The size of Amoeba overwhelmed me, but positively. This place was easily way bigger than my local…read morerecord shop, let alone any record shop I've been to in the past. Amoeba offers a VAST collection of vinyls, DVDs, CDs, stickers, and magnets. My partner and I collect vinyls, and we didn't leave disappointed.

I still remember when this location was Park Bowl, but that was (gasp) over thirty years ago when…read morebowling was still a popular social activity. I myself was on a bowling team named the Orient Express, and I wish I still had my red team shirt with the dragon on the back. But I digress as this has been an independent record store since 1997, an offshoot of the Berkeley store on Telegraph. Digital downloads be damned, this shop is focused on physical media...CDs, DVDs, cassette tapes, Blu-rays, and of course, vinyl. Even before picking up spares at Park Bowl, I recall that moment in my youth when I made the monumental decision to switch my record purchases from vinyl to CDs. Nowadays, vinyl is making a comeback among a younger generation looking for a higher quality, more realistic sound quality. I saw these Gen Z audiophiles flipping through the long LP bins in search of the elusive underground classic their stereophonic friends could appreciate and envy. Personally I could find nuggets of my own. Albums like The Very Best of Spike Jones (Photo 10) and The Complete 2,000 Year Old Man (Photo 5) resonated with me. I was happy to see individual LPs consolidated into boxed sets like the Linda Ronstadt retrospective. Beyond the music is the expansive DVD collection of movie titles both classic and obscure. There's also books and collectible merchandise like pop-culture lunch boxes and celebrity prayer candles. I'm not sure I need a candle that deifies Aubrey Plaza, but it's good to know where I can get one. RELATED - Exploring the Haight? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://yelp.to/Mq6DbbrGGJ

One of the neatest bookstores in the US. The Poetry room upstairs is wonderful. So much fun…read morehistory here to learn about. And this bookstores has some amazing staff book recommendations with little tags on the bookshelf telling you why they loved that book so much; found some great new finds that way. Dont forget to get your books stamped with their bookstores stamp on the way out!

An amazing bookstore and so glad I asked chatGPT to give me some ideas for a stroll around SF near…read moreUnion Square. Well, ok, this place isnt close to Union Sq, about a mile away, but it was a perfect delicious end destination for a post dinner stroll! I like bookstores and I like eclectic, unique ones. I'll go to Barnes & Noble if I had no other choice, but my favorite bookstores are independent ones and ones where they carry very unique books you can't find elsewhere. This bookstore made my inner little nerdy self so happy. I immediately got lost up front looking at very recent publication by Ai Weiwei. I then wandered onto the main floor and found an entire section of Asian works, which you will not find at B&N. I also found books from Norwegian writers too which I had never seen before, which thrilled me. I then made my way up to their attic floor which is dedicated to poetry and seems I just missed Allen Ginsberg's Howl centennial celebration. Ugh! I then came back down and then proceeded to their basement section and again I was quite pleasantly surprised by the depth and breadth of Asian themed books they had. They had plenty of the Chinese classics in English and found so many different versions of Journey to the West, I was completely overwhelmed. And then, saw an entire section on Africa and I had to fight hard to not pick up a copy of a book titled Prison Letters, which is a collection of Mandela's letters while imprisoned. I ultimately settled on two books by Ai Weiwei as he has continued to inspire me to be proud, to not conform, to be brave, to speak up, to be authentically and unapologetically me, to honor my ancestry and to push boundaries and to fight for what matters. And it just so happens too that my Chinese give name is also Weiwei. I loved coming to this bookstore and it will definitely be on rotation for me when I am in SF again.

What a cool spot to stumble upon before checking out a film at 4 Star Movie Theater. An absolute…read morestellar collection of vinyl records, but beyond that - I found the book sections mesmerizing. Super cool books, novels, short stories, and coffee table selections spanning from autobiographies, obscure poets, and beyond. There is also a cool selection of local art, small unique boutique style gifts, and clothing. I loved feeling like I stumbled into a spot that is deeply connected to a local scene, as I overheard many conflabs between local artists as I perused. I would definitely recommend scheduling some extra time to shop here during any visit to the Richmond area.

I am a big music lover and I often go to a coffee shop right in front of this record store. I…read morelooked at the reviews, a lot of great reviews so I thought it was going to be a good place. It is, it does have a lot of items I was genuinely looking for. However, my mistake was not reading the reviews throughly and seeing that those reviews are for a different store because the owner or whoever that was working that day was extremely unpleasant to communicate with because he was a little condescending like I don't know what I'm talking about even though I just had a simple questions.

I went to Out of Sight (not the pizza place)at North Beach in San Francisco. Out of Sight records…read moreis a store which sells vintage clothes, records, and home decor located in North Beach in an alley which is out of sight from the bars, and restaurants which makes it a hidden gem. I stumbled here and went down the stairs and I felt I transported in a time machine to the past. A record store selling vinyl records sighting in San Francisco is a rarity like meeting a San Francisco born native still living in San Francisco. There were some interesting items here for sale . Lots of vintage items inside and it seems like a movie and television props storage space . It's a good place to explore classics from the twentieth century. Out of Sight records is a blast from past when things were built to last. Although record shops in San Francisco decreased and are at a low percentage Go to Out of Sight Records if you want to shop and go vintage

This is a nice little record and used clothing shop in an alley in North Beach. The owner is a nice…read moreguy and prices seem reasonable. I haven't actually purchased anything there but plan to keep it in my rotation (no pun intended).

We visited Amoeba Music yesterday, and the staff there were so welcoming to our doggie Meatball…read more They even gave him some treats. So nice! :) I bookmarked this spot to visit since it was my boyfriend's 1st visit in Berkeley, and I thought this was a cool store to check out. We did have to check in his backpack at the entrance of the store, which is no issue. They have lots of selection of music, and my bf found a vinyl that he has been looking for a long time - The Big Lebowski one. He was so happy! This is definitely a good spot to check out if you're into music and especially if you want to get vinyls and cds. They also have some cool lunch boxes and posters as well plus other interesting items. Parking in Berkeley can be tough though. We drive around for about 18 minutes before we finally found a spot to park.

Showed up in our 2nd stop around the Berkeley downtown/campus area to browse for music. Got some…read morenew trendy vinyl (36) not the best price but trends do drive prices so ehhh it is what it is. Vintage things can be quite cheap depending on format and popularity. Picked up Damian Marley's stony hill (7) for a cd that's a good price, will be more rare through the years. Also picked up Nelson Ned for the same price but in vinyl. Now ask people about famous Brazilian singers in Spanish he's top of that list, good price for refined ears. 5/5 great store

I can't say enough good things about Originals Vinyl. Matthew went so far above and beyond to…read moredeliver one of the best customer service experiences I've had anywhere, not just at a record store. I came in to have several records professionally cleaned, and Matthew was incredibly communicative, friendly, knowledgeable, and generous with his time. He gave me a ton of helpful information and education on how to set up my sound system for the best possible quality, and he even personally tested all of the records I brought in after cleaning them. That level of care is rare. He also kept the store open just for me since I was coming from out of town, which says everything about how much he cares about his customers and the vinyl community. The shop itself is clean, well-organized, in a cool location, and has a great inventory with plenty of unique and hard-to-find records. They also offer professional vinyl cleaning, which I've had a surprisingly hard time finding anywhere else in the Bay Area. There is no better person or shop to support if you're a vinyl collector and care about stellar customer service. I can't wait to go back, and I'll absolutely go out of my way to support this amazing shop and Matthew.

If only you could learn about Originals Vinyl as I did you, you'd understand the 5-star rating…read more The best way to experience Originals Vinyl is to happen upon it by chance, when you're out walking the neighborhoods. Wander inside, enchanted by the sounds emanating from the spinning discs. Rifle through the modest bins of records, each labeled, organized, perhaps even curated. Stop to inquire about the big machines you see behind the counter. Learn that this is where you can bring your LPs for whatever the world has decided is the best way to clean them. Wish that you could just hang out on a sofa here, drinking in the sounds. But this is not a place to linger unless you're looking though the bins. It's intimate and the vibe is whatever the owner or staff is spinning at that moment. On this visit, it was a pure delight.

Village Music is legend in Mill Valley. Open weekends only (or by appointment) this Mill Valley…read morerecord store was so legendary back in early iterations that Elvis Costello played here along with Jerry Garcia, Sammy Hagar and Annie Sampson. The shop features vintage vinyl, vintage concert and movie posters and original autographs of everyone from Elvis Presley to jazz greats. This is a completely different popup location to the original store. The original shop closed in the early 2000s, but the original owner of Village Music, John Goddard, is back at it, manning this small pop-up down the alley from Kitchen Sunnyside in Mill Valley. Open weekends only or by appointment only when the owner is away, the shop is dusty, with very narrow, tall aisles packed full of a remarkable collection of vintage vinyl from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and beyond.