Old School Records

We walked into the store around 6:45 (unaware that they closed at 7), the owner didn’t acknowledge us even after we said hello to him. We continued to browse and I had already picked out a record I wanted to get from the discount bin. Finally, the owner decides now is a great time to say «We’re closing» not «Can I help you find anything?» or even bothering to mention that the store closes in 15 minutes when we walked in the door. We responded with «oh ok then», I put my record back and didn’t buy a thing. I understand telling people you’re closing soon. If you let me come into your shop, and don’t even bother to acknowledge me or say anything about closing soon you shouldn’t really expect to get my business. There’s no excuse to treat your potential customers like this.

Old School Records has, by a long shot, the best selection of new and used vinyl in the Oak Park/​River Forest/​Forest Park area. While the prices on sealed new releases do seem somewhat pricey, the used bins are filled with gems that one might actually have interest in buying. This is the biggest difference between The Old School and Val’s or Oak Park records. While I like all three stores, the latter two have crates that are overstuffed with (in my opinion) too much filler. Old School’s bins are well organized and filled with temptations; albums that you forgot you loved and suddenly need to add to your vinyl collection RIGHT NOW.
Even though this one is a step or two out of the way, it will be my first stop for previously loved vinyl.
Minus one star only for the price of new releases, which might not matter to folks who don’t need to count their pennies as much as I.

Old School Records is a great little vintage record store. It is located on Madison Street in Forest Park. The store is not very big but it still has a wide variety of music selections. Prices range from very inexpensive to expensive depending on quality or scarcity. Store is full of LP’s, CD’s, 45’s. Peter, the owner, is very friendly and extremely knowledgable. He also purchases records and cd’s from customers. He will give you a fair price. The only drawback is that parking near the store might be difficult. I highly recommend this place.

This is my Fair, and Friendly record store.
The owner is very knowledgeable about new indie and modern rock without being a snob, as Val can be down at the Halia,. also their electronic section is decent. Of course they can order you whatever you would like if they do not have it. My only complaint is that you will spend too much time on your knees reaching for records as the organization or rather shelving system needs an overhaul which might take an entire month to do. Great Used selection here. *if you have time to kill, the dollar bin has some jems*

This store has little for me and I listen to a large variety of music.
It has mostly old vinyl with worn covers and cassettes rather than CD’s that I prefer. The owner is indifferent and ignores me when I come in to browse, and doesn’t care what I want or need. Does not even acknowledge me. He is also extremely picky about what he buys and offers maybe a dollar or even less. (If he sells the same thing, then it has much value – if you try to sell it, he acts like it is worthless.) I will shop on AMazon or a big box store where people are friendly, have more courtesy. I live nearby but I AVOID this place for these reasons. This is evidence that single owner/​operated stores can be much less friendly than the corporate stores!
I will not be back!

Great little shop. Don’t be fooled by how small the store looks. There’s a lot of great stuff inside. Everything is reasonably priced as well. I never leave empty handed.
Also, the owner is a real nice guy.
Pro tip — Be careful when browsing the lower shelves. You’ll bang your head when you get back up.

I know this place got good reviews and i’m sure he has good stuff, but he was a jerk to me. I don’t know much about records and wanted to get info and/​or sell some. He had no personal communication skills. As a new customer why don’t you make me feel welcomed. I went across the street to another store where I felt a better vibe, and got more money! Won’t be going back.

So lucky to have yet another great record shop in the Forest Park area. There’s a pretty decent mix of old and new here.

Enjoyed my first visit to this store today. Nice neighborhood but getting there via I-​290 is a nightmare in the late afternoon. The selection looked pretty rough, with a lot of LP covers in poor condition, with creases, bent corners, seam splits. I did find a couple of old rock bootlegs which were fairly priced considering the condition. I also was delighted to see some Record Store Day goodies in stock. And, they carry new vinyl, too (both recent releases and new reissues).
The guy at the counter was polite and was flexible on the price of one of the LPs. His attitude, alone, will make me come back again.
Don’t wear your best slacks to this store; half of the store’s stock requires you to get on your knees to look through. And, you need a step-​stool to thumb-​through the rear of the upper racks. I think two carpenters build the record racks: one 7′ tall and the other a dwarf.

Where else are you going to find a mint copy of the Superbowl Shuffle? Hint… it’s in the rap section of vinyl. This place is littered with iconic and hard to find vinyl. Cool store that one could spend hours in. Used/​newish CDs too at a reasonable price.

I shop here, I am glad it is here, more record stores in my area the better.
The mix of used and new is very good. If your looking for World, or Jazz this place is great.
It is hard to navigate, and a little price heavy. It just needs a better layout, you spend to much time on your knees, or on stools looking into over crowded racks.
The staff is not anything.
It is odd, they are not snobs, or friendly.
They almost seem to not be aware that they are working in a shop, when you speak to them they are almost robotic.
They are always busy, doing things, and answer your questions very quickly; as if an evil specter is hovering over them. A monster in the back eating music, and they the brainwashed slaves constantly feeding it. Then you stop the work, you can see it in their eyes «he is watching».
I will continue to shop here, and sometimes I get cool things I want. Other times I just leave, hoping that the next time I go there the monster has not eaten one of them.

I’ve been here several times to buy or sell cds and dvds and I have always gotten a fair deal.
Nice selection and very friendly people. Thyey are alo very knowledgeable about movies and music! Fun place really.

One of my two favorite music shops in my area (the other is Chicago Digital in Oak Park). This place probably has the best vinyl selection of any store in the western suburbs. I’m a major jazz buff, and most music stores only have a handful of jazz albums. This place puts those other stores to shame. No matter what style you’re looking for, chances are they have a pretty decent selection of it, both in lps and cds. Customer service is definitely 5 stars! Jody and Peter that own the shop are very nice people and they are very knowledgeable, which is always great to see. Definitely one of my favorite music shops!

Boogie on down to Old School Records, pet the dogs, giggle with Evy, and get into the groove with Jodi and Peter. They will help you find music you didn’t even know you were looking for.
Seriously, friend them on Facebook and see what I mean:
. See? I bet you forgot how cool Bad Brains is, how you danced around to Siouxie Sioux, how you wanted to be as funky as James Brown.
Not to mention they have the used boxset of your favorite tv show on vhs and dvd.
They have truly become a neighborhood favorite. Check out their radio show on Triton’s station WRRG:
, or look for them around town, they DJ for special events all over.
(Don’t hate me Val, OSR is one block away!)

I love record shops, something about the smell of vinyl! Sadly these shops are a dying breed, which is why I always get excited to find a new one no matter where the location is.
The Old School is located in the heart of Forest Park and has been open for around 18 years now (which is almost old school for a record shop). They have a great selection of vinyl, cd’s, dvd’s, and music magazines. The staff kind of does their own thing until you need help and then they are right on top of it. I swear they were trying to High Fidelity me with «Dry the Rain» but I was like I already got it.
If you’re in the area stop on by!

This store is so great, and gets even better if you frequent it.
– listening stations!
– great, wide selection of interesting «niche» music for the music snobs, as well as regular stuff
– KNOWLEDGEABLE staff
– if you go there a couple of times, they get to know you, order things for you without your even asking, and point out anything they think you might like when you come in. if it’s hard for you to find new music you like (yes, despite the internets) this is a huge plus, and service i’ve never gotten from any other shop
– cute!

We’ll, I really wanted to like this place. A «real» record store in the neighborhood. But unfortunately, it was not what I had hoped.
The prices were too high on everything I wanted. Whether it was a new cd, used cd or dvd, didn’t matter. The selection was pretty week on everything too. When I asked for something, they said, «No, but we can order it.» Man, do these business who keep saying this not realize just about EVERYONE has the internet and can get it too? Most of the time cheaper and direct to your own home. Over all it was a bit too crowded and over stocked full of junk so it was hard to find things or look through things.
The owners/​managers/​employees of the store were not very friendly. Kind of pretentious and standoffish.
The topper to this store was the pompous «giant counter». I mean, it looked like they copied the old Second Hand Tunes counter style. The kind that when you approach it makes you feel like your at a judges bench. These counters suck. It makes you feel like they are watching you and they are better than you. «Kneel Before Zod!» Please.
Anyway, I would pass on this one. Too expensive, no good selection and not friendly people. Parking sucked too for a suburb.

This place is great, especially for the suburbs.
Listening station, check.
Wide variety of well stocked used lps, check.
Lot’s of new vinyl /​reissues, check.
Massive discount lp bins, check.
This store seems geared to the hip /​hop producer or dj /​crate digger but probably would suit most vinyl heads.

I happen to stumble on this play on accident and I was blown away. I can spend hours and hours running my grubby little fingers through records… I did the last time I went.
I noticed that they had a much larger selection of records than some of the other places I’ve been to. They had several of the Bob Dylan, Parliament records that were not available at the other places. Also, I found a copy of Slint by surprise… still sealed. Like all other places, they still have the bargain bin records for .99 cents. Everything was moderately prices and included hard to find items. Great selection of Jazz and Blues albums also!
They do have CDs there, however I don’t buy CDs and couldn’t tell you anything about them.

I bought my first LPs here from the 99c bin. Here’s what I got:
Peter Gabriel– the one w/​‘sledgehammer’
Kate Bush — Hounds of Love
Ministry — With Sympathy
Then I also bought Bad Brains and Talking Heads. Both were under $ 6.
So what, all of this for around 15 bucks. How about that for record store finds? Go to this store, search through their cheapo bin and you’re bound to find some great stuff.