Label Feature #8: Record Centre Records
By Simon Daley
Over the last five years many exciting independent record labels have been founded, but few have been as prolific at Record Centre Records. Some 48 vinyl releases later and owner John Thompson is just getting started!
My first encounter with John Thompson was on a cool September morning in 2018, as we set up our respective stalls at POP Montréal’s annual record fair. It’s safe to say that within minutes of conversing, I got a glimpse into John’s deep-rooted passion for music, vinyl records and vintage listening equipment. John launched Record Centre Records (RCR) in 2015, a label named after his popular record store The Record Centre in Ottawa, Canada. Established as a vinyl-only label to release local independent music, RCR has been steadily building a name for itself among the local music scene as well as nationwide. I caught up with John in November 2020 to discuss running the label, working with Precision and some of the challenges faced by his businesses in 2020.
Before you owned a record store you began selling pre-owned records and vintage audio equipment online in 1999. How has the business developed since you first started out?
After selling on eBay as @Vinylcanuck for a decade, the first version of the store opened up in 2010 beside our current location. We specialized in used vinyl and vintage audio. In 2014, we moved into the 100 year old building next door. It’s a beautiful building with old brick, tin ceilings, hardwood floors, plenty of sunlight and amazing acoustics!
What motivated you to add running a record label to your already busy schedule?
We started by helping a friend make a record. Hilotrons – To Trip With Terpsichore (RCR001) was made with Paul Miller at SAMO Media, before the launch of Precision Record Pressing. After making that first record, we were hooked!
We always tried to help small local bands make vinyl, along the way we teamed up with Holger Petersen of Stony Plain Records to co-release 3 records with him, two by MonkeyJunk and 1 with Paul Reddick, two of these releases won Junos! RCR was always meant to be a small local label that specialized in 100-300 unit, LP-exclusive runs.
RCR recently passed the label’s 48th release, having covered numerous genres along the way. Which three releases were milestones for the label?
It’s hard to pick just 3! One of my favourites is Sonoluminesence Trio + 1 – Live At The Record Centre (RCR-003). It was recorded in the store live to tape. Jesse Stewart, David Mott and William Parker, along with Artist Jeff Schlanger (New York). Jeff painted them live during this show, and that painting is the album cover (it also hangs in the store). We also recorded Brian Browne and Peter Woods with a vintage ribbon mic, live off the floor in the store. Again live to tape! After Brian passed away, we released the record as a tribute to him. Last but not least, I’d have to say Ian Tamblyn’s Magnetic North (RCR-048) is another one of my favourites. It’s an incredible musical journey!
You mentioned a few in-store performances. How important was it for you to have a live space for artists to play to the local community?
It was super important for us! Even in our small space next door, we had bands play in the store. When we opened up our current location, it was important for us to have a dedicated space for shows. We have loads of equipment too: a piano we keep in tune, a Ludwig drum set, several vintage amps and even a Fender Rhodes! Through the years, we’ve had more than 500 artists play the store. We’ve recorded a lot of these shows to tape on our trusty Otari MX-5050 MKIII reel to reel recorder.
Some of our favourites were Whitehorse, Fet.Nat, Telecomo, Jeremy Gara of Arcade Fire, Faith Healer, Donovan Woods, Hilotrons… I could go on for half an hour!
RCR recently collaborated with Precision Record Pressing to release Ian Tamblyn’s seminal album Magnetic North on vinyl for the first time. Tell us about the process of bringing this release to vinyl?
I’ve been familiar with this album since the release in 1990. Some of my friends are on the album and it was only available on cassette at the time. I brought the cassette to the store a few years back and played it on a really nice Nakamichi Dragon Tape Deck. We were all gobsmacked!
I contacted Ian on Facebook about pressing it on vinyl. A few months later Ian Tamblyn walked into the store with the master tapes under his arm and so began the process of releasing this on vinyl. First, we had to find someone to bake the tape for us. We also needed someone with a Dolby SR Decoder. Ian found someone to bake the tapes at the National Archives. Bathouse Studios helped with Dolby SR decoding, then they were sent to Philip Shaw Bova’s studio where he made the vinyl master. We chose Clear (T2) vinyl for this release and Ian got permission to use the original artwork. It is without question one of the best sounding records we have made!
On December 12, Ian Tamblyn joined host Roch Parisien at The Record Centre to discuss the album and give an exclusive live performance:
2020 has been a challenging year for many retail businesses, but a bumper year for vinyl record sales. How has The Record Centre adapted to the current situation?
Through Instagram and Facebook sales, we’ve been able to pay the rent. We hustled through the Summer, delivering records, repairing turntables on people’s front porch, selling stereo setups! It has been incredible to see the support from the community we have received, once the store was allowed to reopen in June we relied on curbside pick ups and continued deliveries. Eventually we opened to the public in July and were busy from day one.
I started to plan a new retail section in the back 300 sq ft of the store. I have specialized in vintage audio for 30 years but have also been a dealer for new audio gear: Technics, VPI, Music Hall, Grado, Ortofon to name a few. In October we started construction on the new space and are now authorized dealers for Accuphase, Kuzma, Dr. Feickert, Wharfedale, PMC and others.
This new section is now open. We took some time off from the label this year to concentrate on our core business, records and audio gear. RCR-049 is coming soon… in December I am sending PRP the vinyl masters for Campbell Woods’ latest LP, a beautifully crafted Folk album that features Mary Margaret O’hara! Big thanks to Tristen and Paul and everyone at Precision Record Pressing, it’s been quite a journey.
For more information about the label and store visit facebook.com/TheRecordCentre.
Photo credit: Alexander MacIsaac (Header)