Tucson record collector comes home, opens shop in antiques malls

But that initial failure planted a seed of how Lambert believed you should operate a used records store.

“My theory from that point on has always been that you treat used records as if you were a new record store,” he said, explaining that he often has more than one copy of popular titles and artists and displays the records in cases where customers can thumb through the albums looking for a rare title or a favorite from the past.

“I always know things are good when the inventory is all mixed up,” he said. “When things are out of order, then I know that people are looking.”

And what they will find is rare albums by the Doors, Jimi Hendrix, British folk rockers Fairport Convention and Emerson, Lake & Palmer alongside the usual suspects in record collectors’ catalogues by Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin.

He also has some jazz, blues and classical albums in the mix.

Desert Vinyl is a post-retirement venture for the 65-year-old Lambert, whose work life has included selling solar, importing wine, manufacturing cassette tapes and owning and running a recording studio for kids.

But with every new venture, Lambert found himself dreaming aloud about running a record store.

“I kept having these dreams of walking around a record store,” he said.