Unlike the lake-effect clouds that darken Buffalo’s midday sky, I immediately recognized the vibrant turquoise and yellow paint of my destination. The record store stood out from the rest of the empty Rust Belt street called Mach Luchey Way, named after the record store’s former owner.

Outside it was dark, windy, and by the time I left the store it was snowing. But inside Doris Records, it’s warm and happy. Behind layers of clothing, underwear, CDs, records and other items and products for sale, Sean Carter oversees the store from behind the counter.

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Carter, 52 – whose nickname is Big Pete – runs the store. But he is not the owner, he insists.

Carter says his late father, Mack Luchey, is still the owner and his spirit still lives inside the store. Luchey opened the store in 1962 with his then-wife, Doris, after whom the store was named. Carter says Luchey and Doris separated before he was born, but the store survived.

In the ’60s and ’70s, Carter says the East Side neighborhood of Buffalo where Doris Records is located was much busier before the economy took hold. At the time, Rick James, the late funk musician, grew up next door and spent time at Doris Records chatting with Luchey, who Carter says “encouraged him.” After James succeeded, he returned to the store later with a signed plaque that he gave to Luchey, thanking him for his encouragement along the way. Other top artists made a point of stopping by Doris Records while in town, including local band Griselda.

Carter says Doris Records is the oldest business in the neighborhood. He devotes himself to maintaining it almost as a shrine to his father. He calls it a “museum” where community members and guests come to reminisce about when Luchey was still here.

While many other businesses in the area have closed their doors since Doris Records began, Carter says her store has been able to survive by “adapting.”

Fighting the threat of economic failure, Carter transformed Doris Records into a “variety store,” finding new ways to make money, such as selling tickets to events and serving as a UPS drop-off point. There’s even a refrigerator outside where community members can get free food, which Carter said is meant to continue his father’s “tradition of being part of the community.”

“I hope that door continues to open and people continue to come and just support us,” Carter says.

What is the history of the store?

At the time, everything was prosperous here. My father was a hardworking man. He started when he was young. He and his wife were working in a record store on Broadway, and they had an idea and they opened up here and we’ve been thriving ever since.

How did you manage to stay open?

We still have a few loyal customers who purchase CDs and other products for those that are available. We sell used music, which is more like a variety store now. For events happening in town, like book signings, movie premieres, concerts, whether spoken word or sporting events, we sell tickets. We sell tickets going from here to Rochester, Syracuse sometimes, Niagara Falls. Whenever there is an event, even if we don’t have tickets, you can call here for information. It’s like the place to be.

We adapted to whatever was happening. Our main business was a music store, but we always had a variety of different things to do. We still sell music, but it’s not the main product because everyone has a phone now. But there are still loyal customers and we now do a lot with used records.

So we get a lot of collectors, a lot of people from Canada. People come from everywhere, they hear about us. People find gems. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure. At one point, we maintained the correctional facilities by sending them clothing, food parcels and music.

Right now it’s like a museum. Many people still come here, bring their families who have moved away, their children and grandchildren, and remember what this place was like when they were younger.

What do people come here to see?

They still see the old posters and they come and tell stories about their childhood and how my father greeted everyone in the neighborhood. The nostalgia for the building is still there.

It is a place of peace. It’s a sanctuary for the neighborhood.

Tell me about some of the artists that have been in the store.

Rick James. There was a building next door, they lived upstairs. He would come here and study. He would collect the records and look at the back and write down the addresses of the record companies and one day said to my father “I’m going to be big” and my father kept encouraging him. And he never stopped coming back. He would come here and talk about how my father had encouraged him.

Everyone you name who came through Buffalo eventually came here. I remember one time when Ice Cube showed up. He had just left NWA, Boys in the neighborhood the movie was premiering, and he was here signing autographs and there was a line around the corner. And of course, they had to be somewhere else. And he looked over there and he said, “You know what, I’m not leaving until everyone gets an autograph.” »

Biggie was here before he exploded. Jay Z, he was here the day before he took off.

A lot of local artists all come here, just to gain that knowledge. There aren’t many record stores. When my dad was here there were concerts and shows and lots of clubs and bars here in the 60s and 70s so my dad knew a lot of them personally.

Tell us about Rick James’ relationship with your father.

The building is no longer there. It was the neighboring lot and there was an apartment upstairs that his mother occupied. There was a grocery store next door, Mr. Greens, a bodega. He spent a lot of time here picking my father’s brain. And every time the artists came, he was there, just soaking up the game. And everything he said he was going to do, he did.

Then he got his tag and came back, gave one to my dad and took a picture with him. My dad always encouraged him and said, “Keep it up, it’s going to happen.” And it happened and he never forgot. It was his house, so whenever he was in town, he would come. His family always comes here.

They actually had a play, a musical, called The Rick James Story that we are selling tickets at the moment. It’s Sheas’s.

What is your relationship to the current Buffalo music scene?

With Griselda, I knew them when they were younger. And my cousin, DJ Shayhelped them a lot to stay on the path of music. He passed away a few years ago due to Covid, God rest his soul, but he was an important anchor in their careers. So I watched them progress from understanding, trying to understand, and writing. I received a lot of their early music that was never released. I was there, actually, seeing it.

Buffalo is a very talented city. We just don’t have the reach that other big cities have, so when people break out and other places are so surprised. So (we knew Griselda was going to strike). These boys stood their ground and whatever they get, they deserve. They really worked hard. There were so many obstacles that could have led them to take another route. They stayed true to what they decided to do. I’m proud of them boys.

As small as Buffalo is, we are influential on many levels when it comes to music. We have artists on tour with major artists all the time.

There are a lot of people singing and dancing for the artists. There is a lot of talent that has ties to Buffalo. A lot of people’s foundation is Buffalo, and we all stay in touch with each other.

Final words?

Doris Records is here to stay. God is good. We could have closed the doors, but no. My father, he wouldn’t be happy about that. As long as we wake up and have the will to do it, we will do it. Hopefully that door continues to open and people continue to come in and just support us. We support them, they support us. We work together.

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