Manny’s Music Site Sold To The Rockefeller Group

Everything has a cycle, even though we know that there’s always a tear shed at the end, and Manny’s Music is no exception. Although the store has been closed for over ten years now, the building was knocked down last year, truly putting a final end to a brilliant era of New York City music stores. Now comes word that the Rockefeller Group has purchased it for $24.3 million.

Manny’s was once ground zero for music stores in New York’s acclaimed “Music Row.” If you wanted to see the latest gear even before it was advertised in the magazines (this was pre-Internet), this was the place to go. If you wanted a killer deal on any kind of music or audio gear, you’d get the best deal here.

Sadly that era is no more, as the musical instrument business has morphed into something that can’t even be recognized from those days gone by. The retail side of things is just a shell of its former self, as it’s so much easier to buy online these days. And thanks to precision manufacturing these days, you’re less likely to find an instrument that’s better or worse than any other in the model range, meaning it’s safer to buy before you try than ever before.

Still, I miss Manny’s and all the stores of Music Row. I miss the excitement of landing at JFK and the anticipation of my first stop in the city at the store. I miss the casual conversations with John Sebastian and Eddie Murphy while I was trying out gear, just as they were. I miss the Hall of Fame pictures on the wall, something that most likely can’t be equaled by another music store anywhere.

So Manny’s is just a memory and an empty lot now, soon to be replaced by a building owned by New York old money. I still have those memories though.

Tell me your memories of Manny’s on my Facebook page.

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