Marda Loop store buys CBC music collection

The new arrivals section at The Inner Sleeve record store will likely be soultastic, meaning full of soul. Photo: Nathan Ross

“This was a much different buying experience to what we are used to,” said Marilyn Hall, owner of The Inner Sleeve.

When The Inner Sleeve opened its doors on March 31, it still had the same diverse selection that has made the Marda Loop record store a hit among Calgarians. However, the end of the month marked the beginning of a new chapter for The Inner Sleeve it was the first day they had records from CBC Radio’s collection for sale.

Going along with the age of digitalization, CBC Radio Calgary made the shift to convert their entire musical library into digital files, leaving many wondering what would happen to the roughly 62,000-piece collection. With interest from collectors of all sorts, it was important for the Canadian icon to give back to the local community. Not only will the collection go to an independent Calgary business but it will be donating a yet-to-be-determined amount to charity, as will the record store.

For Inner Sleeve owner Marilyn Hall, the thrilling opportunity is just another change the store has seen since it opened.

“There have been many exciting events that have taken place over the last eight years since we opened The Inner Sleeve that I never envisioned… the decision to cut out books to focus on music, creating our annual all you can carry sale and purchasing the CBC Calgary vinyl and CD library,” Hall said. “Purchasing a collection of this size and diversity is a record store owner’s dream and we are happy to be able to offer this collection to our customers and the people of Calgary and beyond.”

Although it is the largest purchase in the history of the store, buying record collections is nothing new for Hall. This time last year, a deal for over 20,000 pieces was struck between The Inner Sleeve and one of the previous owners of Hot Wax, a Kensington record store. As well, countless over-the-counter deals have been struck, as buying and selling vinyl is one of the reasons The Inner Sleeve has become such a favourite for many local and travelling collectors.

The store was not built with the intent of housing so many records, it will take some time before everything gets a chance to hit the shelves. Despite making as much space within the store as possible. The Inner Sleeve will be bringing in the collection genre-by-genre. No strangers to the digital age themselves they are using Facebook and Twitter to spread the word to their clientele.

However, it may be the case that not every single record is available to the public, as Hall might be adding to her personal collection. When asked which was her favourite, she replied, “I’m still making my way through the stacks as I’ve been pricing, but so far I have really liked an album by a band called Grapefruit and one by Sweet Thursday. I’ll have a better answer after I’ve listened to another couple hundred.”