And, of course, rock and roll poured out of the speakers.īut above all, the House is remembered for it’s soft-spoken owner, who always wore a cardigan and walked around the shop, talking to customers and puffing on his pipe.įormer employees and friends remember Tom Headlee for his cardigans, pipe, tiny handwriting and easy charm. There were crates and crates and crates of records, clothes, stereo equipment, CDs and (ahem) tobacco accessories. The yellow walls were plastered with posters. There were jars of incense scattered around. Like most independent record stores, it was aggressively eclectic. Those who knew House of Sight and Sound remember being overwhelmed upon first entry. Someone else started a Facebook page in the store’s honor, where former customers still wax nostalgic about the hippie outpost on the High Plains, which some dubbed the “House of Song and Bong.”Ĭhad Kassem, the owner and founder of Acoustic Sounds and Quality Record Pressings in Salina, is thankful for the House’s role in starting his own record collection, which ultimately morphed into thriving music businesses in a seemingly remote section of the heartland. One loyal record buyer created a tribute song to the store. The shop closed in 2011, but dedicated customers and former employees keep its memory alive. This was the atmosphere Headlee cultivated in his store every day for the almost 40 years it was in business. It wasn’t considered tedious work so much as an opportunity for hours of conversation, laughter and memories with owner Tom Headlee and his equally charismatic employees. Loyal customers would flock to help count records, CDs and packages of incense. SALINA, Kansas – Every year, retailers face a dreaded task: inventory.Īt the House of Sight and Sound in Salina, though, this was a hallowed time.

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When i record it echos