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Jay's Record Ranch

A

atombaum

Guest
Does anyone from the Rochester area remember Jay's Record Ranch? It was in the small plaza behind the Gaseteria (also long gone) on West Henrietta Road. Today, a store you may know in that same plaza (for reference only) is The Speaker Place (I re-foamed my Advent 1 loudspeakers there a few years ago).

I was at Jay's only once that I can remember - circa 1968 (when I was about eight years old), and would like to hear what others may remember about it. It's just a dim memory for me. Was the owner well-known in the radio world? Did they specialize in any specific genre? Can you reference photos of the interior or exterior? Could it have been owned by the same Jay of Jay's Diner fame? The diner was about a mile from the record store.

By the way, the purpose of my trek to Jay's Record Ranch that day in 1968 was to get the 45 of Hey Jude (my first-ever record). ;D
 
I was a frequent-flyer at Jay's Record Ranch, but not at the Gaseteria location. The original Jay's was a little hole-in-the-wall on North Clinton Avenue, just north of E. Main Street downtown. It was a tiny, narrow store on the west side of the street opposite Sibley's. The sign displayed the store name in western motif, with cactus and "Jay's" painted in a style like a lasso rope.

They had the wooden browsers with a separate bin for each 45 rpm title corresponding to the top 20 or 25 hit singles' chart positions in Billboard. They also stocked the top hits on the Country charts. Jay's sold 45s only - no LPs.
 
I remember the downtown Jay's...seemed like they were one of WBBF's most frequent advertisers, especially in afternoon drive and nights, back in the 60s.
 
seemed like they were one of WBBF's most frequent advertisers
Click to expand...

Well now...there's food for thought!!! And a concept that won't require TOO much discussion here!! ;)
 
I wish I were around for a store like that...

...but I was around for a very similar store in Linden, New Jersey, a little place about the size of my kitchen called "Record Wagon." My friend and I would get there about once or twice a month.

The top n singles on the Billboard Country Chart were arranged in numeric order. Other singles were by artist. Country was the only format sold.

There were a few LPs for sale so the alignment to Jay's stops there.

What I always found amusing about the Billboard Country Chart, which was usually prominently posted near the entrance to the shop, was how a single could be #1 one week and completely out of the Top 40 the next! One week both the previous #1 and the #2 singles had fallen out of the Top 40, to #41 and #42 respectively. This was during the early part of the 1980's since I was driving then-- it was definitely too far to walk to Record Wagon from where I lived.
 
We'll never see a singles store like Jay's again...when people do buy single cuts they're buying 'em as mp3 downloads for their iPods at 99 cents a pop--which come to think of it, was the usual list price of a 45 back in the 60s, though they usually sold 'em at 88 cents or less in most stores.
 
Funny - I don't remember the downtown Jay's location. My grandfather's store (Champion's Sporting Goods) was a couple of blocks over on North Street (after moving from St. Paul), so I was semi-familiar with that area through the late 1970s. Was hoping to find someone with photos (of either Jay's location). Guess I have to settle for the mental (albeit foggy) photos. I still have the Hey Jude 45! (B-side was Revolution - oh how the parents hated that little ditty).
 
17 North Clinton Avenue was the address. Was at that address at least from 1967 thru 1972, and more on each side of those dates likely. I forget Jay's last name, and Jay may not have been his first name. Jay was tall, thin, mustached, and reddish-blond-gray hair drooping down each side of his head. Definitely a hippie before hippiedom. Pretty mild-mannered guy, as seen by the customers.
 
Many of tou probably don't remember Jay's Record Ranch's first location was on Genesee St. near Campi's first location. I believe the time 57 or 58. Jay's assistant manager was a short blond guy. I think his name may have been Jerry. My best to you all from out here in SoCal. Long live George Lorenz's memory. The Hound ill live forever. Some of his shows are available on Ebay. Gene Highmoor
 
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