Dallas’ oldest record store, known historically as the place where J.D. Tippit may have made a phone call before his fatal run-in with Lee Harvey Oswald, is known today mostly as a purveyor of Tejano CDs.
Soon, Top Ten Records could be known as a media and music library where guests can buy or rent Texas-based records and videos.
As the Dallas Morning News first reported last week, that’s thanks in large part to the Oak Cliff record store’s neighbors down the street on Jefferson Boulevard. With Top Ten’s longtime owner set to retire, two of the Texas Theatre boys hope to, with some help, operate the store in partnership with the city’s own archivist and SMU’s extensive film and video collection.
They’ve launched an online campaign to raise $40,000 for renovations, inventory, and other expenses. Here’s what you can expect from the reinvented Top Ten, per that fundraiser:
Records, of course! The shop will continue to carry new and used vinyl records for sale.
A curated selection of music and movies for sale on a wide variety of media including blu-rays, DVD’s, VHS, cassette tapes, and CD’s.
Items for rent/loan to subscription members of Top Ten Records, including rare films, trailers, and industrial videos VHS, DVD, blu-ray, 16mm, Super 8mm, 8mm, 35mm).
Member-based Archive Access: the shop will provide members with knowledge of and, where possible, access to prints held in other libraries and archives via an in-house database.
Exclusive VHX Channel Access: Subscription members to Top Ten Records will get access to this online channel! There will be rare films and curated videos available online for current members of Top Ten Records. This content will include new scans of films from the G. William Jones Film & Video Collection at Southern Methodist University (SMU).
Coming soon: film scanning (8,16, and 35mm), legacy video transfer, LTO backup, restoration, and color correction.
As Jefferson Boulevard braces for coming changes, this seems like a model of welcoming the new without forsaking the past.
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