On Saturday, April 30th, Chicago's most respected record collector, Sadar Bahar, puts his vinyl boxes down in Le Bain's booth. We sat down with the legendary DJ's DJ.
LE BAIN: You probably own one of the greatest dance music record collections in the world. How do you organize it?
SADAR BAHAR: They are not organized now. I have been buying and inheriting many sick collections—I have not been in the States to do such and I don't really want anyone else doing it.
Sadar Bahar's "RA.507"
You’ve been described by Theo Parrish as “sick, sick, sick.” Do you like people calling you the "DJ's DJ?"
When I first heard that people was calling me that, I was not sure what it was. As I started to find out what that meant, I loved it and appreciated the fact that people are paying attention to what goes on around the world. I think it even pushes me harder.
When record digging, do you happen to choose a record by its cover?
When shopping, most of the time I check the artist first and see who's playing, but sometimes you see these funky awesome covers and say, "I'm going to take a chance on this one." One of my favorite covers is Carlos Garnett's Mystery of Ages.
"Open Soul" by Tomorrow's People
You’ve been very close to the magic of legendary pioneers DJ Ron Hardy and Frankie Knuckles. What can you say about Ron and Frankie that we haven't heard before?
Most people don't know that these two were music people and were always ready to help you on your quest with their knowledge of music. If you love them, honor them by helping others trying to deal with this DJ world!
Your career in music is like a quest. Is there a music holy grail you have in mind?
I recently found it: "Open Soul" by Tomorrow's People. My friend and disco family Haruhiko Ikeda, collector and DJ from Japan, gave it to me after spinning his radio show. My heart stopped. The search for the music never stops!
Sadar Bahar's "Rush Hour Store Mix"
A music quest is a quest for emotions. Is there a record that gave you a weird feeling recently?
My emotion is always happy and excited to locate one of the babies and bring it home to the rest of the vinyl family! Sometimes, when you find something you know shouldn't be there or should cost way more, you feel guilty like you stole it.
