Since 1994, Birdland and has been “Gratefully Deadicated” to providing unique, quality products for anyone nostalgic about the 60s.
Store owner Jay Steinberg said he wanted to start a business that embodied the music he grew up with. He began by selling merchandise at Grateful Dead concerts, then started a business called Stone Mountain with his brother. Steinberg then branched away from his brother and opened his own Albuquerque-based store.
“I’ve been a fan of the Grateful Dead for coming close to 40 years,” he said. “It was always in the back of my mind to incorporate my love of the music into a business.”
Steinberg said the name of the store, Birdland, is based on the nicknames his mother called him when he was young: Birdman and Birdie Boy.
Since it was established, Steinberg said he strived to give customers a taste of his era while accommodating the newer music subcultures, like the rave scene.
“It’s not Grateful Dead all over the place,” he said. “I try to keep hippie things hanging all over the place.”
Annie Munsell, a customer, said the shop’s atmosphere gels with her experiences in the 70s.
“This one’s unique in that you can buy things you can’t get anywhere else,” she said. “I come for entertainment. They’re very cool people. It takes you back to your childhood. I graduated high school in the 70s, so this is my time, man, still there.”
The store boasts a primo glass shop, with pieces that cost thousands of dollars, as well a selection of groovy masks.
Steinberg said that he despises the low-quality, low-price Wal-Mart mentality and instead offers the best products he can find.
“I buy beautiful, hand-blown, artistic things,” he said. “We’ve got gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous glass in there. I do everything that way. My glass, my masks. The masks are all handmade, made in Arabia, Italy.”
Michael Kmenta, an employee, said he shares Steinberg’s admiration for glass.
“I love the glass. We don’t import any of our glass,” he said. “The majority of it is New Mexico blown. One of our best artists is from the East Mountains, actually. All of our pieces are one of a kind.”
Steinberg said he fosters an interactive, customer-based attitude in his store.
“If I wanted to be big, I would’ve stayed in business with my brother, but it’s not my personality,” he said. “That old time mom-and-Pop shop is something I’ve always wanted to keep alive. I want to be that old man you’ve got to wake up to ring up your sale when I’m 70.”
Keith Brown, an employee, said he picked up on this vibe when he was a regular customer.
“You go into other piercing shops and there are all these things you aren’t supposed to do, where we’ll try and help people rather than tell them what to do or make them do something,” he said.
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Christine Romero, a customer, said Birdland is a rare gem among other local smoke shops.
“The owner — he’s awesome,” she said. “Just the environment of the store, I love it. It’s very original. I’d say it’s one of the only stores like this in Albuquerque.”
Steinberg said he expects Birdland to be in business for years to come.
“I’ve lived in bigger cities, and this one has one of the most genuine hippie communities I’ve ever seen,” he said. “I mean, active, working hippies, not the rainbow hippies people usually imagine. … I hope I’m a good role model for the young hippies coming up, like, ‘Hey, here’s a guy who actually makes a living; he’s owned a business for a lot of years. He parties like a wild man, and he’s got his you-know-what together.’”
