvey and the new Twilight Singers. To my surprise, they had both CDs plus I ended up adding last year's The Decemberists album and the latest Belle and Sebastian. Came back today to see about a band called The Joy Formidable because Maxim (I know... what do they know about music) they are described as The Yeah Yeah Yeahs meets The Arcade Fire. After asking, they did have it. Also picked up the latest REM. No need to waste gas and time heading to Amoeba. This place has plenty, including a good jazz selection and some DVDs. Prices are actually better than Amoeba as most of these new release CDs are $9.99 to $13.99 New. read more

They have a large selection of everything. I came up here with a friend looking for vinyl. It's organized, but they didn't have quite the selection I was looking for. It was a bit overpriced as well. They did have some unique titles, but I probably would check out other spots first. read more

I brought my friends visiting from Las Vegas to the store. We found a lot of vinyl to buy. Good selection and in great shape for used. It was my first time in & I will be back. read more

Great independent record store, where you can browse music the way you used to BEFORE iTunes! I actually overheard the owner say something surprising: their business is actually *up* in the last year. His theory is that the bigger music retailers are all going under, leaving space in the market for smaller competitors like him. But I digress. What you'll find at Canterbury is a unglamorous but comprehensive and well-organized collection of CDs, vinyl, DVDs, VHS, and even cassette tapes. Classical, jazz, blues, pop, rock, and world music were all well represented. There was also a large opera section (both CD and DVD box sets) that got my attention. Surprisingly, they also have listening stations (unusual for an independent store I would've thought, but useful). A great stop if your browsing your way along the stores on Colorado. They are just a block or so east of Vroman's. read more

I've been going to Canterbury Records on and off since the late 90's and this is my favorite store in the Pasadena area. If you're looking for new Vinyl or CD releases this store normally will price them slightly below the retail price. For example, I purchased N.W.A. Straight Out of Compton (reissue) for 21.99 while Amoeba and other other local stores sell this for 24.99 - 26.99 and I bought an Avett Brothers album for 16.99 that even Amazon had priced higher (around 24.99). They haven't been buying any used records or CD's for some time, but I hope they start buying vinyl again and beef up their used selection. So if you're looking for used records and you're in the Pasadena area I'd drive to Gimme Gimme Records in Highland Park or visit Poo-Bah in the east side of Pasadena also on Colorado Blvd or Mono Records in Echo Park. My only complaints about this store is how they do their Record Store Day. They let everyone in at the same time and it's pretty chaotic. For Record Store Day I'll be going to other stores that let me a few customers at a time...with less pushing and shoving :) read more

Fairly priced records. Vinyl selection pretty limited, but with some interesting non-music items like old western dvds. Last time I was here they didn't have what I was looking for, but offered to order it. Similar experience this time. It's nice to see small record stores like this still in business, but they need to expand their selection. Most of the music was in cd format. They did have a bunch of sweet festival flyers laying around, that make a good bookmark. read more

They have pretty much discontinued selling used vinyl records (except for their picked-through old stock). This is still a good local music store to go to for new stuff. read more

Those 4 stars are rewarded by default. If this place wasn't in my hometown, then it would be down to 2 stars. But those 2 stars are back up to 4 if you're into buying brand new CDs or vinyl. (Mostly CDs though, which is odd because it totally vibes oldies.) I have found a few $7-8 new CDs here, but most of the prices are generally pretty steep. Periodically, I come in and sort through the tiny used CD section. It seems to me there's a lot of crap to wade through. I walk away empty handed about half the time. Again, 4 stars just because I like that it exists and occasionally surprises me, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it. read more

Contrary to a previous review this store is still open. I went to find used vinyl. They hardly had any jazz, but a decent selection of easy listening like Robert Goulet. They had a big selection of classical and a overflowing selection of classical boxed sets. Prices are cheap - most were $2. There new vinyl are cheaper than Barnes and Noble. read more

Have fun spending $27 on used Sleeping Beauty Disney dvds. This place has lost its mind. But it has always been kind of mean, overpriced and poorly organized. We don't go here anymore because just being there makes us mad. read more