Didn't know them man but knew the store. I used to haunt those store for Stones & Neil Young boots among others. Sorry to hear.

That's sad news, 64 is kind of early. I remember those stores. Used to visit them every time I was in New York.

I would have been in those shops in those times. Those times are gone --peace be with him and us.

I thought you guys might want to see the tribute I posted on Keith's Facebook pages shortly after his passing. By the way, his Revolver TV YouTube channel continues on in tribute to his spirit and generosity! (You may recal that I posted about a few of those gems here over the past year.)



A TRIBUTE TO MY FRIEND KEITH SLUCHANSKY



Other than a brief confirmation and a few comments, I’ve been quiet on social media regarding the passing of my very dear friend, Keith Sluchansky. This has not been an easy week. I needed to recover from the shock and finish the massive communications that his passing created; then take some time to quietly gather my thoughts in order to publish something that was fitting enough to honor a very special person. The tribute is long, because there’s so much to say about this man. As most people now know, Keith passed away on Wednesday morning March 16, 2016.



Keith and I were friends for more than a quarter century, and I’d known him even longer than that. But over the past few years, we became incredibly close – even though we now lived at opposite ends of the country. With few exceptions, we spoke daily – sometimes as often as four to five times a day – yet we never ran out of things to say. There are very few non-emergency calls I would take at 2am, but I always took Keith’s calls because I knew I would want to hear whatever it was he had to say. Keith called me late Tuesday night, less than 7 hours before he left us. One of his main reasons for calling was to ask me to help a mutual friend who he was afraid might get taken advantage of in something. Now, sadly, not a day has gone by since that final call where I haven’t thought to myself “I can’t wait to tell Keith about this” before reality sets in and I realize that I can’t. For everyone that was close to him, Keith’s death leaves a gaping hole in our lives. For the others who knew him for other reasons, their favorite consultant and historian is gone and can never be replaced.



Keith was a larger-than-life legend. He was known internationally and touched the lives of probably millions of people – and for a variety of reasons. Just a look at his Facebook pages or the various forums he frequented shows countless tributes from people all over the world for all different reasons. Whether you knew him as the king of the Greenwich Village music scene in NYC, the internet video DJ of RevolverTV fame, the political activist, humanitarian, collector, businessman, or just a friend to hang with – you knew he was one of a kind. Most people knew him for ONE of these reasons and considered him someone to be admired and respected. For the few of us who knew the whole man, he was someone who had a HUGE impact on our lives. Many people have said that the first few months of 2016 have been the worst ever for music, with the passing of so many legends in just a short time. With Keith’s passing, this year now surpasses almost every other one for musical tragedies, and it’s impact to popular music for the people who consume it is on a par with the years that we lost Holly, Hendrix, Morrison, Presley and Lennon. The strange thing is that even though Keith knew what his status and influence were, you’d never know it from talking to him. He was always warm, friendly and extremely generous in sharing everything knew with the people who shared his passions.



He was also a brilliant man. He was BOTH smart AND knowledgeable. Although he attended Hunter College, that was just the beginning of his education. He was probably the most well-read person I knew. He had a hunger, not only for knowledge, but for truth! And he had a fascinating mind – a memory that could retain facts, people and events with crystal clarity like none other that I know. Every one of his friends would marvel at his detailed recall of things that happened decades ago and we’d all forgotten. But the most special thing about Keith was his willingness to share his knowledge with anyone who asked. In his last years, I invited him to join some private Beatles forums, where he instantly won people over with his ability to answer all their questions with accurate information that few people had. But what surprised me the most was how many people in these forums, which are worldwide, either met him at one time or knew who he was.



Keith began the career that would make him famous when he started working at Golden Disc in NYC’s Greenwich Village in 1973. From there, he went on to run, co-own, or own Farfels Records, Record Runner, It’s Only Rock & Roll, and Revolver (later Revolution) Records. He built an international reputation as being “THE” place to go for collectible music in NYC. Collectors from around the globe made the pilgrimage to Revolver when visiting the US, just as American Beatle fans made the pilgrimage to Liverpool when visiting England. Visitors and customers to Keith’s store ranged from businesspeople on their lunch hours to celebrities who knew it was the place to be. Facebook friends Howard Kaylan and Gene Cornish and many others have been there. Celebrities, musicians and industry big-wigs all walked through his doors – not for promotional appearances, but to shop and hang out. Even John Lennon would send his staff there to pick things up for him. Not only did Keith have everything that collectors wanted or needed, but he had something the numerous other Village stores didn’t have – an owner who was not arrogant and nasty, an overpriced crook, or just plain crazy. His customers were loyal and his employees adored him. Even before we became friends, I knew Keith to be a fair businessman who treated everyone fairly. Even as the age of internet downloading approached and brick-and-mortar stores disappeared quickly, Keith managed to keep his business going until he became deathly ill in 2004 with diabetes. He lost a leg to the disease and wasn’t expected to survive, but he fought back and recovered. He then moved to Florida where he began a program of diet, exercise and nutrition. He lost a lot of weight and actually reversed his Type2 diabetes. For the last decade of his life, he was not on insulin or diabetes medication – but, unfortunately the disease had severely weakened his heart and kidneys.



Probably the BEST thing about the legendary Revolver Records was something that very few people got to experience – hanging out for hours after the store closed with some very special people. I still laugh when I think about how many times Keith had to unlock the door for me to run down to the corner and get a hot dog at Gray’s Papaya, a slice at the REAL Ray’s, or a HaagenDazs bar at the all night grocery on 6th Avenue. Some of the best times were after we’d all leave the store and head out to eat in the middle of the night. We often ended up at Kiev. Now Keith is gone, Revolver is gone, Kiev is gone, and several of the other people there are also gone (RIP Eddie & Karen).



Even from his wheelchair, he kept hundreds of thousands of people happy. When he launched Revolver TV just about a year ago, he generated a sensation that people from all over the world kept tuned into. In its short run so far, his internet video channels have millions of views and thousands of regular subscribers. With the help of his most trusted friends, Keith started RevolverTV after recovering from yet another tragedy in his life. A few years ago, Keith met and fell in love with a very special woman. They made plans to spend the rest of their lives together and take care of each other into their old ages. But, much like in Keith’s case, she entered the hospital one day and passed suddenly. Bringing joy to so many people through music video clips gave Keith joy. Every night we would go over the view counts and comments on each clip. The project literally “brought back” the guy I knew. The only sour notes came from a few jealous (and frankly stupid) people with nothing better to do with their lives than to grouse. They gave Keith grief, stress and aggravation in his final months with imbecilic comments, complaints (like about watermarks) and totally false inferences and accusations. Luckily, these idiots were far outnumbered by the people who appreciated his generosity – but to those unfortunate wretches I have these final words: I hope your consciences allow you to forgive yourselves one day for your reprehensible and cruel behavior towards someone at the end of his life, whose intentions were nothing but generous, magnanimous and kind.



Sure Keith was unquestionably a “no nonsense, cut-the-crap” kind of guy. He was also infinitely confident and self-assured. Yet he was one of the kindest and gentlest souls I’ve ever had the pleasure to know. Keith didn’t have “likes”, he had “passions”. And he had an encyclopedic knowledge of virtually everything he loved. He loved rock and roll in its purest form. In his heyday, he could be found at every club, arena and stadium show he was interested in. Or you could find him over at Electric Ladyland Studios watching history being made. But, more than anything, he loved the Beatles. I am being completely honest when I say that aside from the Beatles themselves and their inner circle, I believe that there was no one else who did more – whether directly or indirectly – to keep the Beatles legacy alive and their most dedicated fans satisfied. He never got rich from it, but if wealth is measured by friends, he was at the top of the world. He also helped launch and market almost every independent music publication for decades by giving them the only sales outlet in the world that would allow them to succeed. He even sold early copies of my book in his store, and the response was what gave me the confidence and credibility to get it published.



But Keith was so much more. He was ALWAYS there for his friends. He was kind and generous with all of them. Sure – he wouldn’t take any crap from anyone – but he was forgiving and didn’t hold grudges. He would extend incredible efforts to keep in contact with all of his friends. And he felt it was his mission to enlighten everyone when he knew something. He loved his country and he loved his fellow countrymen. But it made sickened him to think that American citizens were being used and abused. Like George Carlin, he knew that decades ago the government and political systems had thrown the electorate under the bus. While we didn’t agree on every detail, we agreed on all the major issues in principal. I believe he was right on the money when he said that most Americans are being distracted from how they’re getting screwed by technological gadgets, pro sports, and reality TV. And the few who aren’t distracted are being manipulated by a system that intentionally keeps conservatives and liberals at each other’s throats over hot-button issues, while the career-criminal politicians merrily carry out the bidding of the well-under-1% who own them, with the eventual goal leading to an oppressive world government with just 2 classes: the elite and the rest. Keith founded and ran the “Wake Up America” Facebook group as a forum for airing facts and opinions on what was really happening in government. As his brother Gene wrote on that page after Keith’s passing: “Keith … wanted it to be an open forum, and a place where truth could be spoken without censorship and political correctness.” Agree with him or not, Keith was completely noble in heart and spirit. Even animals have been known to take an instant liking to Keith and become protective of him, and I’ve always felt that they are innately better judges of character than we are.



Finally, Keith was a man with incredible dignity. As a hyper-emotional Brooklyn Italian, this always amazed me. He was usually quite calm. He rarely got riled up. He would remain polite and respectful, even in the most stressful situations. In all the time I knew him, he NEVER, EVER embarrassed himself, his family or his friends. From just the hundreds of online tributes I’ve had the chance to read – Keith was admired, respected, loved and appreciated. (And I want to thank all of those people for the comfort and smiles those tributes gave me.) He touched many lives, always in a positive way. His loss leaves a void that can never be filled. The knowledge he takes with him doesn’t exist to us anymore. But the impact he made on all of us will last with us for the remainders of our lives.



Before I close, I wish to thank all the people who called, emailed me, sent private messages, and posted notes to me on the various outlets. Your sympathy and kind words helped immensely. I also wish to (publicly) offer my sincerest and most heartfelt condolences again to Keith’s family. And I want to thank the few very special people that made Keith very happy in his final year – you truly brightened his life!



To paraphrase Jack Klugman after the passing of his friend Tony Randall, “A world without Keith Sluchansky is a world I just don’t understand. “ I’ll miss your phone calls, your run-on sentences, and your unique perspectives. Rest in peace my friend. Be with those who have gone before us and meant so much to you. One day, we will laugh again together.

Thank you bennie for the words on your friend. May we all say similar to those who come into our lives and mean so much to us. May they say the same about us.