Book Stores Archives - chimesfreedom

{Night Shift Guru – The Cash Brothers}

The Closings. In a previous post, Chimesfreedom wrote about the closing of a CD store and the losses from changes in technology. That post concluded by reminding us that at least we still have bookstores. But Borders just recently declared bankruptcy and announced it is closing most of its stores.

While I enjoy smaller independent bookstores, there were two Borders stores that I sometimes visited because of their location and selection. Both of them are among those closing. Although you may get anything you want through the Internet, there is something about seeing the physical objects in a store. I have found a number of my favorite books while browsing a book store, and I never would have found the books online. For some people, Borders was the only book store in their area. So, yes, I am sad about the closings. And I felt like a vulture picking through the going-out-of-business sale.

The Workers. But there are other casualties. As I stood in the long winding line, annoyed that I had to wait for so long to get my 20%-off books, I noticed the two cashiers struggling to handle the extra load. The customers were annoyed that the long line was so slow, the store was a mess from everything being out of place, people where complaining that the store would not take coupons, etc. It must be horrible to work under those depressing conditions as you face unemployment. One of the cashiers who had been working since early in the morning was trying to arrange with a supervisor to be able to take a lunch break before 4:00 p.m.

Someone who works at a Borders told me that the employees are not getting any severance pay or anything — just declining working conditions until the final day when they become unemployed. It may be hard to blame the company because they are in bankruptcy. There have been some articles arguing that Borders executives mismanaged the business and that had they been more creative they would be doing better, as is Barnes & Noble. I do not know if that is true, but I am sure that they did not want to go out of business when they were making the decisions. Still, it really sucks for the workers, while usually the executives end up okay.

We have seen too many of these types of layoffs in the last few years during the recession, even though people lose jobs in good times too. So, if you happen to be shopping in a store that is going out of business, take a minute to acknowledge the workers and say a kind word as you grab up your bargains.

The Song. There are various songs about the working life, and one of my favorites is “Night Shift Guru” by The Cash Brothers. The above song, while not about working in a book store, is about working in the service industry waiting on people.

Oh I know my job’s just working in a store
I’ve got an L on my forehead and a stupid uniform
It’s 7/11, it’s twenty-four seven
I’m the night shift guru, made to serve you
How do you do

The Cash Brothers are two brothers from Canada, Andrew and Peter Cash. They had separate careers, including Peter’s work with the Skydiggers. But after they sang a song together, they decided to form their own band in 1996. Once you hear their voices together you will understand why. Several years ago, I heard The Cash Brothers perform at a free outdoor performance at Lincoln Center in New York City. It was a small affair, and I was able to talk to them about their guitar pedals, etc. I also bought another copy of a CD I already owned and a t-shirt that was too small for me because I wanted to support their music.

“Night Shift Guru” is off of their album How Was Tomorrow (2001), which is one of my favorite CDs. If you like their sound on “Night Shift Guru,” check out the entire album as all of the songs are outstanding. For Chimesfreedom readers who are Springsteen fans, you might be interested in the song “Nebraska” off How Was Tomorrow, which is about driving around listening to the Springsteen Nebraska album. Their other albums are good too, although I suggest starting with How Was Tomorrow. You may hear Nebraska and some of their other music on free mp3’s on the website. [Sept. 2011 Update: The Cash Brothers website is no longer available.]

Unfortunately, like Borders, the Cash Brothers appear to be out of business, or at least they are on hiatus. The last music I have from them is from a 2006 collaboration with the Skydiggers. The Cash Brothers website is up but does not have any recent news. Andrew Cash has his own up-to-date website and is recording his own music, working as a journalist, and recording television soundtracks. Peter Cash also has his own website, with plans to add music and more information soon. So even if it is unfortunate they no longer perform together, at least they are still working — unlike the Border employees who are losing their jobs.

I found How Was Tomorrow while browsing through a record store. That store is now closed.

Update (May 2011): Andrew Cash was recently elected to Canada’s House of Commons.

What do you think about Borders closing? Leave a comment.

Skydiggers (and the brothers Cash) Still “Ramblin’ On”

Cash Brothers Website Gone?: Long Live The Cash Brothers!

Springsteen’s “Whoop-Ass Session on the Recession” in Greensboro (Guest Post)

Do You Miss CD Stores?

10 Thoughts on Bruce Springsteen’s “Only the Strong Survive”

Local News Coverage of Bruce Springsteen in 1978

(Related Posts)

I recently drove to the only remaining CD store within reasonable driving distance of where I live. It is an FYE chain CD and video store. The selection was never great, and most items were overpriced. But it was the last remaining CD store for me after the Tower Records stores closed down a few years ago.

I would go to the FYE store occasionally to browse. And over the years there were a few CDs I wanted to get on the first day out, so I would take the drive to this store.

Today, when I stopped at the store, it was adorned by a large “Going Out of Business” sign. I was so heartbroken I could not even take advantage of the 50% off sale.

It is odd to despair about the demise of a commercial enterprise. I am sad even though the cause of the demise, the Internet, has played an important role in helping me discover new music that I might never have found on my own in the record stores. But I cannot help feeling the loss from the closing of the CD/Record stores.

Today, I purchased Two Men with the Blues by Willie Nelson and Wynton Marsalis. I still remember the first three CDs I bought when the format was new. They were Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, and Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run.

Before that, I remember as a child saving my money to buy 45 rpm records at a small-town GC Murphy five-and-dime store to play on my portable record player. In college, I haunted the record stores on Coventry Road in Cleveland, discovering European recordings and bootleg LPs. As I moved around as an adult, there were always record and CD stores that were often open late at night where one could find new discoveries, old friends, or comfort from sadness, heartbreak, or loneliness.

In the late 1990s, I remember the thrill of discovering I could make my own CDs from selected songs off my other CDs. And then of course came the iPod and other music players, and everything changed.

I have a 160GB iPod that lets me carry around my entire music collection. In my youth, I dreamed of being able to do that when I used to take long drives to visit my family in college and later. Instead, during those drives I would have to select the tapes or CDs that would fit in a case to take with me.

One loss from the iPod and computerized music, besides sound quality, is that I rarely listen to a single album repeatedly any more. There’s too much convenience to go to the next album, the next song, or shuffle play.

There are so many CDs where I listened to them repeatedly before falling in love with them. So I wonder how much music I have lost as the CDs got buried in my digital collection.

For example, last month I read about a CD that sounded good. I downloaded it from Amazon, put it on my iPod, and then forgot the name of the band and album. So, this potential new discovery sits buried somewhere on my iPod, waiting to be found again when I hear one of the songs on shuffle play. Perhaps I’ll never hear the album in its entirety once. That would never have happened in the old days of physical CDs.

One remaining remnant of the past is that my car stereo does not connect directly to my iPod. So I do listen to CDs in my car.

But this summer, due to decreasing space in my small New York apartment, I moved my CDs to vinyl sleeves and little suitcases where they no longer sit out where I can grab them easily. My home stereo CD player died a few years ago and I have not replaced it, instead opting to play my iPod through the stereo.

So today’s purchase will be played in my car and through my iPod. But the CD will probably never be played on a CD player in my home.

Willie Nelson Wynton Marsalis: Two Men with the Blues — My last CD store purchase ever?

So what is my point? Things change and there are good and bad things about the new world order. It is also okay to be glad one had the chance to spend those days and nights in the record stores, and to be sad those days are gone.

I wonder if today’s generation knows what they are missing. At least we still have the music. And book stores. For now.

Do you miss CD/Record stores? Leave a comment.

Book Stores Close: A Cash Brothers Song for Workers

Happy 30th Birthday to the Compact Disc!

Steve Jobs, RIP

Every Number 1 Song

(Some Related Chimesfreedom Posts)

Share this:

Share this: