Gary’s Record Paradise Volume Two

Great store. This store also has a very friendly Owner. I’ve been looking for a store with a great Vinyl selection. I will Definitely shop there again!

Guy that answered the phone needs to work on his customer service. Refused to «walk back across the store» to give me a price on a record after he had just gone to check to see if it was in stock. Why wouldn’t you think to grab the price or walk it back to the counter with you? Guess that’s what I get for trying to support an independent record store.

I LOVE this place when I’m looking for older music!:) I got a turn table as an unexpected gift, but I didn’t have any records to play on it. I stopped by because I heard about it through a friend and it was also one of the closest ones to me. Came in on a whim and ended up spending hours looking through all his choices. He gave me a discount and was super friendly and helpful in educating me about my new obsession haha. (Vinyls are addicting)
Won’t hesitate to go back. Although it’s not as «new» or clean looking as some of the other record stores he keeps his merchandise in good shape and you will find some unique stuff!

Prices are on the high side and had almost no jazz records I was looking for. Almost half the store is uncategorized and off limits, so sad because it’s more fun to dig through piles.

This shop is amazingly well stocked with records of all genre’s. They are also helpful and friendly. .If you don’t see a record you’re looking for just ask cause it’s probably there. Best record store in San Diego

I went in to buy some albums for my son for Christmas and was extremely happy with my experience. Dr. Kirby was very helpful and his selection was impressive. He had everything I was looking for and then some. The records are in good to great condition and he explained how selective he is when acquiring more stock. I will definitely be back.

Hidden gem in esco, honestly didn’t know it existed until I researched record stores in Unilocal.Glad I found it though, the worker was very knowledgeable with his music history and knew exactly what I was looking for. Learned a lot from him. Lots of selections. Overall great experience and I found my frank sinatra/​50s vinyls :-) & even scored 5 free vinyls from the staff awesome guy!

I walked into this record store to kill some time. I walked out triumphantly, having just had one of the best record buying experiences of my life.
The store store is old and shabby. Not a contemporary record in sight. They’ve relegated an entire half of the store to jazz records only. The owner was personable; he offered us snacks and even let us go home with some free records. If you’re looking for a truly classic bone and selection, this is your place.

This place is great. I took my daughter there and had a blast. I found records that I just had to have. We plan to go back often. We are really glad that there are still family owned businesses around. The owner was helpful and funny. If you like records and are in the North County you should go check them out.

This store seems to have cornered the Escondido market. The used CDs are all 8.99, which is overpriced judging by the kind of crap they have in that bin. Nine bucks for REM’s Monster, which is worth about fifty cents at the swap meet? Yuck. The owner, who was grumpily huffing on the phone the entire hour I was in there, should loosen his prices.
The record selection is good (classic jazz and prog, etc), although I didn’t take a careful look. All I saw was a battered copy of Pawn Hearts, which usually goes for 5 used, for $ 25.

Great selection, good people. As soon as you enter look for something you like and they will play it while you look at other albums. Brings back a lot of memories.

This is a great store, tucked away on Sunset Dr. There are a LOT of records, so plan ahead so you have time to browse! A nice touch was that all the duplicates are stored below the bins so that you don’t waste valuable foraging time flipping through the same records. Dr. Kirby is a music connoisseur and this store is his hobby. His other hobby is birds: there is a large room off to the side where he keeps them; you can hear them squawking/​talking/​singing when you walk in, and at first you might think he’s keeping a pterodactyl in there (haha, his words!), but it’s only a large white parrot. If you are nice and are interested, maybe he will show you and tell you all about them. Bet you didn’t know you just entered Dr. Doolittle’s wonderful world of music.
If you’ve read any of my other reviews, you’ll note that I am very big on having a good «person experience» when I visit a business. Because the selection was great and the owner was congenial, knowledgeable, and interesting, we will definitely be back! We just got a record player and all of our parents’ old records, so we are starting to add our own tastes to the collection. I was very excited to find this treasure in Escondido, and I can’t wait to talk more music with the Doc and see what records I can challenge him to get his hands on for me! :-D
Pros:
Great selection
Great store keeper, chatty
Bird room, an interesting touch
Duplicates not in the main mix
Prices: decent I guess (I’m just starting), and there’s a range, based on rarity and condition?
Cons:
So much to look at, so little time! (just kidding, this is a pseudo-​con!)
I wish there was a tad more punk & metal. I wouldn’t dare deduct a star for this though, the place is way too cool!

I just recently got a record player but I’ve known about this place for awhile, I went to this store when it was over on Felicita. It has recently moved and is now over on Sunset. I thought the place had closed down since it wasn’t over on Felicita so when I called the phone number come to find out they have moved I was excited. He is closed on Sun’s and Mon’s. I really enjoy this place, it’s a little eccentric but a small place with tons of character. All the albums are alphabetized which is really nice. They have a pretty good collection of different genres of music. Dr Kirby is a very nice helpful person, he is very friendly and seems to know a lot about music. If your looking for records I would suggest this place, if your not familiar with Escondido I would suggest map questing the directions and remember it’s not on Felicita anymore.

I was able to visit Gary’s Record Paradise Vol. 2 in their relatively new spot while I was in town for Thanksgiving and I was happy to see it was still a bastion of vinyl delights, SUPER meticulously organized, clean and helpful.
The new owner, Eustaquio happily greeted me as a great and somewhat obscure Cowsills record played on the store stereo. I commenced to dig the rock section and was frankly amazed that every single record was alphabetized, including the sizeable misc. sections for each letter. A true rarity at record stores. If you have a limited amount of time, and are looking for something quickly, this is the place for you. Eustaquio has quite a few records below the boards too, but honestly my time was limited and I was on the hunt for several specific things. I regret not checking this overstock area, but a quick glance showed many of the same titles I had seen up top.
Again, I cannot emphasize the strength of this place for the novice buyer who is not shy to ask for help, or chat with Dr. Kirby about pretty much anything under the sun. Very helpful and welcoming, and the organization is sure to please some significant others and/​or next of kin trying to find a record to delight their black crack addled husband, wife, son or brother. My only caveat would be the prices, which tended to be a dollar or two more than shops I frequent. Keep in mind this is a very unique place in the hamlet I grew up in and used to frequent when it was downtown under the namesake «Gary’s» ownership. I also shop records obsessively and habitually, and while I was disappointed at the prices (but pleased with the quality of the vinyl discs, which can be a problem at other stores) I still recommend the store to a variety of buyers, and worth a visit from all. Support these small businesses!
Another word of advice, give them a call before you go down, and also check the address, I feel this address on Unilocal is close to correct, but their suite number was 5, and the last move was relatively recent, so double checking to avoid confusion is recommended. Grab a free cookie or some pretzels on your way out and you are good to go!

Great place to find old favorites and discover gems you never knew you would like. The owner is a cool guy who knows his stuff. Awesome record store. I have come across many rad finds here. Check it out.

11÷17÷10− I called today. Yes they are still at the same location, and are still in business. The person on the phone asked if I was looking for anything in particular. He also said he has brought in some new inventory. I will update the review after I check this shop out.
I have shopped Spin Records recently, and found a CD I thought would only be found online. I have shopped Lou’s in Encinitas recently and found a concert DVD that was unexpected. I have a mass of vynil that never gets played, but can’t resist going to see what treasures may be found.

This is the only record store in inland North County that is still around. My favorite store is Lou’s in Encinitas but it’s a bit of a drive from Escondido. This morning I decided to stop in as my son and I are revisiting some old Disney movies. So we were on the hunt for some old Disney Soundtrack Albums. I was astounded at the number of LPs I found there in both the Children’s section and the Soundtrack section. There is a great selection of all genres and I have to limit myself from spending too much when I stop in.
BTW the hours are listed Tues-​Sat but they were open this morning despite it being the day after a holiday (July 4^th).
On my other visits during summer the owner has given out cookies and soft drinks. I wonder how he’s able to keep his doors open but he’s obviously catering to a niche market that appears to be growing.