From...

May 26, 1999
Web posted at: 8:14 a.m. EDT (1214 GMT)

by Cameron Crotty

(IDG) -- If you've ever stomped out of a local record store because it didn't have your favorite artist in stock--or you couldn't believe how much it was charging for the new release--fire up your browser and get ready to shop.

Just a few clicks away is an enormous selection of music. Online megastores and music clubs are beating each other up to offer the lowest possible prices. The Web gives local merchants a global reach. Small producers (especially independent labels) sell directly to fans. And auction and bazaar sites are loaded with imports and other hard-to-find titles.

Music warehouses such as CD Now, Every CD, and Music Boulevard boast enormous catalogs and rock-bottom prices. Other large, well-known media businesses are also trying to horn in on online music sales. Both Borders Books and Music and Amazon.com sell music, but they're sometimes not as well stocked as the dedicated sites.

When you're buying from the megasites, take the time to troll for the lowest price. Also, keep an eye on sales tax (which varies from state to state) and shipping costs, both of which can pile up on the bottom line.

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Mail-order music clubs such as Columbia House and BMG Music Service have taken to the Web as well. As always, music clubs are a good news, bad news story. The good news is that you can get a lot of music up front for little money. The bad news is that you'll pay for it in the long run, as music club prices are generally astronomical.

If you decide to join a club, using the Web has several advantages. For starters, you can choose your initial pack of free albums from the company's complete online catalog, instead of the feeble selection offered in its magazine advertisements. And you can forget about mail-in cards -- you can handle all your ordering online. The Blooberry CD Club FAQ is a good primer on getting the most out of music clubs.

Music clubs and monster sites are fine if you have mainstream musical tastes. But if you're looking for something off the beaten path, a good local music store can be worth its weight in gold -- especially if your odd tastes match the management's odd tastes. San Francisco's Aquarius Records offers a weekly e-mail newsletter listing new releases, complete with staff reviews. And Boston's Newbury Comics is an East Coast favorite. Still can't find your favorite underground artist? Check out the Web sites of independent record labels such as SubPop and Atomic Pop, which offer their artists' records straight from the sources. Fans of American roots music such as swing, blues, and rockabilly need look no further than HighTone Recordings, distributor of Big Sandy and his Fly-Rite Boys, among others.

Finally, the serious enthusiast looking for the rarest of the rare should take a trip through the music listings at eBay, where you'll find everything from promotional one-offs to unusual imports, all for sale to the highest bidder. MusicFile also has an auction section, but its main feature is a database of millions of titles offered for sale by hundreds of importers, collectors, and small businesses.

One day we'll be able to download all our music directly from the Internet, but you don't need to wait for that Buck Rogers utopia -- the Web is a great place to buy music right now.