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Some people head to St. Petersburg for the beaches, but music lovers have another reason to visit. Tucked away on a quiet stretch of the city, one record store holds so many albums that it needs a second building to fit them all.
The shelves run deep with vinyl, CDs, DVDs and cassettes, and the walls double as a little museum of old radios, boomboxes and TV sets. Collectors happily drive across the region just to flip through the bins.
Prices stay friendly, the air conditioning is strong, and there is always another room around the corner. Keep reading to learn where it is, what to look for, when to go, and why a quick browse here can easily turn into an entire afternoon.
A Record Store on 22nd Avenue North
Bananas Records: CDs, DVDs & Vinyl sits at 2887 22nd Ave N, St. Petersburg, FL 33713, in the heart of Florida’s Tampa Bay area.
It is a record store first and foremost, but calling it just a shop sells it short. The building holds a huge mix of physical media, from LPs and compact discs to movies on DVD and cassette tapes.
Plenty of locals admit they drove past it for years before finally stopping in. Once they do, the regret usually sets in fast, mostly about all the time they spent not shopping here.
The store draws a wide crowd. Longtime collectors, casual browsers, touring musicians and families looking for an indoor outing all end up in the same aisles.
Some fans come from 45 minutes away and say the drive is no problem at all. Others have visited record stores in dozens of states and still put this one near the top of their personal lists.
The appeal is simple. There is a lot to look through, it is organized well, and something unexpected tends to turn up every visit.
Before getting to the bins, though, it helps to understand just how much space this collection actually takes up.
So Much Music It Needed a Warehouse
Most record shops run out of room eventually. Bananas Records solved that problem by spreading out.
Inside the main store, a back room and warehouse area holds cassette tapes, tons more records and antique pieces. Many of those antiques are there mostly for display, so think of them as part of the scenery rather than the inventory.
The surprises keep stacking up. Just when it seems like every corner has been checked, another room appears that somehow went unnoticed the first time.
Then there is the second location. A separate warehouse sits about seven blocks away, filled with even more music.
That extra space matters for anyone hunting something specific. If the retail store does not have a certain title, there is a decent chance it is waiting at the nearby warehouse.
Seasoned shoppers recommend bringing a written list. It keeps the search focused, even though the shelves have a way of pulling attention toward things that were never on the list in the first place.
With that much stock spread across multiple rooms, the next question is how anyone finds anything at all.
Bins That Actually Make Sense
Here is a pleasant surprise for a store this size: it is well organized.
Vinyl is arranged by genre and by artist, with separate sections for each style of music. That makes it easy to head straight for blues, rock or new wave without wandering in circles.
The layout is also spacious. Shoppers are not crammed shoulder to shoulder, so flipping through a bin does not mean leaning over a stranger.
A new arrivals section helps regular shoppers keep up. Fresh records come in all the time, so the selection keeps shifting no matter how often someone stops by.
One lucky collector found the exact album they had been hoping for sitting among roughly 62 records in that new arrivals bin. Odds like that make the section worth checking first.
The music mix runs eclectic. There is a well-stocked blues section, a strong showing of new wave vinyl, and rare records tucked in for patient diggers.
The range can get delightfully odd too. The shelves have carried both the soundtrack to the Rob Schneider film The Animal on CD and Rob Zombie’s The Lords of Salem on vinyl, which says plenty about how deep the stock goes.
Beyond the Vinyl: CDs, Tapes and a Movie Room
Vinyl gets top billing, but the name says CDs and DVDs for a reason.
Compact discs fill a big share of the store, covering all kinds of genres. Cassette tapes have a strong presence too, and the back room is one of the best places to find them.
Movie fans have their own corner. A dedicated movie room is packed with DVDs ranging from classic films to more recent releases.
Browsing there can take a while, so the store thoughtfully provides stools. Sitting down to scan the shelves is not lazy here; it is basically encouraged.
Other formats show up as well. Laser discs make an appearance, which is a treat for anyone who remembers those oversized movie platters.
The store also sells turntables, so a first-time collector can leave with both the music and the machine to play it. Clothing, bags, mugs and other merch round things out.
That makes it a handy stop for gift shopping. A browse for one album can easily end with a present for a friend tucked under the arm.
A Back Wall Full of Music History
Some stores decorate with posters. Bananas Records went with an entire mini museum.
The back wall is lined with vintage equipment from music’s past. Old radios, record players, boomboxes, televisions, phones and stereos are all on display.
The story often shared is that the owner was a serious collector of this gear. Whatever the reason, the result is a wall that many shoppers call a highlight of the trip.
Pop culture pieces join the electronics. Retro lunch boxes and other nostalgic items turn up throughout the space.
For people who grew up in the 1980s, spotting a first boombox or a childhood lunch box on the shelf can be a fun little time trip. For younger shoppers, it is a hands-off history lesson on how people used to play music.
The collection has earned the description museum-worthy from folks who visit record stores all over the country. That is high praise in a hobby full of picky people.
Even someone who leaves without buying a single album can call the visit worthwhile just for this display.
Listening Stations and Live Local Bands
Buying a record blind is a gamble. Bananas Records takes some of the guesswork out of it.
Listening stations let shoppers play albums before deciding. That is a real perk when the bin holds a band nobody has heard of yet.
Seating is spread around the store too. There are several spots to sit down and relax, and drinks are available for anyone settling in.
Then there is the live music. The store hosts local shows and has two stages set up for different styles of music and different kinds of crowds.
Performers who have played here speak warmly about the experience. For local bands, it is a chance to play in a room full of people who clearly care about music.
For shoppers, it adds a whole new reason to stop by. A browse can turn into an evening of hearing a new act from the area.
Checking the store website before a visit is a smart move for anyone hoping to catch a show, since event details are not posted on the door forever.
Prices That Keep Collectors Coming Back
Good news for budget-minded crate diggers: this is not a place that charges a fortune.
Prices land around average compared with other record shops, which makes them competitive for a store with this much variety. The collection is often described as both diverse and affordable.
Small treasures can be especially cheap. A vintage Rolling Stone magazine has gone for under three dollars.
The real danger is the just-looking trap. One shopper planned to browse and walked out about $90 lighter after finding a few things that were impossible to leave behind.
Returns are handled smoothly too. A collector of 50 years notes that the few times something needed to come back, there was never a problem.
That kind of backing matters with used media. Buying with confidence is easier when the store stands behind what it sells.
The best strategy is to set a loose budget, check new arrivals, then dig. Just be warned that the loose part of that budget tends to get looser with every bin.
Who Feels at Home in the Aisles
Audiophiles get the obvious win here, but the crowd goes well past serious collectors.
The staff is generally described as friendly, knowledgeable and helpful without hovering. That lets people move through the crates at their own pace.
Experiences can vary, though. A few shoppers have noticed checkout visits with little greeting or chatter, so service is not always as warm as the store’s reputation suggests.
The overall mood stays relaxed. Many describe the atmosphere as calm and easygoing, a spot to hang out for an hour or lose most of a day.
It works for families too. Parents have found it a handy indoor stroll with a baby when the Florida heat outside gets brutal.
That brings up a very practical perk. The air conditioning is strong, which counts for a lot during summer in St. Petersburg.
Couples, out-of-town guests and music-loving partners all fit in. One spouse can dig through LPs while the other checks out the vintage gear, and both leave happy.
Hours, Timing and a Friendly Verdict
Planning ahead pays off, mostly because a short visit rarely stays short.
Bananas Records is open Monday through Thursday from 10 AM to 6 PM. Friday and Saturday run a little later, from 10 AM to 7 PM.
Sunday hours are shorter, from noon to 5 PM. Weekday afternoons or a longer Saturday slot give the most time to dig without watching the clock.
Record Store Day is a big deal here as well. Collectors have picked up special releases during the spring and fall events, so those dates are worth marking.
A few tips help. Bring a list, check new arrivals first, and ask about the nearby warehouse if something is missing.
Leave extra time for the vintage display and the movie room. They are easy to underestimate.
So is it worth the trip? For anyone in the Tampa Bay area who loves physical media, the answer leans strongly toward yes.
Huge selection, fair prices, a bonus warehouse and a wall of music history make for a pretty sweet bunch, and yes, the banana pun was inevitable.
