At Shake Rag Music, Where a Lifelong Collector Is Trying, Finally, to Sell Off All His Memories

Somewhere along the way, the man who came to Dallas 46 years ago with nothing lost count of all the somethings he has gathered since.John Gasperik cannot tell you, for instance, how many guitars he has for sale at his music store called Shake Rag. Maybe 200. No, 300. Or more. Probably more. He can't tell you how many records he has. (Maybe 500,000?) Or what records he has. Because they are everywhere — along the wall, under the old microphones and posters, behind the vintage T-shirts, next to the 1960s Beatles pinball machine and the 1960s receivers and 1921 Victrola.Last time I'd been in Shake Rag, on Live Oak Street between downtown and Old East Dallas, was maybe a year ago to look at a guitar for my son and some vinyl for me. I've always adored the place, which is best described as a rock 'n' roll museum curated by an out-of-control hoarder. Yes, we recognize our own.   Continue reading...