House of Music

Once a place of worship, this Mid City mecca hosts music lovers, makers, and performers alike

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In what is now often meme’d “the before times,” a ritual regularly took place. People gathered at night in the dim, liquid-blue light of some bar or another, crowded around a platform and swaying to a sonic serenade of hypnotic hymns. Mesmerized by melody, we passed tip jars like offering plates, and for an hour or two the “real” world that housed our worries, fears, and insecurities became buoyant and drifted away. A passerby glancing through the window might mistake the scene for a raucous revival—so many hands raised heavenward, eyes closed as if in prayer. A parallel likening a live concert to a sacred experience is not difficult to draw, but is impossible to ignore against the backdrop of a literal church.

Mid City Baton Rouge’s multi-faceted musical mecca—equal parts Mid City Ballroom, Baton Rouge Music Exchange, and Pop Shop Records—lives in the red brick structure, nestled beneath the shadowy branches of a water oak, once known as The Mountain Faith Ministries.

“I live right around the corner,” said co-owner and proprietor James Fogle, whose parallel career as a realtor heightened his curiosity about the property. “I drove by it all the time. There was this big “for sale” sign out front. So, one day I stopped and made an appointment.” After touring the old church, Fogle knew in spite of the work ahead in renovations, that he was home. “I just said, ‘Wow, this is our place.’ I called my then-partner, and we bought it.” When asked what made him so certain about the building, Fogle said, “the location, the aesthetic, just the whole vibe of the place.” After considerable renovations, which included the removal of the walls behind the main room’s expanded stage to expose the church’s original stained glass, the vision was complete and ready to open for business.

At first, the space housed only Baton Rouge Music Exchange and Mid City Ballroom. The former was already a successful musical instrument resale and repair business, helmed by Fogle since 2015 at a much-less-suitable location on Perkins Road. “We outgrew that space immediately,” Fogle said. Now, with multiple rooms lined from ceiling to floor with high-quality, previously-loved, and vintage instruments—as well as new items like strings, picks, straps, and drumsticks—Baton Rouge Music Exchange either has what a musician is looking for, or they will find it. If you want to sell your instruments, they will either buy your gear from you outright or put it up for consignment, depending on their needs. While the buying and selling of instruments is the bulk of Baton Rouge Music Exchange’s business, they also are able to repair “just about anything you can think of; from things like a simple restringing to complete renovations to repairing turntables, receivers, and amplifiers. I think we have the only guy in town that will work on solid-state amps,” Fogle said.

The addition of the music venue, Mid City Ballroom, was the realization of a longtime dream, made a reality in part by the inspiration drawn from the old church building. A lifelong musician himself, Fogle said, “I have always wanted to open a music venue, and when I saw the space I thought, ‘Hey, this is great!’” Baton Rouge seemed to agree, and prior to 2020’s social gathering mandates, Mid City Ballroom was more often than not filled to capacity. “We’ve had some bigger indie bands—we were the first stop on Black Pumas’ first tour ever, which was really cool. They’ve really blown up since then,” said Fogle. This past spring and summer were supposed to deliver some of the biggest names yet, but that plan was of course interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. “I was really excited,” said Fogle. “We were supposed to have Black Flag, and The Music of Cream touring show. We had a lot of big stuff planned.” While music venues have been hit hard by limitations on social gatherings, Fogle and his partner in Mid City Ballroom since 2019, Tom Coerver, are not discouraged about the future of the venue in Baton Rouge’s live music scene.

Coerver’s observations of the venue’s strengths highlight the unique appeal that contributes to its success. “I think the laid-back atmosphere and the intimate, close-up connection with the artist that comes from a smaller room are very exciting, all in combination with the warm sound of the space, it makes for a very appealing venue to see a show.” The stage and atmosphere of Mid City Ballroom are only part of experiencing live music in the space. Since live concerts are primarily auditory experiences, a venue is only as good as its gear. With Mike Pinter running the board at Mid City Ballroom, quality is guaranteed.  “The sound equipment and lighting are top-notch, and I think you can feel the inspiration that the performers get from having close contact with the audience, and a great presentation of their show that elevates the experience to ‘next level’ for all involved,” Coerver said.

[Read this story about Pop Shop Records' origins from our April 2017 issue]

It was exactly this “next-level” elevated music experience that enticed Charlotte Smith to venture into the role as the proprietress of Pop Shop Records, which moved from its previous Government Street location into the old church at the end of last year. For Smith, the role music has played in her life reaches far beyond the superficial appreciation of sound. “I find a lot of peace in music.,” she said. “I’ve always lived a very hectic life. I don’t sit easily for long. When do I sit, I find it incredibly relaxing when I have forty-five minutes to listen to a vinyl. I find myself very content,” said Smith. The almost-mystic appeal that lures Smith to vinyl over other mediums goes back to her own childhood, when her mother would spin Fats Domino and Bo Diddley while she and her brother would act out the songs.

Much in the same spirit of the pantomimes of her youth, Smith said, “I still like words and stories. I like living through the words of other people.” And those stories, she maintained, are best served on wax platters. “I remember when I got my first CD: Ten by Pearl Jam. It just didn’t sound the same. It almost sounded too perfect, and I’ve never been a fan of perfect. I want to feel like I’m listening to the band—I don’t want to listen to a studio,” Smith said.

When the opportunity opened up to move her shop, Smith felt strongly that the businesses could benefit from each other. “I think it’s phenomenal to be able to have all this music under one roof. We sell so much more than records. We sell hi-fi vintage turntables as well as brand new units, we sell local musicians’ albums, and books about music.” Right before the city stay-at-home orders, Smith added listening rooms to the shop, where customers can try before they buy. “It’s much more than just selling records,” she said. “To me, records are about an experience; about sharing something meaningful. To me, it’s about the people who come, sit, and listen—it’s about the father who has his kid on the weekend bringing him in to introduce him to The Smiths. It’s about the young couple on that nervous first date, flipping through albums and getting to know each other through their selections. It gives me so much joy to provide a place where this can happen.”

After a far-too-long hiatus from their brick-and-mortar operations due to the pandemic, Pop Shop Records and Baton Rouge Music Exchange are now open from noon until 4 pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Both are also very much open online. More information on Baton Rouge Music Exchange inventory, Mid City Ballroom venue rental, and the range of services available can be found online at batonrougemusicexchange.com. Inventory for the vinyl and hi-fi lover can be found on popshoprecordsbr.com. Both are also offering free local delivery.

So the quaint little church, whose venue remains dark at the moment, is still experiencing some life and music in its retail areas. As for Mid City Ballroom, Fogle said plans for the immediate future are still somewhat uncertain. “I think our plan now is we’re just waiting to see what’s going on and what’s happening. I don’t see a whole lot happening for the rest of this year.” One certainty, however, is that Mid City Ballroom will return—eventually. “We will be back.” 

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