Wes Nessman’s 5 Favorite Things About Ralph’s Records

I've been so impressed with the way owner Doug Stapp has elevated everything about Ralph's Records. He truly deserves some kind of local hero reward. Rather than just giving Doug all the credit, let's talk about the great experience with all the staff at the store.

With that in mind, here are my five favorite things about Ralph's Records.

The Service

I'm not talking about regular service here, I'm talking above and beyond. There have been several occasions where I've had questions about inventory and not only did the staff answer my questions, they actually went out of their way to send me screenshots. That's pretty dang cool.

The Merch

Guess what? I still support and rep my favorite bands. Ralph's Records has everything from posters to patches and a whole bunch more on hand. I generally don't like ordering that stuff online because it never matches what you get, but Ralph's has it right there ready to grab and go.

The Familiar Faces

I may be a big sap, but it's cool when you're met at the door by people you know. Having a "record store guy" is also really cool because they tend to have an idea of what you like and what you're looking for the minute you come through the door. Taking it to another level, there's a whole community of people who frequent the store who are just cool to see.

Special Orders

Ralph's Records has hookups above and beyond the usual mail, order places out there. Talk about a time saver too. Ordering an l.p. online can become a little tricky with the shipping but Ralph's gets their inventory in bulk so you get a nice, clean undamaged copy that the story stands behind (don't you hate it when you get a damaged package in the mail?)

Pokin' Around

Ah, you kids out there. If there's one thing in life that you must do that you probably haven't, it's experiencing the joy of just pokin' around in a record store. It's like looking for buried treasure in a place that's all treasure. I can 100 percent credit Ralph's Records with turning me onto one of my favorite releases of all time because I didn't know it was a thing until I saw it at the shop.

Ralph's Records is located at 3322 82nd Street in that pinker-than-pink building. Drop-in, shop, and create some memories with the guys.