Diggin’ the tunes at Capital City Records

The vinyl revival continues in BR

Dana Labat has always loved music. As a child, he remembers listening to 45s and the first time he heard The Beatles’ “I Wanna Hold Your Hand.” As a young adult, he remembers seeing everyone from Procol Harum to Kiss perform in New Orleans dives.

“Back then, tickets to those concerts were $4,” he says.

The music-loving life slowed down when Labat got married and had a few kids, but he always had a love for collecting music. Now, the Gonzales resident has his very own record shop, Capital City Records, in Baton Rouge on Perkins Road, which opened in early November.

“The first day we opened, people were here before me,” he says. “It’s good to know that Baton Rouge will support another record store.”

Though Labat is still working on getting his shelves stocked, he already has quite a few new releases and old classics in mint condition. As soon as you walk in, you’ll notice sealed, never-opened copies of Buckingham/Nicks and King Crimson’s In the Court of the Crimson King. Near the register is a colorful mural painted by Kristen “KAWD” Downing that features iconic images of Elvis Costello, The Residents, Bob Marley, Frank Zappa and Prince.

“These are just some of the greats,” Labat says. “If I wanted a mural with all my heroes, I couldn’t fit them all up there.”

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