Excellent store, friendly and has hidden vinyl treasure galore Jazz HipHop R&B and more read more

Memory Lane Cd's and Records - Music & DVDs Near Me - District Heights, Maryland

If you're a music lover, Memory Lanes on Walter Lane is a must-visit! They have an incredible variety and selection of records at very reasonable prices. Whether you're looking for classics, hidden gems, or something new, they have it all. The customer service here is top-notch--Michael and Marshall are both super knowledgeable and passionate about music. read more

Amazing place! Pricey compared to most sellers on Disc-logs. Owner is a little on the pushy side on trying to get you to buy as many records as possible and that at times made me feel like I was dealing with a car sales man in the Bronx .I still spent a couple hundred dollars but would have actually spent more money is the owner didn't try to get me to buy every thing in the store and none of it's cheap. Amazing selection and I drove all the way down to Maryland / DC to visit this place but wish the owner " Mike" had let me just do my thing and not try to sell me so many records . A little pushy . read more

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Excellent record store with a solid selection to shop from! However what impressed me the most was the staff. Not only were the extremely helpful but it was clear they have a lot of love for the music and their clients. All of which was clear in their interactions with each person who came in the store. I didn't catch all of their names, but Michael was amazing. If he says he will call you when something comes in, he will! read more

Memory Lane Cd's and Records - Music & DVDs Near Me - District Heights, Maryland

I was a customer of Memory Lane for many years in the early 2000s. Having been out of touch with lp purchases for a long while, I decided to streamline my collection and visit this shop to sell some, since I was a previous customer. Although I had a smaller bag of vinyl, the owner chose to check them from my car. He seemed frazzled as I was opening the bag and insisted that he could just look through them. I tried to explain I was just opening the zipped bag for him to view. His interactions were rude, condescending and unfriendly. Out of 60 albums, he told me he would offer 10 dollars for three. I explained one was worth 20 on its own, which he checked and confirmed, raising the offer to 23. He claimed, "he had the other ones." Needless to say it was a wasted trip, no thank you for considering my shop was given, even though he stated he remembered me. I should have considered the other reviews that stated selling with Memory Lane was an unpleasant experience. Last visit here. read more

I thought I knew all the record stores in the DC area until I hit upon Memory Lane at the DC Record Fair in September. I made a mental note to visit the brick-and-mortar shop when I had the chance. A few weeks later, I wandered in, mumbling to someone who introduced himself as Michael about not having anything in particular I was looking for after he asked. Scanned their rock section, which is basically all classic rock, and mostly not my thing. The jazz selection didn't blow my mind. However, Memory Lane had very robust selections of Prince, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, and Sam Cooke. Not exactly rare, yet still commendable. I found Nina Simone at Town Hall on Colpix and Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers' Caravan on Riverside. I concluded the shop was good, but nothing to write home about. Right after I checked out, Michael asked me if there were any more titles I wanted and if so, he'd give me a ring. I said I wanted a copy of Sonny Rollins' Saxophone Colossus and he then showed me a 2012 reissue they had. Shaking my head, I sheepishly told him I was a collector and wanted either an OG or an early repress. His eyes lit up. "Why didn't you tell me you were a collector?" "Because it sounds ridiculous." "But that tells me what you want." He then handed me a box of excellent early reissues of Art Blakey, Miles, Coltrane, Monk, and so many more. As I'm flipping through the stack, Michael says, "I'll take you to the champagne room." "The champagne room? What? Hillarious you call it that." "It's where we keep the stuff we would bring to the record fair. Expensive shit." I followed him into the back of the shop and upon seeing one of the CRAZIEST jazz selections I've ever seen in my life, I literally gasped. OGs in excellent condition of prime Miles (Birth of the Cool, 'Round About Midnight, On the Corner, etc.), Coltrane (A Love Supreme--MORE THAN ONE), Cannonball Adderley (Somethin' Else), Lee Morgan (The Sidewinder), Horace Silver (Song for My Father), Sonny Rollins (The Bridge), and other stellar titles. Champagne room, indeed! Listened to the stereo OG of A Love Supreme, and OGs of On the Corner and In a Silent Way on the shop's crappy record player. Even with a less than ideal setup, they all sounded glorious, so I bought them. Because I spent a bundle, Michael kindly gave me an OG copy of Electric Ladyland (Hendrix is one of a few exceptions when it comes to my general avoidance classic rock) for free! The only complaints I have about the shop are the crammed stacks and it takes a long time to get there by public transit. That said, the neighborhood is fine. Although it's not Georgetown, don't worry, you won't be stabbed. Good grief to whoever called it "sketchy." Memory Lane is a special store staffed by passionate folks who are hell-bent on getting you what you want. It is absolutely worth a trip. Ask to see the champagne room. Sure, there aren't girls or booze, but you're still likely to get a happy ending. ;) read more

Wasn't the worst record store you could ever go to, it was pretty tidy, but the records were pretty rough, especially the 45's. The LPs, CD's and cassettes were pretty dusty. For what they had and what it was worth, very overpriced, please look elsewhere, Ebay or Discogs before you go here, don't get ripped off! Customer service is great but don't let that make you pay more than you have to! read more

A definite gem close to DC and VA. Importantly it has the most RnB, soul, Motown and blues that I've seen in some years outside of Chicago. Jazz too. Some vinyl shops can be uninviting--not Memory Lane. The owners/staff are highly motivated, super dedicated, and helpful. Not only welcoming they help you find what you are looking for. With no judgment. Lol! read more

An excellent music shop with a vast collection of records and a knowledgeable owner. They have an extensive offering at varying levels of price/quality. Michael helpfully explained that the lowest price items are out on the floor, a slightly higher quality bin is behind the desk, and the cream of the crop is in the back room. These prices are actually pretty good -- I challenge anyone to compare these prices to what you'd pay on eBay or Discogs. Plus here you can see/hear the record rather than taking a shot in the dark online. Some of his records in the back room go for considerably more on eBay as people go nuts bidding -- they are priced to sell here. Michael is the man. Very attentive but not pushy -- and happy to work with your budget to fit your needs. He was able to discern my taste pretty quickly and continually brought to my attention some recent acquisitions that would interest me while I browsed (they all did, hard to leave some of them behind). He was able to quickly locate anything I asked for and knew about the quality of each item I considered. When it came time to check out, he made the already fair price more agreeable (every hundred bucks you spent you get 10 off, and I was close enough to the next hundred that he cut me a deal). I've seen some reviews here that have remarked negatively on the quality of the vinyl, and I disagree: the sleeves I looked at ranged from a strong G+ to VG+, and all of the records I actually examined were VG at a minimum. Sure there are a few ratty ones thrown in there, but generally the vinyl is strong and that's what matters most. These are used records, and many of them are original pressings or early repressings. They are in good shape, considering many date from the 50s and 60s, and they are all kept in outer plastic sleeves. I generally looked at one genre but imagine much of the store is the same. If you want a store that has only the shrink-wrapped 180g modern represses of the classics you can buy on Amazon for 19.99, this probably isn't the spot for you, though he has some of those, too. The comments about the bins being tightly packed are true -- but when you've got this many, they have to go somewhere. He had a chair ready for me so I could sit, and the fact that they were all very accurately alphabetized made up for that. I will be back to buy more! Thanks to Michael for knocking an album or two off my dream list. read more

Michael was DOPE AF! You can tell he has love for his shop, his clients, and a love for the great musical arts. Rolled in late during the day before Thankstaking. He had all the records I wanted+. Felt super taken care of and had fun digging with my partner. read more

Memory Lane Cd's and Records - Music & DVDs Near Me - District Heights, Maryland

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I checked out Memory Lane for the first time. Let me start off my review by saying I give 5 stars for the the customer service. Both guys who own the shop are extremely welcoming, helpful, courteous, and genuine. I gave 3 stars overall due to the inventory and content of the shop. It is generally organized well. The biggest issue I had was the bins being soooo overly crammed that in order to do any flipping you must remove a generous stack. Then, it's a challenge squeezing them back in. The biggest section of the shop appeared to be soul, r&b, and hip hop. I was very excited to thumb through that section only to come across numerous records with either jackets in poor condition, warped records, and overly priced 12" singles. It was waaaaay more quantity overly quality. This shop is definitely a great spot for crate and box diggers to spend hours. I was there for over 2 hours and out my small pile I kept one. Mainly due to warped records with premium prices. I really hoped for more. I also was invited to scope out the back room for more collectible and rare vinyl. I did see several nice pieces, a bit of the hip hop I already have and I wasn't looking for much bop era jazz. I asked about where the punk/hardcore stash was, but couldn't find much of anything besides a Dead Kennedys LP. There's a rock section, but it's mostly run-of-the-mill stuff. The cassettes were very overpriced. I'm not really down with $8-$9 for tapes that should be somewhere in the $2-$5 range. Although small in actual size, Memory packs thousands and thousands of records. Mostly made up of used, it's worth a look if you have patience and time. read more

This was the most bizarre record store and experience I've ever had. I have been collecting records for about 13-14 years now and have been to some amazing stores. Every time I am in a new city i try and support local record stores. Today I decided to check this one out since it got a lot of great reviews. This record store has an AMAZING collection of rock, jazz, r&b ect. Here's the problem. The owners were very pushy and I felt semi harassed. This store is also in a very sketchy area. It saddens me that these guys have thousands and thousands of great records but they are cramming them in really tight in the bins which will cause damage to them and warp them unplayable. At times the owners were condensing, rude and did not listen to anything I had to say. Most record collectors want to surf through the bins not be harassed. read more

I've spent years looking for the original composer of a record my dad (deceased) used to play around the house. Today I drove past this place and took down the number. I called when I got home, played the song over the phone, and he had the answer in less than 2 minutes. Beat that Shazam (which couldn't identify the record). Moments to Remember by Jannell Hawkins. And they have it in stock. Thank you so much. It was driving me crazy. I see why my dad used to shop here all the time for the righteous oldies. read more

Will never sell here again. The person who sold my vinyls was very rude in how he interacted with me. I also took off 50% of the sales price online, but he offered me about less than half of that 50% price. When I tried to negotiate for $5 more dollars, he walked away. Who walks away from a conversation? I sold the few vinyls to him given the effort it took me to get to the store. But, I will sell to other buyers in the area that buys vinyls along with online selling before I return to this place. read more

Memory Lane has a really great collection of soul, funk, r&b, hip hop, spoken word, old school, new school, jazz, 45's, and anything else you can find. Employees are very kind, knowledgeable, and eager to help you and make great conversation to know more about the kind of music you like and what got you into records before providing a tour of the store. The space is limited so the records are a little hard to look through because they have a huge amount, but if you name any song or album the employees will find it for you with ease. They can be a bit pricey because most of their 12' start at $10, but their collection definitely makes up for it. I found some records I had a hard time finding anywhere else and was elated to know that they had what I wanted. I highly recommend this place to anyone and will definitely be returning! read more

I absolutely love this place. I love music and I love records tapes an even cds. They have everything. The prices can be a little high but if you are a collector theirs is the place. read more

This place is a great spot for vinyl. It's in PG County in a sort of rundown shopping center, but once inside it's a heaven for vinyl collectors. The two guys that work there are extremely helpful and knowledgeable and once you tell them what you are looking for they will help you find it immediately. The prices can be comparatively pricey (mostly $25 for the jazz records I bought) but when you have such a great selection, it seems warranted since for about 90% of the jazz selection you'd be hard pressed to find any of it at the other DMV shops - it simply puts the other shops to shame. It can be a little overwhelming at first since the selection is so large, but if you've got time to kill it's a blast. Definitely worth a visit and you could come here a dozen times and still not scratch the surface of how many great records they have, even though it's a relatively small place. read more

I googled local vinyl stores in the DMV and found a buried treasure. This place is a gold mind. Amazing customer service, extensive collection and very organized. I could spend forever in this store. No need to visit anywhere else read more

Anyone in the general area who is looking for CDs, cassettes, and definitely vinyls should check out Memory Lane! While I have been in many music stores before especially used music stores, this was my first experience looking for vinyls, and the two gentlemen that run this establishment have set the bar very high for any one that I may find myself in from now on. When I walked in and was greeted by a life-size cardboard cutout of Chuck Brown, and Al Green pleading "Let's Stay Together", I knew I was in for a good experience. After the gentlemen greeted me, one of them continued helping another customer while the other asked me if I needed assistance. I explained that I was starting a vinyl collection, and wanted a couple albums to start me off. He explained where everything was and how it was organized, and let me set off on my own journey answering only when I had a question. All I had to do was name an artist and a lyric from the song if I couldn't remember the name, and either one of them could name the original album it was on, as well as a "greatest hit" album and whether or not they had either as a CD or cassette! They had so much passion and knew their inventory so well it was like being in someone's house, and checking out their private collection while talking about the music. Even though they offer shipping and their shop is out of the way for me, I'd go back on a weekend where my time is my own, and just make a day trip out of it just for that experience. read more

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Extensive collection; you could spend a day going through the gems. The staff is AWESOME. It's worth making the drive from DC.

I discovered this place on Yelp when I was in the neighborhood and boy am I glad I did! I had sworn I would not buy any more CDs until I had finished listening to all the ones I already own but once I walked in the door and saw the extensive jazz CD collection I knew I was a goner. Found some rare and out-of-print CDs that had been on my radar for awhile. Marshall is a great guy and very helpful. It ain't cheap but it is worth it. Here's wishing 20 more years of business for Memory Lane! read more

This is a gem of a store. Don't go expecting a ton of bargains- as someone who likes to rummage around in inexpensive used bins that was a bit of a letdown, but that's just not what this store is and I'm not going to complain that an apple isn't an orange. What it is is chocked full of great music with really wonderful people working there. Go with plenty of time to dig through because it can be almost overwhelming. read more

This CD has lots of songs and music from the 50s et c I am over 70 and don't remember all of them so remember the age of the person you buy it for Only complaint the package is flimsy all 10 cds are in cardboard sleeves not proper cases.which for the money paid makes them look cheap like newspaper promos read more

I started collecting this year and this is the first record store I've ever been to. Great selection of music! Every time I go they are super nice and helpful! I plan on going back to dig for my birthday! read more

Phenomenal selection of reasonably high-quality vinyl. Prices are at the higher end, many far above that available online for similar or higher-quality. However, if you are in need of harder to find titles in R&B, hip-hop, Motown, jazz or funk that you want to carry home with you, then this could be a treasure trove. read more

Great selection of old school and new school records/CDs! The customer service is impeccable and they gave me a tour of the store! They literally had everything I was looking for and the store was super organized! It's a little pricey but worth every single penny! read more

Memory Lane Cd's and Records - A portion of the great organized layout! - Music & DVDs Near Me - District Heights, Maryland

Excellent selection of used records (especially jazz and hip hop). The two gentlemen running the shop are extremely helpful and knowledgeable. Good music plays in the background while you'll spend HOURS sifting through their bins. Reasonable prices on just about everything. The owners will even go so far to show you what each record sells for compared to how much they sell it for. Really appreciated the love rather than the condescending hipster attitude I get from most places around DC. I will definitely be frequenting this place from now on. read more

I have been going there, since shortly after they opened, in 2001. They have an extensive collection of oldies, and knowledge staff. Hopefully, they will be in business, for many more years, to come. read more

This spot has SERIOUS joints! True record collectors will appreciate their inventory. I will be back the next time I'm in DC.

Excellent selection of hiphop and motown. Great service.

The absolute best in Md.I'm an old time record dude and Mike&Marshall know their stuff,be it oldies or today's sounds and they make you feel at home and the prices can't be beat..maybe the biggest collection of[45's]in Md. and a great collection of Jazz too. read more

I've been a record collector for decades and search for extremely rare LPs and 45s. I recently found a holy grail copy of the famous Beatles Butcher Stereo in immaculate shape and still in the shrink wrap for a very reasonable price there. I've been looking for this record in great shape for years and had requested that the gentleman working there to call me if they ever got one. True to their promise, they called me and I went there to buy it. They are very good at taking requests and following through. I collect old rock and R&B records and Memory Lane CDs and records has found me beautiful copies of such rarities as the Rolling Stones first U.S. LP with the poster, Meet the Supremes' stool cover, James Brown's first three albums on King label, the Miracles' Cookin' album, Esquita's original 1959 album and Dale Hawkins' original Oh Susie Q rockabilly LP. I have friends who collect Jazz and Funk records who have found many very rare titles at Memory Lane. Their staff is very friendly and knowledgeable about all types of music. I highly recommend them if you're looking for records or CDs. read more

Man, I use to dig for oldies & goodies here from 2006-2010. Such good times here finding classics & being schooled by the record store owner. Of course the records are expensive, but these guys have spent close to 20 years building their record library so make sure you spend your money wisely & don't blow all in one day. Good thing is they carry multiple copies of each album. I use to be a DJ/music producer & this place was a source of inspiration. And it's right next to a pretty good sea food restaurant. read more

If you're looking for any vinyls this is the place you need to be. Mike & Marshall were very helpful with explaining where to find the different genres. They're extremely knowledgeable with the music. If there is anything in particular you're looking for & they don't have it they'll try & find it & get it ship to the store. This was my first time 'crate digging' & I couldn't have had a better experience. I'll definitely be back!! read more

GREAT old school records! One of last and certainly the best in DC. If you're a crate digger or vinyl aficionado, stop by for an awesome selection of collectible and hard to find music. The owner knows his stuff! read more