HOUSTON – Walk into Memo’s Record Shop in Houston’s East End and you’re not just walking into a store — you’re walking into decades of history.
The walls are covered in photos of big-name artists. The shelves are stacked with the music people grew up on — Juan Gabriel, Vicente Fernandez, Selena, Jose Jose, and Luis Miguel. And behind every photo, every album and every memory is the same family that has kept this place running since 1968.
The man in those photos — standing shoulder to shoulder with some of Latin music’s biggest stars — is 87-year-old Guillermo “Memo” Villarreal. He was home resting when KPRC 2 stopped by, but his impact is everywhere you look.
His son, Memo Jr., grew up in this store. Now he’s the one running it — and he’s got stories that would make any music fan stop in their tracks.
“The Charro outfit was given to my dad in 1975,” Memo Jr. said. “He was a promoter then, and there was a presentation of several artists. When it was Vicente Fernandez’s turn to perform, the audience rushed the stage and this particular person ripped off one of his pieces. After the event, Vicente was all excited — and so was my dad — so he asked for the suit.”
The elder Villarreal wasn’t just selling records. He was helping bring Latin music’s biggest names to Houston — including what Memo Jr. says was Juan Gabriel’s first Houston performance at the Arena Theatre in 1971. There’s even a photo of Memo Sr. at the White House alongside President Jimmy Carter, taken in 1979.
These days, Memo Jr. says it’s vinyl that’s really moving off the shelves.
“We have good support from the community,” Memo Jr. said. “We have like third and fourth generations coming to the store now. A lot of young people are reminiscing about their parents and grandparents.”
And if vinyl isn’t surprising enough — cassettes are making a quiet comeback, too.
“I still got customers asking for cassettes,” Memo Jr. said. “I’ve got young people coming in the store with Walkman’s.”
It’s the kind of place where the saying “everything old is new again” fits perfectly. But more than the music, Memo’s has become a cornerstone of the East End community — one that’s hard to imagine the neighborhood without.
“We enjoy what we do — we don’t really do it for the money because sales aren’t like before,” Memo Jr. said. “We’ll continue until we can.”
As for Memo Sr. — health issues have kept him away from the store for now. But according to his son, that won’t last long.
Memo Jr. said he saw him this morning and he said he’s anxious to go to the store.
Until then, the founder of one of Houston’s most beloved institutions is trading photo ops with music legends for something even better — quality time with his grandkids.
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