Planet Records

Planet Records should be on every local record collector’s weekly go-​to list. They have a great selection of LPs and CDs, new and used, often for bargain prices. The staff is extremely knowledgeable and will help you find whatever you are looking for quickly. They only take records in top shape so you know that you’re getting a quality product. I have been coming here for years now and am still always excited to see what’s new. There are several record stores in the Harvard area but Planet really stands out.

Great spot for records

It’s hard to gripe about selection when they’re not necessarily responsible for what comes in. So, working with what comes in and knowing what’s interesting and in decent enough shape to sell, this place does a great job. I’ve shopped many used records stores and find they’re often dirty, dusty and totally disorganized. Planet Records is clean, well organized and they have quality stock. If you’re there to sell, don’t expect retail — and why would you — these guys need to make money off of what they buy. They also spend time going through each LP in very diligent fashion. They know their stuff and pay a fair price after all the work of going through your stuff.
This is a great little store that has survived the growth of Itunes, Amazon and even Starbucks (gag) selling music. Good music often needs to be discovered and sought after. Planet Records represents the way music should be sold. Do yourself a favor, take an hour, listen to some cool music and browse the store.

I call this place Purple Records because they gave me a purple bag on my first visit. Apparently their name is Planet Records, but I’m still going to stick with Purple.
Anyway, they have the best cheap used DVD selection I’ve ever encountered in the area. It’s vast and high quality for the small space, making it a cinephile paradise in Harvard Square. You’ll find blockbusters, Criterion films, television shows, and box sets. For example, the last time I was here I bought a few Humphrey Bogart DVDs for $ 5 each and David Lean’s Brief Encounter for $ 10 (for context, it was $ 15 used at the Newbury Comics down the street).
Thanks for existing, Purple!

I’m quick to judge sometimes, but I think a store needs to put customer service first. There’s just too much choice these days including Amazon and eBay. If a store is friendly, helpful and welcoming, I shop there before I would go online. That is not the case here, unfortunately. I went in late on a Saturday afternoon hoping to find a birthday gift for a vinyl collector. I didn’t get much greeting walking in and no one offered to help me. They were playing horrible dissonant music that was like torture (and I’m open to different kinds of music). The record bins are so high and packed that I had to go up on my tip toes to see the ones in the back and I’m 5’8. The only other customer was clearly a friend of theirs they were chatting with and when they started to whisper to each other and continue to ignore me, I decided to leave. I guess since I’m clearly over 35 and don’t dress like a hipster I did not look like a worthwhile customer to them. I think they need to realize that the kids that actually grew up with records are now older and starting to collect vinyl again. I guess I’ll look for other stores that are more friendly or keep buying on eBay! The one star is because the records they did have seemed to be in good condition and prices reasonable. I may have purchased something if they weren’t so rude.

This is an amazing little place, incredibly well organized, with friendly knowledgeable proprietors, and with lots of great stuff– vinyl records, cds, dvds, etc.– huge selection. The pack so much into a relatively small space, but it is all easily viewed and accessible, which makes it lots of fun to explore. Get thee to a real record store– this is the one!

(LP/​VINYL REVIEW ONLY) Nice selection, seemed to be curated to only stuff in really good condition, which I appreciate. Something for everyone, and a really friendly staff who were really into the stuff I picked out.
Highlight scores: I bought a really sweet original press of the Descendents FAT EP and a really cool Japanese Garage Psych comp. Will be returning.

The new location is AWESOME. A lot more space and feels like it’s organized a bit better (although it was organized pretty well before). The staff is always really friendly to me. Every time I go here I manage to score something really awesome (last time it was a record from DAF, and previously an early Human League record that I had yet to find). Sometimes it feels a bit overpriced but I really don’t mind since I like to support their business. Good place to go for retail therapy. It’s only a short walk from Harvard Square now.

Planet is a great record store. I’d give it a 4.5 if I could do halves, as my qualms are pretty insignificant. I wish it were bigger so they could fill more space with more delightful goodies. I’ve gotten some real good deals in this little brightly lit basement, and it’s always a fun romp to flip through the little plastic CD insert holders for hours on end.
They are well organized, relevant (and also irrelevant, when appropriate/​ironic!), and have a wide variety of genres for such a tiny place. I have to give them a hand for their more-​than-​just-​suitable electronica section. Bigger places have far less selection! Planet packs tons of records into the corner of the store and there’s a lot of rare and odd and desirable ones in there (original Bowies? Yay! 2000s-​era New Order? Rad). I wish they had 7“s, but hey, when space is an issue, why have hamburger when you can have steak? What they do, they do very well.
I love you Planet, please stay forever and continue to provide me and the good Cantabridgian people with ear candy.

Planet Records is my favorite used record store because:
1. It is very well lit
2. Each genre of music is clearly defined
3. They have a very organized inventory. The staff are really great at keeping everything in its proper place
4. The staff KNOW their stuff. You can ask them about pretty much anything and they can find it or give you info on how to find a song or album
5 Prices are terrific. When I have shopped around, I find that Planet has the best prices and sell album’s and CD’s that are in good shape

The only thing that keeps me out of this store is a lack of a beer tap.
Planet Records can claim its stake in my referendum of records stores to be the only one that had an original Modern Lovers vinyl in stock and on the shelf. I have long lusted after this piece of wax, and although it was originally intended as a gift for someone, I am now left claiming it as my own.
The staff, particularly the stalwart with glasses and cheery personality, are genuine and helpful. They have a general knowledge of what it is in stock and what they will likely be getting int he future.
Hard finds can be had but prices vary. Records can range from a few dollars to nearly $ 25. This is for the general merchandise. There are selections that may be well over this cap.
It’s refreshing to see this local shop has lasted through the years, and with the recent resurgence in vinyl, it looks like it will become a staple of Harvard Square for years to come.

I agree with everyone — we used to have record stores in every town, but no longer. It’s great to be able to walk in here, actually speak with a person about what’s playing or your selection. Long live the independent ‘record’ store!

It’s great to see that Planet has managed to hang on in Harvard Square, bucking two trends at once — record stores closing, and rents in Harvard becoming unaffordable for small businesses.
Their Kenmore Square store burned down at least 10 years ago (a guitar that didn’t quite survive the blaze is on display at this location). That store was full of amazing, hard-​to-​find records across many genres, some of which I’ve never spotted again (even in used record meccas like Amoeba). The Harvard store has yielded some great finds as well — several years ago I found nearly every early Suede 12″ single here in mint condition… these were import-​only releases that didn’t sell in huge quantities. To find more than one, at a reasonable price, really is a needle in a haystack.
While I give the owners all the credit in the word for keeping this place going, it seems that the stock hasn’t turned over much in recent years, and when they do get new vinyl in, it’s just more Blue Oyster Cult LP’s. The records are generally in good shape — but they either have a LOT of the same titles in stock, or the records aren’t moving very quickly.
Their bargain LP’s are worth flipping through, but they’re on a shelf low to the ground, so anyone who’s not a full-​time MLB catcher will get very sore after looking through them for only a couple of minutes.
Since I don’t own a record store, I’m not sure if the problem is lack of motivation in getting new titles in, or a lack of availability of things worth selling. While I’m sure there’s a market for 70’s classic rock titles, it’s been said before that most of these titles can be had at thrift stores for 50 cents apiece.

4.5 stars
This record store was one of the better ones I’ve been too, I just wish their selection had been bigger. I was super stoked to find the woody guthrie record I found, but their blues section could have been more filled out. Some of the records are pricey, but worth it because they’re always in great condition. And they have a GREAT selection of $ 1 records (also in pretty good condition) which balanced out the more expensive purchases.
I will come back again and again

I’ve been on the hunt for a recording of Heifetz playing Paganini’s Caprice No. 24 for about 12 years —
and even though PR didn’t carry it, one of the employees helped me track it down.
They have a good used DVD section and they sell DVD cases!
I know it’s no cure for cancer, but my OCD is quite specific — it only applies to good movies that come in crap cases.
Way to save the day, Planet Records.
Email:

When I’m on the trail of an old LP, Planet Records is on my short list of places to check.
The staff here is really friendly and helpful, in my experience. After the Pet Shop Boys show, I hit up Planet hoping to find some of the 12″ singles, and Planet’s employees helped me track ‘em down. They tend to have a good mix of the popular stuff you’d expect, and the deeper cuts. The selection isn’t as vast as In Your Ear nearby, but Planet manages to oft-​times have what you need, and have it for a reasonable price.

I think Planet Records is the greatest. It just gets the pricing right for used cds and rarely have I found a disc that made me do a double take on its sticker price. With the wide range of selection as well as affordability, this place is tops in Boston for me.
I will begin with my favorite section: the $ 1 cds. These are truly castoffs, but if you take the time to poke through you can find some really entertaining discs. Granted, you won’t find any classics in here (unless you count, er, 90s classics) but if you go by record label, local band name, or simply album art, you will likely find at least one record worth the money. Deals and duds, that’s what it is.
I also find that the cd selection is vast for many artists. With each album in a thin sleeve, they can jam in many records to choose from. Prices for regular albums are usually between $ 9 – 10, so I suppose that might be a few bucks more than the mean value of used cd prices in the area, but I’ve always gotten quality used discs from them. They also have many, many bootlegs of the popular bands if you’re into that kind of thing. The record, book and dvd sections in the store are also interesting to poke through and are pretty affordable.
The staff isn’t entirely engaging (they’re stuck behind a long counter) but they seem friendly when I’m checking out. Therefore, I declare Planet Records to be a very good music store and certainly a place worth frequenting.

I was on a seemingly endless search for one thing: a Teenage Head record. This was before I even bothered with the internet, my life was that of a modern gypsy, if a modern gypsy was a young, forlorn bass player who knew nothing of the world outside of albums and trains, and likewise I would float from record store to record store, milling about looking at what bands are doing, always on a search for Teenage Head.
I’d asked everywhere, went to the biggest record stores, hole in the walls, dove through vortexes of musical ambiguity, trying to follow the white rabbit holding that rare album from Canada’s finest in my head.
When I stepped through the doors of Planet Records in Cambridge, MA I took one look ahead of me and really, that was all you can do. But this was the last place I would even think could end the embarrassing and repetitive repetoire of:
«Do you need help with anything?»
«Uh yeah, do you have anything from Teenage Head?»
«Teenage what?»
It is so tiny. Tiny enough to where someone smart enough to figure out that he just may have to make do with the space he has, started slipping album covers in plastic sleeves to maximize space. But I finally found my holy grail of a record (for $ 10!) and you’d be just as surprised what you’ll find here.
Size isn’t everything, you gotta spend some time.

It looked like a commercial when I walked in. Techno music playing and everyone in the store was bobbing their heads to the beat.
Mr. Bethany was on the hunt for whatever SRV bootleg he might not already own in some form or other. It was a tight fit walking around but it was organized and the owners were very helpful. I forget to buy the T-​shirt of the punk’d out Nipper — next time!
I wish we had stores like this in Woo-​sta.

«Eat music, live longer.» That’s their motto. Need I go on?
Sure I do! This is a great little used record shop, packed to the gills with cd’s, vinyl, and dvds too. They have a nice selection, with plenty of harder to find albums mixed in with the classics, and a nice variety of genres. Plus they have funny t-​shirts for sale, featuring cocks. And no, you dirty kids, not that kind of cocks. Cocks, like the rooster.
My only complaint (and reason for the –1 star) is that, in a world of the interweb and free downloads, I find their prices a bit high. $ 10 seems steep. But dig, and you can score some $ 5 finds.
Buy! Sell! Trade!