Spoonful Records — Local services in Columbus

Yesterday 10-12-2022], I briefly visited Spoonful Records at 144 E. State St. in downtown Columbus.

That morning, I had attended a 10:00 a.m. press conference at the Ohio Statehouse and then had eaten lunch. After lunch, I had been walking towards the COTA stop that is within view of the YWCA [at 65 S. Fourth St.] with plans to wait for 25 minutes or so for my COTA bus home.

While passing 144 E. State St., I noticed an "easel sign" on the sidewalk with the message "Record Store Open" so I decided to stop in for a brief visit.

I actually no longer use "records" [or "LP records" myself because I first switched [25 or so years ago] to exclusively using CDs; I later completely stopped listening to recorded music.

But I still enjoy visiting "record stores" [or whatever they are called these days] because of a shared culture with which I enjoy connecting at times.

It turns out that I had already known one of the co-owners of Spoonful Records from when he had been a student at Columbus College of Art and Design while I had been working for the former Long's Commercial Art Supply in the basement of the former Long's Book Store at 1836 N. High St.

His face had been familiar to me so I had initially guessed that perhaps he had managed an OSU-campus-area record store while I had worked at Long's but it turns out that actually he had bought art supplies from me in the basement of Long's during the middle 1990s.

He invited me to "go behind the counter" for a moment so that I would be able to photograph a section of the store that is uniquely visible from behind that counter. That photograph is the only photograph that I had taken yesterday that includes a turntable at the bottom of the image.

I particularly enjoyed their "saxophone" lamp that is near their north wall that appears in three of the photographs of Spoonful Records that I have posted to Google Maps and is featured in two of those photographs.

If you are in downtown Columbus and are looking for some high-quality "vinyl" [previously known as "records" or "LP records"] I recommend...

I drove through Columbus a couple of weeks ago on my way back home from a long road trip out east. I only had time to visit one record store there (it was late afternoon on a Sunday), so I chose Spoonful Records based on their reviews on here. I have to say that the reviews were spot-on, as it is a nice record store with an excellent selection of both used and new vinyl. Everything is well-organized, which makes flipping easy and fun, and the owners are friendly and knowledgeable. Both made an effort to greet me and talk about my selections a little, even though they were busy. I always appreciate that, as the main appeal of a record store other than the music is the interaction one has with owners and/or staff. I could tell by their conversations with others in the store, that they know their regular customers well and appreciate them (and in return are appreciated by them) I don't come through Columbus often, but from now on when I do, I will stop in Spoonful. I highly recommend this awesome...

I can't say enough about this place, the records, and the owners/staff. I am so grateful we have this in Columbus. This is a top record store and I have know many record stores. Yesterday I just found out Toni Basil's first album (yes, the one with Mickey) had 3 covers of Devo songs who also played back up on said songs (I had no idea! Apparently she was dating a Devo band member at the time). This is a fairly obscure album; it's not on any of the streaming services. Today, I went in with the intention of ordering it--I use Spoonful exclusively for my orders, they have been very helpful in tracking down all of my alt 80s LP wants. The album was just sitting in the stacks. Win! I have had much luck with wins like this. The deep, wide, well-versed, and eclectic tastes of the owners shines in the stacks. It just is a wonderful store with super knowledgeable folks who are incredibly helpful. We are really lucky to have them here in our...