Ghost of Eastside Records to host grand reopening this weekend

In the history of popular music, the triple LP is a rarity because it’s difficult to pull off well. There’s “All Things Must Pass” by George Harrison, “Sandinista!” by The Clash and “The Fragile” by Nine Inch Nails but not many great ones. Pulling off three great albums in a row is no easy feat.

If Eastside Records was LP1 and Ghost of Eastside Records was LP2, then it’s time to drop the needle on the legendary Tempe record store’s third LP.

On Saturday, July 11, the store begins its next chapter as Ghost of Eastside Records, with Grace Records owner Darren Skarecky and manager Brent Berger at the helm. The name on the door will remain, but the challenge will be in preserving everything that made it one of the Valley’s most beloved record stores while finding new ways to help it grow.

When we spoke with former owner Mike Pawlicki before he retired, he made it clear that the store’s greatest strength was never simply the records on the shelves. It was the people who walked through the doors, the conversations that happened between the bins and the relationships that developed over decades. Those are the things that can’t be purchased along with a business.

Fortunately, those are also the things Skarecky and Berger say they have no intention of replacing.

“We wanted to continue on what Mike has built,” Skarecky says. “We’ve been very close to Mike, so when the opportunity arose, we were very interested in continuing the legacy of the site and raising it up to another level.”

Rather than simply converting the location into a second Grace Records, the pair say they want Ghost of Eastside Records to maintain the personality that made it so special while borrowing the best ideas from their Gilbert store.

“I think every record store has its own personality,” Skarecky says. “That’s built by the customers more than the employees that work there. This store isn’t going to be Grace Records. It can’t be because it’s a different personality.”

That means longtime customers should still expect to find the punk records, underground releases, hip-hop, and deep catalog selections that earned Ghost its reputation, while also seeing expanded inventory and improvements that simply weren’t possible before.

Skarecky describes the goal as combining “the best of both.”

“We’re going to keep this pretty authentic to Mike,” he says, noting that Ghost of Eastside will lean even more heavily into used vinyl while expanding the store’s overall selection.

One of the biggest questions surrounding the transition has been whether the sense of community can survive a change in ownership.

Ghost of Eastside was the kind of place where Mike knew customers by name and remembered the albums they collected. It wasn’t uncommon for him to quietly pull a record aside because he knew someone had been searching for it and offering it to them first upon their new visit to the store.

Berger says that collector-first mentality is something he already practices at Grace Records.

“If you’re a record collector and you’re running a store, then you’re a record collector no matter what,” Berger says. “You respect the record collector mentality.”

That philosophy extends beyond the inventory. Marshall Wereski, one of the familiar faces customers came to know during Ghost’s final years, will remain with the store, helping provide continuity as the new ownership settles in. Skarecky and Berger’s own longtime connections within the local music community also factored into the decision to purchase the store, and Skarecky describes the people behind the counter as the key to preserving the atmosphere Ghost of Eastside was known for.

While many of the store’s classic elements will look familiar, visitors will also notice some significant additions.

The grand reopening begins when the doors open at 10 a.m. on Saturday. Early visitors can enjoy baked goods courtesy of one of Pawlicki’s longtime customers, and giveaways and door prizes will be offered throughout the day. The store is also adding roughly 5,000 new and used records to the inventory, giving collectors plenty of reasons to spend time digging through the bins.

The celebration concludes with a performance by Tempe band The Nobel Crooks at 3 p.m., and Skarecky hopes it marks the beginning of a renewed commitment to supporting local musicians. Future plans include more intimate in-store performances and partnerships with nearby venues like Yucca Tap Room, allowing Ghost of Eastside Records to become not just a place to buy records, but another stop in Tempe’s music ecosystem.

For Berger and Skarecky, success won’t simply be measured by sales.

“Success is measured by the happiness of the customer,” Skarecky says. “If they’re stoked to come here, it’s successful.”

That’s an appropriate goal for a place whose greatest legacy has never been the records themselves, but the people who gathered around them.

Ghost of Eastside Records may have reached the end of its second LP. On Saturday morning, it gets the chance to prove the third one belongs in the collection, too.