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Record shops in Birmingham

john knight said:
The guy on the left is Danny Reddington, don't know the others, he also had a shop on Warwick Road, good mate of mine, lost touch years ago.
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John

Here he is again a few years later, and a with a little grey on the thatch, doesn't he do on line sales now?

Digbeth Dan Reddington Reddington Rare Records.jpg
 
Thanks Phil, been too long now, probably not much to talk about, I'm keeping very well and travelling about, been up in Scotland recently and going to the Isle of Skye later, hope you are well. not much going on here, so rarely visit, none of the old crowd left apart from our Lyn.
 
If the shop is at 44 Loveday Street I believe this is where my 5th great-uncle William Fitzer (1787-1841) lived there's a 1841 Pigot's Directory record of his daughter Emma running a shop from the premises.
 
I have probably used every record shop mentioned in this post....But the shop I may have used the most was Just Records in Perry Barr....the owner was always able to get me the recording I requested, mostly imports and a few bootlegs....this was in the earlier 1970's.....
 
Whereabouts in Perry Barr was that?
I can't remember the names but there was a record shop near the station and one, I think, in the old Lyndon Square.
 
Bootlegs are a little more questionable than counterfeiting. They're usually material that isn't usually available through legitimate sources. Most often they're live recordings. Some acts used to actively encourage bootlegging. Most notable of those was the Grateful Dead (https://archive.org/details/GratefulDead) There have been other odd instances and, in digital versions, it still goes on. Sometimes the act actually ask fans to circulate material or just put the album up on their own site - this is a recent example http://kinggizzardandthelizardwizard.com/polygondwanaland/index.html (they do have a recording contract but they put out 4 other albums that year)
 
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My first record was the 12inch 78 of Ella Fitzgerald with the Count Basie Orchestra singing April in Paris, the version with the additional 'one more once' after the first reprise. Bought it at a little record shop in Gravelly Lane near to Station Road, caught the bus home, put the record down, cost me 6shillings and 1penny ( 6/1d) in a chair went out in the kitchen to get a drink before I put it on our brand new radiogram, sat in the chair and broke it...went out bought it again and almost wore it out playing it. There was somewhere up town a specialist record shop that got all the latest American Jazz and big band music and also sold Blue Note records, can someone remind me where it was please. Went to CDs, sold my vinyls (regretfully- downsizing it was called or no room for the b...... things), but Avid saved the day by bringing out all their compilations and there are some good ones amongst them. I was going to buy the unit that was widely advertised whereby you could put all your CDs on to it, but never got round to it and it now seems to have disappeared. Anyone got any suggestions, because I think when I retire eventually some of the CDs that I keep at work will have to be downsized.

Bob
 
tony sammons said:
Where did you buy your records from, pre - HMV, Virgin, etc,etc

Diskery, Reddingtons, WH Smith, Midland Educational.

there were other many record shops locally in and around the Bham suburbs. I recall visiting a shop on Stratford Rd, Sparkbrook, on a Saturday morning, aroudn 9.00am, to buy the release of Led Zep VI, and many others.
Any listening to many "new bands" in Virgin Records, Corporations St, who can forget the black vinyl padded seating, and the "warm headphones"
what are your memories of record shops around Bham
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I bought the bulk of my collection of The Stones 60's records from Matty and Rhodes on Broad St which was almost opposite The Espresso coffee bar on the other side of Broad St , a couple of records from the shop in the priory ringway underground shop . I bought Peter Wyngardes album and way prior to that a couple of Otis Redding's disc's from my mate Jimmy Shannon in the Diskery
 
mossg said:
I dont know the shops name,but the shop i used to buy my records from was half way up Wheeler Street left hand side going towards Lozells.
Moss.
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Moss funny you should mention Lozells I lived down by the Barton Arms 1976-96, I bought The Stones album Get Yer Ya Ya's Out form a shop on Lozells Rd , Guildford St as was faced the shop
 
Elizabeth Redmond said:
Talking of records who had a dansette record player,i remember Saturday mornings we used to play glad all over Dave Clark five,and our friends next door used to put it on as well made quite a racket why Saturday morning (dads were out at work moms shopping)
Liz
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Dave Clark very astute usiness man bought the entire rights for Ready Steady Go programmes anybody wants to watch or reshow these shows they have to pay Dave , he must be minted
 
im racking my brains to think of the shop in town i got my records from...used to play many great song in my friends front room in villa st when her mom and dad were tucked up in the vine pub a bit further up the street:)...barmy on motown but the one song we used to dance crazy to was shout by lulu...no way could i keep up with that one nowadays:laughing: happy days

lyn
 
Just to digress slightly back in the 70's I listened to Radio 1 on the weekend . Saturday am Peter Powell used to play a particular record title "Bitter Fruit" by Little Steven boy oh boy I loved that record , it wasn't played every week on PP's show which made it more enjoyable when it was played. Anyway it slowly went to a dark corner of my mind , one weekday the good lady and me visiting the great Metropolis had a mooch round the rag market . I came across a bloke selling second hand records thumbing my way through them I came across Freedom No Compromise by Little Steven , looking at the tracks on the reverse of the sleeve about four down Bitter Fruit hand in the pocket pay the man let's get home . Think there is about twelve tracks I've never listened to the other eleven , what joy to listen to . Little Steven is Steven Van Zandt guitarist for Springsteen He also acts as Silvio in The Sopranos , Back on track weirdest place to buy a record the Rag Market
 
Crane's was my supplier in the early 1950's when I was still at school. I bought a few 78" classical music recordings from them. I still have a couple, surprisingly as they were quite fragile. I didn't get to play them often, I was often out, or if at home due to bad weather I would be reading. No television then: on reflection not a bad thing!
 
Williamstreeter said:
Moss funny you should mention Lozells I lived down by the Barton Arms 1976-96, I bought The Stones album Get Yer Ya Ya's Out form a shop on Lozells Rd , Guildford St as was faced the shop
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Hi Williamstreeter,

If I remember right hadn't that shop used to be managed by a woman? If so, I bought several albums from there over the years but, one in particular (Deep Purple in Rock was a nightmare). I must have exchanged that album a dozen times until I finally got one that didn't skip /jump.

Lozellian
 
I bought most of my LPs from Virgin Records in the early 70s in Corporation St by the law courts.
You could go in , choose your album, and listen to it through headphones in nice comfy sofas.
Something quite new at the time.
Later at there shop in Bull St by the minories.
Also went in Cyclops records in the Piccadilly Arcade off Corporation St.
Ran by I believe a husband and wife team. The lady is still alive though elderly, and lives with her son in Shirley, Solihull.
 
Elmdon Boy said:
I bought most of my LPs from Virgin Records in the early 70s in Corporation St by the law courts.
You could go in , choose your album, and listen to it through headphones in nice comfy sofas.
Something quite new at the time.
Later at there shop in Bull St by the minories.
Also went in Cyclops records in the Piccadilly Arcade off Corporation St.
Ran by I believe a husband and wife team. The lady is still alive though elderly, and lives with her son in Shirley, Solihull.
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Hi Elmdon Boy,

Yeah I remember Virgin records opening along with their old airplane seats, which you could sit in & listen to your chosen LP; I bought a promotional LP at their launch for the grand old sum of 50p. It was called The Faust Tapes (still got it now, takes me back). An old mate of mine (Bearded Phil) used to work there before they moved next door to what used to be Greys opposite Lewis's (Corporation St / Bull St)?

Lozellian
 
Virgin moved twice. First to Bull St. then across the roundabout to the Megastore on Corporation St. I think they changed logos around the time of the second move.
 
Elmdon Boy said:
Anybody remember The Music Box on the Coventry Rd in Sheldon. Bought my first LP there in 1966.
Best of the Beach Boys.
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Yes certainly do, used to finish work on Friday and go there on Saturday to buy new release singles 6/8each,
always bought three and spent £1 every week without fail.

They always had a strange sort of aroma when you first bought them which wore off after a few plays.

Never bought any albums there, got most of those from Bev Bevans shop on Stratford Road.
 
I have great record collection and can remember every Friday when you got your pay packet (actual cash in a brown envelope with a long piece of white paper with your hours on it) walking up Hurst street planning which record shop you would hit first. One of my favorites was one of the first virgin record shops Branson opened which was underground, you had to go down a big escalator to get down there. We had some great shops in Brum, then stopping off for one at the pub in town before sitting on the bus reading every word on the record sleeve, happy days, music you actually had in your hand rather on a small black plastic box called a hard-drive
 
There was one on Stockland Green opposite the Plaza, upstairs above a shop. First record we bought was Save me by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich c1966. It cost 7/4d

Just remembers there was a record shop at the 65 bus terminus on Short Heath Road/Streetly Road. on the left between the chippy and the newsagents
 
The Diskery on the Bristol Rd and there was another shop in Perry Barr Precinct, but my first 45 I bought was Downtown and that was from the little record shop opposite the Crem on the Walsall Rd
 
Out in the sticks Brummy said:
The Diskery on the Bristol Rd and there was another shop in Perry Barr Precinct, but my first 45 I bought was Downtown and that was from the little record shop opposite the Crem on the Walsall Rd
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The diskery is recognized as the oldest record shop in England now, I spent hours in there searching for that one off disc, I'm from Great Barr and remember the one in the precinct (very small shop) the guy in there was very knowledgeable, I can't recall the one opposite the crem, what year would that have been?
 
Yes, I remember the record shop in Perry Barr precinct, it was at the base of the office block in the middle of the square.
And yes, he was a nice man, he would order records in for you if he didn't have it in stock.
 
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