After a month of putting up XMAS lights (review coming soon) it was time to get Bessy back on the road for her intended purpose. With a slight hangover, I awoke this morning and unloaded a bunch of ladders and supplies from the truck. The freezers were emptied of XMAS lights and stocked with some creamy goodness for the Community Record Fair that was going down at Little Temple in Silverlake.
The festivities were set to run from 2-7PM so I made sure I got there an hour early to do a little shopping myself before manning the truck all day. I scored with some great 12″s; Clarence Carter, Kool and the Gang – Fresh (remix), Chaka Khan – I Feel For You (remix), and some other goodness like Charles Earland, Merl Saunders, and Dizzy Gillespie. With my sack full I headed back to the truck which was parked right out front.
The setup couldn’t have been better. I&I Sound System had their truck right behind mine and were pumping out top-notch reggae all day. Hit and Run set up a silk screening operation to allow folks to custom create shirts with designs that were exclusive for the event. Brandy Flower Aimee Macauley, Enik One (check the pic of my black T), Mike Cirvello, and Cody Hudson all had pitched in with some great designs for the day. It was fun watching everyone mix and match their shirts and hoodies. If anyone’s throwing a huge party, you should hire these cats to come out and create custom shirts for your event. We’re gonna get some Ice Cream Man designs mixed in next time around.
Inside there were local record labels and shops with tables setup promoting their wares. There was also used vinyl at ridiculously low prices (Kool Moe Dee – Get Paid 12″ for two bucks???). I guess it was a good thing that I was stuck at the truck because I would have bought more records eventhough my turntable’s stuck in storage in Ashland.
In this gigantic metropolis of LA it’s nice to find people to put something on like this. Where else can you have a record swap with free ice cream, world class DJ’s, and perfect weather in the middle of December? Everyone needs to realize how great we have it out here and pitch in a little summin summin to make it even better.
Big thanks to Frosty and Dublab, Plug Research, Little Temple, Hit and Run, I&I, and all the folks who came out to make it happen.
