Parkway Music

**** WARNING: ***** PLEASE READ *** To anyone dealing with Parkway music. I am a verified pay pal user and Parkway music a verified seller. Parkways policy {which I called and asked not to participate in, but is mandatory store policy} was to fill out a personal store information sheet? to match the shipping address to given by Pay Pal {this is what Matt Hatfield told me}. Matt Hatfield the person I dealt with, did NOT want to deal with this, was rude and insisted doing it later when I called and asked about the mandatory information as part of sale {before checkout?}, which I did end up doing to get the item {this info is already provided via Pay Pal}. Drum then was paid for and Parkway music accepted payment and I received my receipt.
20 min later I get a call from Matt Hatfield who has decided to renege on the sale and not go through with the sale because of something he read on another site by a disgruntled eBay seller? I asked what he meant and then he told me what he did.
What Parkway music did {after the sale/​being paid} was take the information provided by Pay Pal and the personal store information form and do a background check on me? seriously? its not like its a job. He could have just called pay pal to confirm payment and go find a box to put it in, but chose his own method instead? After Parkway bailed on the sale, I posted my experience here as well as the other sight Parkway music put their trust in. Parkway music {Matt Hatfield} then decided to retaliate even further and then take all the private information provided by pay pal and store form and post it on a public viewed web sight? I’m upset that Parkway music did this with the mandatory information I provided to make sale safe and then turn around and do this with it? seriously? Matt Hatfield and Parkway music also included other «family members emails», and other «non affiliated» emails, email address of others individuals and dot coms {I don’t even own}, with other «incorrect» information he found elsewhere, as WELL as Pay Pal information he received like where I live and reposted for all to publically see. Matt Hatfield posted and that Parkway music «avoided» a rip off and Matt Hatfield stated «Im glad we didnt do the sale» and slandering me {all this after I paid them}. Matt Hatfield misused the personal information Parkway music required and Pay Pal required. This is a clear violation of the Pay Pal merchant agreement and violation of consumer anti-​trust laws, criminal misused of personal information. I never knew anything about Parkway music before this. All I did was buy a drum off Parkway musics web sight and instead of Matt Hatfield looking for a box to put the drum in, he decided to do this with MY info and the stores time instead. Ive bought thousands of items on the internet and in stores and NEVER went through a background check to make a purchase. I know the drum was undervalued {$ 100’s} and/​or mismarked or not even in stock and is the REAL reason Matt Hatfield bailed out of the sale. ATT: ALBANY NY LAWYER WANTED…

Earlier today, I walked into Parkway and had such an incredible experience there! Matt, the owner, is hands on and is seriously a super nice guy. What a pleasure and everyone I talked to there was just as great. Someone complained on Unilocal about people having attitudes but my experience couldn’t have been anymore opposite. It was a huge pleasure going into their shop and walked away having dropped off a black Gibson Les Paul to have Duncan Invaders installed and picked up a new (used) stunningly gorgeous maple flame-​top Les Paul. If you haven’t gone to Parkway, you’re missing out. I will NEVER go into Guitar Center ever again. There’s just no point! In the short time I spent there, I quickly realized that they genuinely care about their customers. Not just from how they treated me but also seeing their staff interact with other customers who walked in. It’s a great shop and I’m glad I bumped into them! What a great experience! :) Thanks for everything guys! Keep up the phenomenal work!

As a budding musician, I need to feel supported. I need to be encouraged. I may need a little more assurance than the next person. I need somebody to tell me that I’m on the right track and reinforce my creativity. I need a space that encourages me to explore, experiment, and feel things out for myself. In my experience, this is far from the norm when it comes to spending time in music shops. Thankfully, this is not the case at Parkway Music.
Despite the madness of the holiday season, I never felt overwhelmed as I spent a couple of hours browsing the offerings of Parkway in late December. The store is orderly and thoughtfully laid out, making for a truly pleasant experience. The staff at Parkway are available, but not intrusive. They are knowledgeable, but not arrogant in their presentation of that knowledge. As far as selection goes, Parkway has the highest quality of its local competitors. In addition to new and recently used instruments, Parkway also carries an impressive selection of vintage guitars and basses.
Another area that Parkway scores high marks in is the individual rooms provided for patrons to try out different gear. I’ve always been uncomfortable with having to play in the actual showrooms of different shops, so this offers a guy like me a great opportunity to truly get to know the instrument I’m considering buying. It was as simple as grabbing a guitar from the rack, finding an open room, and playing. All of the rooms had plenty of gear, with modern amplifiers and cords that work. As a tip, don’t hesitate to ask about trying out a few effects pedals. Parkway has an awesome selection of new and used pedals to enjoy.
If you are a local musician or somebody that’s thinking about becoming one, put Parkway Music on your radar. While the price point is a bit high, it’s not significant enough to buy elsewhere. This is the go-​to place in the Capital District.

Great store! Outstanding guitar selection –truly something for everyone! My niece is an aspiring young guitarist and I’ve taken her here a few times for electric and acoustic gear. What I really like about Parkway Music is the staff, who take the time to explain things, don’t try to sell you something you don’t need/​want but DO point you in right direction based upon your skill level, performing needs, and budget. We also have a blast in the try-​out rooms, where you can rock out and not get rushed out.
Have to admit, niece took up my dare to do the music store NO NO by playing opening bars of Stairway to Heaven. But only a few customers heard it: P

The best music store on the East coast. I’ve been going to Parkway Music for 18 years and I have never once had a bad experience. I don’t know what Frank Z. is talking about. I assume he works for Guitar Center (worst music store ever). The owners of Parkway Music are two of most knowledgeable guitar fanatics you will ever meet. They have a true passion for guitars. The rest of the staff is equally great. I’ve bought countless guitars, basses, drums and amps from Parkway and I look forward to buying plenty more in the future. The new store is huge and jam packed with great equipment. Do yourself a favor a check out the coolest music store on this side of the Mississippi.

I’m not exactly a big Parkway fan. The owner is great, but some of the people who he has working for him are real shitbirds who don’t listen to what you’re telling them. They want to sell you what they insist you need, instead of what you actually want.
On top of that, I had the most joyous pleasure of dealing with a particular employee who had a real attitude problem and talked down to customers as though his time was being wasted by having to actually do his job.
I’m sorry to make you get off your ass and earn your pay, but prithee, o’ glorious minstrel, humbly I ask of you to answer but a few of my petty questions regarding this fine instrument that I am considering purchasing. (Despite his insanely inflated perception of himself, he’s _​not_​the greatest thing to ever happen to the music industry, no matter how much he apparently thinks he is.)
That said, their prices are good, but not unbeatable. They do have quite an inventory as well. In fairness, I have to also give them credit for carrying Ernie Ball Music Man guitars. These are really nice guitars and Parkway is one of only two music shops in the area (the other being Guitar Center in Colonie) that are Ernie Ball dealers.
It’s also important for me to point out that this review is based on my past experiences with Parkway, but that I have not dealt with them since they moved into their new location. It is possible that they’ve changed, but based on my past experiences I’m not particularly interested in going back to find out.
The bottom line is that I don’t have time for cocky guitar pushers. It gets on my nerves worse than dealing with obnoxious car salesmen. There isn’t a shortage of music store options in this area. Parkway has been around for quite a while and it has a strong following of people who swear by them, but given my experiences with them, it’s a store that I’m personally really not interested in doing business with. Parkway isn’t bad, they’re just not my style.

THESE are the guys that you you want to see… They have good prices, great gear, including vintage, solid repair shop, used gear, strings and accessories. If you are a musician in the capital district, you need to come here. Drums, bass, guitar, amps, PA’s, microphones, mixing boards… The works. The guys are all working musicians, and are friendly and encouraging, unlike many other places. (Guitar Center I’m lookin at yooooo!)
They also do consignment, so if you have gear to sell, bring it by and they’ll put it up for you.