I'm going to spend a couple of weeks vacation primarily in Switzerland starting next week -- so I thought I'd hit some records stores, after all everything in Europe is an "import" title to me. :D :thmbsp:

I know AK is an international community so I thought I'd check in here. I did a couple of AK searches but didn't see any discussions. If you know of an existing discussion on hunting down used records in Europe, please point me to them. I'll also do a web search + plus I have a couple of nephews in Switzerland who are doing some research for me.

I'll be based out of the Lucerne / Zurich area. Any recommendations on good records shops to visit? thanks. :music:

Are you sure it's worthwhile going that far just to save a few bucks on European pressings. :D

:yes::yes:Yea ,,I think I remember a few ,,but I,m not sure I remember exactly where they are ,,sooo to jog my memory you probablly need to take me with

:yes::yes:Yea ,,I think I remember a few ,,but I,m not sure I remember exactly where they are ,,sooo to jog my memory you probablly need to take me with

Nice idea because I could use the help riding herd on three teenagers.

Are you sure it's worthwhile going that far just to save a few bucks on European pressings. :D

Heh, well there's a few other reasons to travel there - the first thing that comes to mind is the chocolate and cheese. :thmbsp:

Ok, I'll pass along notes on any good LP stores I find over there.

Sounds like a Gas Dick,what fun-
maybe check out"record junkie"
http://www.recordjunkie.com/index.php?page=store&id=196
Theres another store in the page also,but this guys says 100% used LP's!

I'll be based out of the Lucerne / Zurich area. Any recommendations on good records shops to visit? thanks

Do you want vinyl or cds? The word for vinyl record would probably be "Platte." CD is universally understood. Music is just "Musik." Cassettes are "Kassetten."

Here:

http://www.panthera.ch/portal/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=26

http://www.sambafobic.ch/

You can always check the Gelbeseiten (Yellow Pages). In Zurich, look around the Niederdorfstrasse area near the university. Its the hip part of town. Failing to find any record shops, go to the Bierhall Wolf. German beer hall that is probably the rowdiest yet safest bar in the world. A blast. Loaded with boozers and malcontents of all ages. Dancing on the tables is common.

Have fun. Gorgeous country.

Sounds like a Gas Dick,what fun-
maybe check out"record junkie"
http://www.recordjunkie.com/index.php?page=store&id=196
Theres another store in the page also,but this guys says 100% used LP's!

Right on, thanks Mark! I will send my Swiss/American nephews to scope these stores in advance for me - Zurich is a reasonably close drive from Lucerne as I recall - 30 minutes or so.

Do you want vinyl or cds? The word for vinyl record would probably be "Platte." CD is universally understood. Music is just "Musik." Cassettes are "Kassetten."

Here:

http://www.panthera.ch/portal/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=26

http://www.sambafobic.ch/

You can always check the Gelbeseiten (Yellow Pages). In Zurich, look around the Niederdorfstrasse area near the university. Its the hip part of town. Failing to find any record shops, go to the Bierhall Wolf. German beer hall that is probably the rowdiest yet safest bar in the world. A blast. Loaded with boozers and malcontents of all ages. Dancing on the tables is common.

Have fun. Gorgeous country.

Thanks for the pointers, Jack Lord. I'm strictly looking at vinyl, err "platte".

Hopefully the table dancing is done by Heidi, not Heinz :D I'm sure that my nephews are acquainted with the Bierhall Wolf - both are college grads and work at financial institutions (what else?) in Zurich.

I'm hoping there's a cache of some 60's/70's vinyl at bargain prices - hmm, I'm going to need to figure out how many Swissfrancs go into $1. hopefully I can find some clean vinyl for a buck. :thmbsp::music:

I don't know if its the same in Switzerland, but flea markets are big in Germany. Ask where the "Flohmarkt" is and maybe you can score some used vinyl there.

I don't know if its the same in Switzerland, but flea markets are big in Germany. Ask where the "Flohmarkt" is and maybe you can score some used vinyl there.

Thanks - yeah I heard through Klownschool that there is a giant Saturday flea market in Geneva. That's in central Switzerland which is a train ride / drive from the Zurich area but might be worth it. I think that my teenagers will be able to entertain themselves alot longer at a flea market than a record store. :thmbsp:

Have fun. Switzerland is fascinating. Three ethnic groups and 4 official languages in a country the size of New Jersey. Very militarized as well. See how many bomb shelters and hidden missile batteries you can spot.

Geneva did not do it for me. Bern and Zurich were my favorites with Lugano coming in third. Basel has a good rep. Lots of really nice small towns all over the place.

Don't forget the Bierhalle Wolf! Its a blast.

http://www.bierhalle-wolf.ch/

Have fun. Switzerland is fascinating. Three ethnic groups and 4 official languages in a country the size of New Jersey. Very militarized as well. See how many bomb shelters and hidden missile batteries you can spot.

Geneva did not do it for me. Bern and Zurich were my favorites with Lugano coming in third. Basel has a good rep. Lots of really nice small towns all over the place.

Don't forget the Bierhalle Wolf! Its a blast.

http://www.bierhalle-wolf.ch/

Thanks again. I'll look for the signs of miltary defenses, my son might get a kick out of looking for these too.

Yeah I remember years ago when I visited last, my brother-in-law, who was a captain in the Swiss army, would point out sunken post-holes in the narrow Alps highways. He explained that these were defenses against tank invasion - they could raise these reinforced barriers in the middle of road and no way could tanks move past them. We used to call out "tanks" whenever we drove past one.

I don't know if its the same in Switzerland, but flea markets are big in Germany. Ask where the "Flohmarkt" is and maybe you can score some used vinyl there.

I don't know if its the same in Switzerland, but flea markets are big in Germany. Ask where the "Flohmarkt" is and maybe you can score some used vinyl there.

Thanks again for the tip about the Flohmarkt. I hit the Saturday flea market in Lucerne this afternoon, and found several folks with boxes of vinyl. The first few were mostly classical titles but then I hit a seller with two boxes of classic rock LPs on European labels in good shape, and another with about 10-12 boxes of rock LPs - lots of European compilations and releases I had not seen before from artists like Dylan, The Byrds, Mamas & Pappas, 10cc. The condition of the vinyl was very good.

http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o240/speakerlabfan/DicksvisitJuly2007070.jpg

http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o240/speakerlabfan/DicksvisitJuly2007068.jpg

http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o240/speakerlabfan/DicksvisitJuly2007065.jpg


Unfortunately the sellers were wise to relative value of the titles and it was more like shopping a used record store than a garage sale with prices ranging from $1.50 up to $30 or more. So although I had picked out a stack of about 30 keepers, I mostly did window-shopping when I heard the prices, and I only picked up a few titles including a couple of german label Uriah Heep titles. I also visited a CD store in Lucerne with used LPs but I didn`t see any interesting titles in the $2 discount bins. I`ll check out a store in Zurich next.

I didn`t see much audio gear at the flea market but my son did point out some BPC Sansui gear including a 1990`s B-3000 amp with pre-amp, tuner, TT,etc. It was good to experience the thrill of the hunt and also get my vinyl junkie fix. :thumbsup: