Academy Records & CDs

This place is great! I consistently find awesome deals and find records haven’t seen elsewhere. The 3 $ boxes are always filled with gems. Charles, Mick, everyone that works there is courteous and helpful. The records are also very fairly priced, new and used. I work on the same block, have been going here everyday for a year during lunch and have never had a bad experience. I recommend this place to anyone interested in used or new vinyl, DVDs, or CDs.

As a penniless teenager, I spent many hours browsing promo copy bins at Dayton’s Records and Free Being in the Seventies, and I have collected much music on CD and LP at Academy’s various locations after browsing blissfully. I. m going today to comb their 4 for $ 10 bins. Now I buy jazz and vocals on vinyl in bargain bins at Goodwill and thrift shops.

I used to love coming here. I’m not going to say what I liked about the store, because it all went down the drain one day when one of the employees came up to me while I was browsing. Without any provocation on my part, this employee personally insulted me in a very rude and angry manner. Never mind that on my previous visit to the store I had bought a DVD set for $ 100 — which I pointed out, and he said he knew — so it’s not like I was just standing around with no intention to buy anything. (To add insult to injury, I later saw that very same DVD set at Costco for $ 60.)
I believe in supporting independent businesses, but with that kind of an attitude towards the people who support them… well, it’s been over a year since the incident, and I haven’t been back. Who knows how much money I might have spent with them over that period of time, and in the future, if only that [censored] employee had kept his mouth shut? Because the fact of the matter is that if I want a particular CD, I’m going to get it. I might look for it on Amazon… I might look for it on Ebay… heck, I might even look for it at Best Buy (ugh).
But I *won’t* be looking for it at Academy Records.

It’s a great place to browse the shelves and maybe come out with something you’ve never heard of before but you like the look of. It’s more an old-​school record-​buying experience, and it’s definitely something Amazon is killing off. If you think the price is too high, it’s pretty easy to cross reference on your iPhone, but it would be a great shame to see Academy succumb to high rents and online competition.

Once again, as always, way overpriced! Today, I saw Lorin Maazel’s Complete Early Recordings on Deutsche Grammophon USED for $ 70.00 — even though it’s available NEW on Amazon for $ 65, and USED on Amazon for $ 55? They really need to step up their relevance, because people willing to pay a super premium are becoming fewer and fewer, especially considering their dismal customer service. Again, I spent about an hour in the store, nobody offered me any assistance, when I tried to ask people for assistance I was completely ignored. Everything is in complete disarray, and rather than waiting until the store is closed to take inventory and rearrange, they do it right in front of you, and treat customers like a nuisance. Which is just complete nonsense.

Yes, it’s a small space that gets crowded easily but it’s so worth it. It’s hard to find a place that sells used movies at a decent price but Academy Records is it. It might not have the largest collection of blu-​rays but it does the job.
I got the Baraka blu-​ray for under $ 10 which was a steal since it sells for $ 20 online. Attention steelbook collectors: this place has a few used ones for $ 10. I personally saw The Book Of Eli, Inception, and Batman Begins.
Pretty cool.

I was really excited to try this place and was pretty disappointed when I did because the selection was terrible. The space is really cramped and unorganized, making it horrible to look for vinyl. Also, there isn’t much variety at all, especially in the genre that I was looking for — Rap/​Hip Hop. My petition to get an east coast version of Amoeba continues.

Should be renamed Academy CDs and Records because they have many more CDs than records. Next to no jazz standards LPs to speak of– mostly rock and classical music. Bummer.

My son is a vinyl fiend! He loves to scour thru records and find lost treasures.
Dad, Houses of the Holy! (I have the CD)
Wait a second, $ 30 bucks? I notice most of the Led Zeppelin albums are similarly priced. I had all these albums back in the day.
Academy Records & CDs is a nice place, very clean and organized. We waited on Sunday morning and were the first ones in the store.
They are more rock oriented, we bought a AC/​DC album (Let there be rock) for $ 8.
My son loves rock but he was also looking for some 80s/​90s Hip Hop. The selection of records was limited for this genre.
Our verdict? Well organized store, very clean and a little higher priced for a teenager.

And my true rating is more like 2.75 stars…
I’ve been a customer of Academy Records for 25 years. In that time, it’s been a rarity that a weekend has gone by when I haven’t stopped in. They have a very good selection of CDs (and LPs). However, what I’ve been finding more and more in the past few years is that their prices have gone up. I’ve found it increasingly to be the case that I can buy something on Amazon and get a better deal than I would here. No surprise, the number of times in the past two years or so when I’ve left the Academy empty handed are much greater than years previous to that.
The store seems to operate under the faulty impression that they can treat their customer anyway they like (not giving a fair return for CDs being sold, playing loud not customer friendly music and allowing employees to be loud, especially in their negative attitudes about customers). I have news for The Academy. Once upon a time there were a lot of record stores in NYC. And each of them, including the apparently mighty Tower Records, have closed down. The Academy should stop taking their customers for granted, because they too could find themselves out of business in the next few years.
Right after Tower Records closed its doors, I could hear two Academy employees chuckling a bit about Tower’s demise. As even more people decide to get their music online, either by buying physical CDs or loading their music electronically, the Academy is going to need to give their customers MORE of a reason to shop there, not LESS (as is the case now). Because if they don’t, they could become the subject of chuckles from employees of one of their competitors.

Guy behind he counter is a stereotype. Had to leave because he was such a cliché. Sucks because they seemed to have some decent records.

Been going here for years. As mentioned elsewhere, a large selection of classical CDs and vinyl. Too bad they choose to play loud and monotonous grunge band music most of the time, especially if you’re browsing for classical music. When I asked about the logic of this, I was told I could either wear ear plugs or shop elsewhere. Definitely a place with attitude but given similar comments in this thread, it doesn’t appear that customer relations is a high priority for the ownership.

Am I glad this store is in business? Yes. Would I buy anything? No. This shop seems to cater to … well… people I didn’t know bought music or maybe a less punk john cusak from high fidelity who don’t own there own record shops. I said in my tip «ive never been to a record store and not seen anything I didn’t want to buy» well this spot changed the game for me. With a large selection of things I don’t want at a used bin price that I wouldn’t pay for even if it was something I had any interest in my browsing session at academy records was painful. I wish them the best of luck but I wish you more luck at finding something you want at a price you would pay.

A good record store always brings me to my knees, but a good classical record store? I’m sprawled out on the floor like people in old Japanese movies. Can you even count good classical shops in the US on your fingers and require a second hand?
I come from a relatively big city, where there’s only one shop that has a classical section that’s even halfway interesting. This was amazing, and amazingly cheap — aside from some Japanese imports, I didn’t pay over $ 11 for a cd and most of the time I didn’t pay over $ 6. I racked up on music made either before 1690 or after 1960, the two eras I have the hardest time finding. Josquin and John Cage — that kinda store. And yet the shop was playing the Television Personalities on the stereo! I was in love.
I’ve shopped all around the East Village and Bowery, and over a bit into Brooklyn, but this is my serious NYC crush of the moment.

What is the matter with me, how could I NOT write an excellent review of this place the DAY I was there. I am criminally forgetful. Since Tower, Virgin Records, and the Lincoln Center Barnes and Noble decided to not exist anymore, this is THE place in NYC to go to for classical music CDs in an age where recorded music is becoming more and more digitized and just «online». What will have me coming back for more like a moth to flame is that their prices on CDs are almost questionably low. You will do a double-​take when you see some of the prices of these CDs. You will want to pay the difference and pay full retail price just because this store is so great. The place is clearly classical and opera dominated, as soon as you walk in, the largest area of the store is all classical and opera. It is a dream. I need a recording of Verdi’s La Traviata since I am playing it and I think this is where I am gonna make a beeline for. Screw iTunes.

Nice place, they have tons of CDs, LPs (vinyl records) and DVDs. Most of the stuff is neatly organized. A small selection of rock and jazz LPs and a huge selection of Classical music. The other half of the store is devoted to CDs and DVDs. All or most are used and its always cool to drop in to see what new stuff they added. Sometimes its hit or miss, you do find some good deals at times though.
Only complaint I have is that the store is a bit small which can get crowded.

Arbitrage at its best. I just really like this place, because I know I’m going to usually get a slightly better price than I would on Amazon (even a used price) and it has is of very high quality. Instead of the local bookstore or used bookstore, this place is the local used «media» store. When it all goes cloud based streaming digital this place will only grow in its «quaint factor». They have special picks, special sections that feature DVD’s, blu rays, all kinds of music, vinyl in the back. The staff are all cool, and really can hold a discussion about most of the stuff that they sell. Overall, this is a winner, and they price their stuff to be competitive but not a charity. Great business.

More classical records than you can shake a 45 at. I came in looking for basically everything but classical but still found some pretty cool finds (got 2 used cds and contemplated buying their new copy of Vivre Sa Vie, but passed). Their used cd selection is pretty fantastic for such a small joint. Be sure to look above the racks on the shelving for clearance and bargain cds.
I am personally a big fan of 45s (namely, soul, jazz, and garage) but they sadly only had 2 bins towards the front of the store and then two smaller 45 carrying cases of slightly more rare 45s at the desk perpendicular to the check out area. May need to check out some of the other locations to see if they carry a wider selection of 45s and not as heavy of a classical section.

After I wrote my Unilocal review, I got a message on Unilocal from the manager of Academy Records saying «a number of staff members … were dismissed. We have some new faces on the floor that are as keen on music as they are friendly representatives.» I told him I’d check Academy out again. Yesterday I popped by. They still have a good-​sized collection of classical LPs (lots for $ 1 and $ 2), as well as new jazz and rock LPs in the bins at the front. I spoke with two employees, both of whom were helpful.
One star off because they don’t have a listening station to check out LPs and see if you like the music. One more star off for this: while I was looking at the new jazz LPs, the employees at the counter were openly discussing what they hated about certain kinds of customers. This doesn’t make them very approachable.
Still, Academy is a good source for inexpensive used classical LPs in good shape.

Now this is more like it!
A straight up STACK of solid records for $ 33!
After spending over an hour in the busy, tight squeezed, random found record store we were buzzing! And couldn’t wait to get home & spin.
Take a look at the photos to see what we are talking about, & I have too say again — All for only $ 33!
Sometimes in the smaller shops when you discover a nice find for $ 3 or $ 4, there is almost guaranteed to be imperfections in the sound quality. Not so here. All sounded great, crisp & clean, normal pops & crackles that are found on aged vinyl but even that was a rarity on this purchase.
How do they do it for so cheap? It may have something to do with imports. The double LP Billie Holiday is from Germany, not a word of English is to be found on the entire LP sleeve. But the quality of the 70 yr old recording is fantastic!
Will definitely be back for more!