Bob's Blues & Jazz Mart

This is the best place in Chicago to find jazz records. The store owner is very kind and helpful, and the selection is insane. The location is also very transit accessible as it’s right off of the Irving park bus, and only a few stops away from the Irving park Blue Line. Highly recommend!

This is the place I was looking for in the wake of Dave’s Records and Jazz Record Mart’s closings over the years. Tons of records and CDs to dig through. Super relaxed and the owner is friendly, chill, and helpful. Absolutely make this a stop on your Chicago record pilgrimage.

Legendary record store. Love everything about this spot. No better place to shop for your jazz. Great selection of both new and original pressings from the common to the incredibly rare. The founder and original owner, Bob, unfortunately just passed away recently but his son Bob Jr. carries on his legacy and runs an outstanding shop. He knows everything about jazz and blues, he is incredibly friendly, kind and an absolute joy to interact with anytime I drop by. I even stopped in once with my 6 year old daughter in tow and he set her up with a keyboard to play on (and even showed her a few notes) while I flipped through a couple bins. Seriously, I’d give this place 6 stars if Google would let me.

I recommend that you make the trip to this wonderful little gem and I hope that it is open for years to come. Bob is extremely friendly, kind, knowledgable and helpful. The store is well organized with a huge selection of jazz and blues music in all formats. There is an excellent selection of vinyls, cds, tapes and 78s. One could easily spend a couple of hours looking through the music. I will visit again for the atmosphere, the selection and the customer service. I recommend that you visit too!

Never done a Google review before, but have to for Bob’s. After being closed because of COVID protocols, he’s back open! The man has an encyclopedic knowledge of all things jazz n blues. Ask him about something by the sub-genre, artist, or instrument (I’d bet by record label too), and he’ll give you some great suggestions. There’s not another record store in Chicago with this extensive of a selection of blues n jazz. Support local business to build up your record collection. It’s worth the trip.