M I SPY
THE KING OF STATEN ISLAND
Staten Island, the southernmost borough of New York City, doesn’t get enough respect, especially when it comes to music. There’s a reason it’s sometimes called the “forgotten borough”; when most non-New Yorkers think of New York City, Staten Island’s sleepy suburban neighborhoods don’t immediately come to mind. And New Yorkers themselves tend to treat Staten Island as an afterthought at best. Even proud Staten Island residents and those who were born and raised there tend to look at their home borough in a self-deprecating light; look no further than “The King of Staten Island,” a movie starring “Saturday Night Live” cast member and native Staten Islander Pete Davidson, which does not exactly always offer a positive portrayal of the borough. But Staten Island does have some impressive musical credentials. The best-known performers from the borough include rap greats the Wu-Tang Clan, rock legend David Johansen (best known as a member of the New York Dolls) and folk music star Joan Baez. The St. George Theatre has served up a variety of amazing musical performances over its nearly 100-year-long history, and clubs like Adobe Blues and Mother Pug’s Saloon are known for being fine live music locales. And Staten Island boasts a fine assortment of independent musical instrument stores, as well. These tend to be modest-sized shops that serve the local community and help make the music go ‘round in “the Borough of Parks.” This month, the Chief tasked me with writing up a report on some of these small shops, so I called a Staten Island-based friend of mine codenamed “Big B the Lawyer” to see if he had the scoop on which ones would be worth checking out. With Big B’s recommendations in mind, I grabbed a mask and some hand sanitizer, hopped in the MI Spy Mobile, and hit the Staten Island Expressway to see if I could show Staten Island some of the love and recognition it deserves. 32
Norm’s Music z 4401 Arthur Kill Road z Staten Island, NY 10309 z 718.376.0910 I was particularly interested in checking out Norm’s Music, even though it was waaaaay out in a more rural section of Staten Island. Full disclosure, readers: Although I was visiting Norm’s new location on this trip, I was already familiar with its former location and its old ownership; in fact, one of the owners used to be a very chatty guy, and we actually knew a few people in common. I was kinda bummed out when Norm’s left its old location (I think a small grocery store moved into that spot), but it was good to see that the store lives on. I didn’t want any of the workers to recognize me, on the off chance that some of the old staff had made the transition to the new location, so I zipped my coat all the way up and covered my face with a nondescript mask (a truly spy-like move that isn’t as suspicious now as it used to be in the pre-pandemic days). Being familiar with the old location, I had some expectations about Norm’s and some notes to compare the new location to. One plus over the previous location: Norm’s now has a few parking spots right out in front of the store. The old location had no parking lot to speak of, only curbside, metered parking, which made it difficult to haul out and load the bigger purchases, such as amps. But I did notice that the store is now smaller. The old location was a lengthier store that had more room to display instruments on the walls. This smaller space had less on display. Norm’s does, however, still carry a little bit of everything: guitars, amps, accessories, percussion, books of sheet music, sound equipment, keyboards and such. Everything was neat and prices were clearly displayed. There was even an inexpensive steel pan with mallets for sale (and for a long, strong minute, I was tempted to buy it). And Norm’s does carry a good amount of sound and DJ equipment. But the musical instrument selection was limited, especially compared to the old location, which had more to offer. (The website does have a bigger selection that shoppers can browse as well, so maybe it’s a sign of our world becoming ever-more digital.) I also did not get much of a welcome when I walked in. There was one guy on the sales floor, and after he said “Hi. How can I help you?” he just went back to working on his laptop. It was also much quieter in the store than I was accustomed to; in the past, Norm’s was always playing loud rock ‘n roll on the speakers, and customers would be loudly trying out guitars or other instruments. It was too quiet this time around, but that was likely due to the pandemic. Although I preferred some things about Norm’s old location, the current store does, however, maintain a kitschy touch that made me smile. Two fake flash pots dangled from the ceiling, with faux flames dancing from them. And Norm’s does have a cool logo.
Rustic Music Center z 531 Forest Avenue z Staten Island, NY 10310 z 718.727.5950 With a name like Rustic Music Center, I wondered if this store would be a log shack hiding a moonshine still out back. But nope, Rustic Music was more like a really cool duplex apartment with a heckuva lot of musical instruments popping out of every nook and cranny. Like Norm’s, this store had a few parking spots, tucked around the corner. The walls were covered in guitars, both electric and acoustic, and there was a mini-room of amps and more guitars. The street level had a very impressive amount of other instruments as well, including a freestanding selection of ukes, displays for drums and percussion instruments, and more. The lower level had many acoustic guitars, banjoleles and a few mandolins, too. It was a crowded setup, but definitely not overwhelming, and I didn’t feel like I was about to slam into everything. Rustic Music Center also had a super-special guitar pick size for sale; I bought three of these as a gift for a college student acquaintance of mine, Agent J, who plays jazz guitar. The guy who was working there was very helpful and knew his stuff. He showed me the variety of acoustic and acoustic-electric guitars he had in stock. He pointed out that some were especially made for classical music, and others more for folk and rock. One guitar caught my eye because the sound hole was shaped differently than a typical acoustic. The worker explained why that brand makes it that way, and he also pointed out the store’s thinner-body acoustic guitars. Upstairs, he told me about the different types of hollow-body electrics the store stocked. Also for sale were lots of effects pedals, which were displayed at the main counter. As I went to leave, the salesguy cheerfully told me to “Check out our selection online!” and handed me a business card. (I did check out their website later on, and it is a well-designed site.)
Castellano’s House of Music z 1013 Richmond Ave. z Staten Island, NY 10314 z 718.982.8548 If I thought Rustic Music was like a duplex apartment, then Castellanos was like a crowded house full of musical instruments, accessories and other goodies. Unfortunately, there was no dedicated parking for MARCH 2021