Faces
By Samantha Corbett
GRAHAM
COLLINS
G
raham Collins has worked in
music retail long enough to have
accumulated more than his share
of funny, High Fidelity-type
customer interaction stories. In fact, he says
he treasures these experiences more than
anything he’s done as a musician or perform-
er, and has documented enough of them at
this point that he’s even considered sharing
them in a book someday.
Collins is currently the store manager at
Long & McQuade Pro, the national chain’s
specialized Toronto location that caters to
recording studios, post-production houses,
and broadcasters. The high-profile post
marks the culmination of over two decades
in Canada’s MI retail landscape.
Like many, the Toronto native’s journey
in music began with piano lessons as a
youngster, but his passion for the art has
progressed on a unique path since then. Div-
ing deeper into the world of synthesizers and
tonal manipulation through his teens and
beyond, Collins developed into a full-on,
self-described “synth nerd.”
After studying music at Ottawa’s Car-
leton University, Collins’ first formal job in
music retail was as the keyboard specialist
at the city’s iconic Song Bird Music (now
Spaceman Music).
18 CANADIAN MUSIC TRADE
During that initial stint, he was also
performing with some local artists, including
Slo’ Tom Stewart from venerable punk outfit
Furnaceface and even a short stint with cel-
ebrated indie folk artist Kathleen Edwards.
Interestingly, Dave Dudley – a fellow Song
Bird Music veteran and now the owner of
Dave’s Drum Shop in Ottawa – played in
Furnaceface and joined Collins in support-
ing Stewart for his solo gigs as a member of
The Horseshit Heroes.
All the while, Collins took on some
composition work in collaboration with
local filmmakers.
In 2006, Collins returned to Toronto
and jumped right back into music retail as a
purchaser with studio-focused specialty shop
Saved by Technology, working his way up to
a management position.
Hoping to get back into film work with-
in the booming Toronto scene, Collins
found his way into a role as the musical di-
rector with a well-established sketch comedy
troupe.
In 2017, Saved by Technology was ac-
quired by Long & McQuade, and Col-
lins was appointed to lead the charge as
store manager for the newly-launched
Long & McQuade Pro. The shop serves
the same niche as its predecessor, with a
focus on software and hardware recording
solutions, as well as a wide selection of
keyboards, modular synthesizers, and other
specialty items.
Needless to say, Collins feels right at
home surrounded by the products and tech-
nologies that have long driven his passions
as a creator, and enjoys keeping pace and
getting hands-on with the latest and greatest
tools. That said, his favourite part about the
job – and his career in MI retail in general
– is the people he serves within their shared
community.
“I guess I’ve been doing this for about 25
years now,” Collins says in reflection. “It’s re-
ally interesting to see career paths of people
that were starting around the same time as I
was, and where their paths have taken them.
Many people eventually switch companies
or move from retail to distribution, but you
still wind up bumping into them at trade
shows or events. And on the other side,
we have lots of amazing customers that I
love finding solutions for.”
Although the music industry and those
that make their living in it are facing some
hardships amidst the coronavirus pandem-
ic, Collins wants to use the power of music
to connect and comfort people. He has been
trying to come up with some ideas in the
world of audio-over-IP solutions to help
people collaborate on music, and also wants
to connect artists with studios to find solu-
tions for remote recording.
“Out of most bad things come new
opportunities to make things better for
someone,” he muses. “I like to be that guy.”
When he isn’t helping his customers
– either directly on the floor at Long & Mc-
Quade Pro, or indirectly in his experiments
during spare time – Collins is likely hanging
out in or near his Toronto home with his
girlfriend, Denise. It’s not a total change of
scenery, though, as there are plenty of instru-
ments and gadgets conducive to creativity
surrounding him there, too.
He’s also a big movie lover and has
recently found himself scouring YouTube for
videos from fellow synth enthusiasts. That
gives him plenty of fodder to push further
down his rabbit hole of music-making and
sonic manipulation. He currently has two
projects underway in that regard, and is
looking forward to wrapping them up in the
near future.
Mostly, though, Collins is excited to get
back to business as usual at the store. Con-
sidering his love for the products he sells and
the people he serves, there’s really nowhere
he’d rather be – and he could still use a few
more good stories to round out that book…
Samantha Corbett is a writer based in
Ontario’s Niagara Region and an editorial
assistant with Canadian Music Trade.