Record shops in Birmingham

[Lemonella]

Best places for me in the 60s were Rediffusion, Smethwick, Diskery Hurst Street, small shop on Dudley Road that specialised in Reggae.

 

[1299]

If I remember correctly, Revolver records at one time had a bag with a gun on it and half a dozen bullet holes each of which had the address of one of their shops but, strangely, none of the addresses were in Birmingham. I think they had a small shop in the Pallasades on the centre block opposite the ramp exit.

I'm fairly certain that Revolver had a shop on New St, right hand side as you walked up towards Victoria Square, think just before Corporation St ?.
Also like to give a Nod to Polar Bear Records, York Rd Kings Heath.

 

[Martyn]

Here's a few record shops that no doubt disappeared along with 78rpm records:
Scotchers, Corporation Street
Beresford's, Dale End & High Street, Erdington
Beesley's, Park Road, Aston
O.E. Miles, Wheeler Street, Lozells
P.J. France, Church Road, Yardley
Allen's, High Street, West Bromwich
Priest's, Market Place, Blackheath
Boorman's, Lozells Road
Priestley's, New Street
Gordon Cooke, Coventry Road, Hay Mills

 

[Brian s]

Hi

I used to frequent the radio shops in Hurst St. most weekends so on the rare occasion I bought a record it was easy to pop round the corner into Bromsgrove St. to The Diskery, that's assuming I had any money left after Radio Centre. Or over the road from Radio Centre was a shop selling Hi Fi equipment that also carried classical and none chart LPs and when I bought a Philips transcription deck from them they gave me a James Last LP.

I did buy a record from Woolworth;s. Once.... Discoverer it was a cover version and not a very good one.


Brian

 

[Richard Dye]

Here's a few record shops that no doubt disappeared along with 78rpm records:
Scotchers, Corporation Street
Beresford's, Dale End & High Street, Erdington
Beesley's, Park Road, Aston
O.E. Miles, Wheeler Street, Lozells
P.J. France, Church Road, Yardley
Allen's, High Street, West Bromwich
Priest's, Market Place, Blackheath
Boorman's, Lozells Road
Priestley's, New Street
Gordon Cooke, Coventry Road, Hay Mills

Those were very good days!

 

[Vivienne14]

I remember the Virgin shop on Corporation Street. Don’t think it actually had a name, well at least I don’t remember the name. Used to sell ‘imports’ - albums you couldn’t get in this country. It was a right scruffy place - it was in one of these shops near Coleridge Passage, I think it might have been the one just inside the archway.

View attachment 136726

Counter was at the back with the main shop area having rows of home-made looking wooden units to house the albums. There were headphones mounted on a pillar in the middle of the shop where you could listen to albums of your choice. Don’t remember a downstairs area, but there might have been one. Used to go in here every Saturday but don’t think I ever bought anything in there. We just used to ‘hang out’

Viv.

Just found a photo of the first Birmingham Virgin shop front display at the Corporation Street premises I mentioned in my earlier post. The display was basic (as was the interior). Nothing flashy about it. It was catering to young people who loved the current music, which might mean finding, only in this shop, an LP, imported, and generally not available through Woolies, Smith's, local record shops etc. At first you needed to be in the know about this place as it was generally off the beaten shopping track.

The shop front view must be early 1970s when Virgin opened up there. Later they moved to Bull Street.

Steetview attached for comparison.

 

[Vivienne14]

And the premises were nothing like this puzzle I've just been doing. Nostalgic - but a very clean sanitized version. All the same it was fun doing the puzzle. Might bring back memories for others.

 

[Morturn]

I remember the Birmingham Virgin shop in Corporation Street quite well. We would go in on lunch time and get the staff to put a LP on and listen on the headphone on the settees they had there