Saturday’s sixth annual WHFR-FM Record Show, held at the Henry Ford Community College Student Center, offered CDs, music DVDs, and upwards of 50,000 vinyl records for purchase.
The marketplace, which remained open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., was a small expo of music memorabilia, rare media, and heavy “crate-digging.” Music connoisseurs picked through boxes filled with horizontally stacked vinyl records for an admission of five dollars.
Many of the booths were vast, unorganized collections belonging to a personal collector looking to free his or her garage space; however, other booths were rigidly categorized by condition, genre, or rareness — some owned by local record stores.
Michigan vendors dominated the event; however, many had traveled as far as Chicago to secure a booth.
Rob Paluszewski, a Detroit-area resident who repairs and collects jukeboxes, manned his impressive setup of 2,700 45″ singles located in the center aisle of the show. He explained that his offering was only a small fraction of his collection.
“I do seven shows a year,” Paluszewski said. “I do a Chicago show, Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids, two in Ann Arbor, one in Plymouth, and this one. It’s easy for me. The whole setup takes about ten minutes to get in and out of the building.”
A potential customer stopped and asked what genre was most available. “Detroit soul,” Paluszewski said. “You’ll find a ton of Motown… tons of Tamla.”
The event was sponsored by Henry Ford Community College’s WHFR 89.3 FM, which has been lo-fi capable since 1985. The station is equipped with two vinyl “wells” that allow employees to easily play vinyl records on-air.
Michael Dereniewski, the Record Show coordinator, created it after being inspired by an event hosted by a non-commercial station in New York. After a low turn-out the first year, Dereniewski and WHFR moved the event from the summer to the fall season. The attendance and quality of the marketplace continues to rise each year.
Tune in to 89.3 FM on October 31 to participate in the WHFR Trick or Treat Grab Bag giveaway. Listeners who call in on Halloween and say, “trick or treat” will receive a complementary grab bag filled with music-related swag. Listeners may also e-mail the message. One grab bag per person.
WHFR 89.3 FM Phone: (313) 845-9676
WHFR 89.3 FM E-mail: whfr-pc@hfcc.edu