MY FAVOURITE RECORD SHOP...

Current mood: ARE YOU FEELING WOBBLEEEE??? Category: ARE YOU FEELING WOBBLEEEE??? Music I'm find I'm unable to get emotional about a business for the simple reason that a business can't get all emotional about me... No boss, feeling all weepy and weak at the knees at the news that an Apple store is about to open, or that my local supermarket is about to close just isn't on.. This includes record shops... For example, when it was announced that the Fopp chain was going under, I didn't give a monkeys - for that matter I'd never ever been in one of these 'legendary' shops, and the first I knew about them was their demise... Tough shit - that's business, move on... I do however suffer nostalgia for some record shops, and this last week or two I've been playing through the mp3s of a lot of my old tapes bought from one of my all time favourite vendors. Yes boss, realising that the tape format was on it's way out and my tapes were steadily decomposing with each play, I decided to copy all the good ones into my then PC and mp3 them back in the late 1990's... Since then I've replaced some of these rough and ready copies with neat and clean downloads or ripped CD versions, but a few have survived all cuts in all their flawed glory... Many of these few, together with the start of my vinyl collection were bought from the same shop.. This shop was an Our Price 'sale' shop hidden on a backstreet off the main drag in Southampton and every Friday afternoon, I'd cycle in to browse and buy... This was the deal. I was supposed to be at 6th form college to get A-Levels, but i never wanted to go. I pleaded with Mr & Mrs Giovanni (senior) to let me fuck it off and go and wander the earth etc, but Mr and Mrs G (senior) didn't like the idea of that at all... So, not willing get too oedipal, I went to the friggin college (sometimes) and mostly didn't take part. Tricks included: Going in to register only, (arriving 10 minutes late for the 20 minute period) then fucking off to either my allotment garden, or the M3 protest camp for the rest of the day. Refusing to talk to anyone in my 'Communication Studies' class, then dropping it after about 3 months of dead silence. And on a Friday afternoon, skipping all classes (if I'd even truned up at all) and cycling into Southampton to browse this Our Price record shop.. Basically, this sullen little store sold off all the excess stock, returns and reported faulty goods as well as the records and tapes that had lost their cases or sleeves... It was cheap, and I always found it interesting to try and work out why an item was in there.. WHAT WAS IT'S FUCKING PROBLEM??? Was it faulty? It didn't look scratched!? Was it crap? Was it an unwanted present?? Was it because of that small scuff on the sleeve??? WOULD I REGRET IT???? Well, I've still got 3 Led Zep LPs all without covers, Yes's Going For The One, Steve Vai's Passion & Warfare, Disc 1 of Electric Ladyland by Hendrix, A jumpy copy of Kill 'Em All by Metallica, and these mp3'd tape copies of records like Heaven & Hell by Sabbath, And Justice For All by Metallica, Overkill by Motorhead & The Key by Nocturnus.... Anyway, this piece is a very roundabout way to explain exactly why I'm not coming up with any exciting, new and hip acts just at the moment - I'm listening to old heavy metal, pirate radio and old rave music former cassettes instead... Currently listening : Heaven And Hell By Black Sabbath Release date: By 25 October, 1990 10:31 - 16 Comments - 11 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

	Treacle	Bless Your Heart Posted by Treacle on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 12:59 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	Oh, don't be so soft... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 14:27 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	Christopher Nosnibor	Yeah, fair point about not getting upset about shops on the one hand, but on the other... a good record shop (especially a second-hand one) is a way of life, a bit like 'High Fidelity' only much, much cooler. I used to work in one such shop during my A-levels and it was without a doubt te best job I ever had. I got a real education, made good friends and got paid in records and CDs. Fuck yeah! But regardless of this, I get nostalgic for record shops because there fucking aren'y any any more, at least not round here. And that's deeply upsetting. Posted by Christopher Nosnibor on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 14:19 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	With smaller businesses it's possible to empathise a little. But as I think i've mentioned before, I've never found record shops to be that friendly - particularly the London ones. In fact many of them are completely unfriendly places - very snobby and over serious.. There was however a couple in Norwich I used to really enjoy visiting.. Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 14:24 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	Ren	I thought Fopp made yoghurt drinks?? Posted by Ren on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 16:20 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	I thought fopp was a debonaire young man... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 16:33 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	Christopher Nosnibor	It is. The yoghurt is Yopp. Fopp wound up as Flopp. Posted by Christopher Nosnibor on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 22:09 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	The Cupid Kinkyboots Fan Club	You always gotta support the mom & pop shops and leave the virgin megastores behind. There was a nice store here in Hollywood that went under just recently - Aaron's Records - that was probably the best small (but it was pretty big) store left in the world. There's a bunch of tiny shops on Melrose still, and of course Amoeba Records, but they're all disappearing too. With Tower Records and the Wherehouse folding all that's left of the big corporate monger stores is Virgin and places like Best Buy. Not many choices left. I kinda like dealing with a real store and real people than downloading MP3s from a soulless website. But I guess that's what the future holds for all of us music lovers. The future is virtual! Posted by The Cupid Kinkyboots Fan Club on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 17:31 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	I prefer downloading myself - much more instant, reliable, and the product takes up less space... However for pure audio quality and power it has to be vinyl everytime (bought off of ebay) Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 17:54 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	simon	I Have to admit I Boycotted all branches of Our Price from about 1984 onwards when the branch in The Kings Road Chelsea tried to charge me £4.69 for the Rainy Day album Rainy Day that had one of those Rough Trade stickers on it saying pay no more than £3.99. Me being the snotty nosed obnoxious young asshole that I was I got in a big argument and swore never to darken there doors again. Strangely said lp is now so rare they change hands for £200 plus a copy and almost that much for the cd version, so how dumb and argument was that!! But certain records shops are such troves you always mourn there going, I miss Penny Farthing both branches in Cranbrook road in Ilford and North St Romford where I bought loads of Jap Import Bowie singles with way cool picture covers and loads of cassettes and vinyl as a kid a great shop with fairly friendly staff capable of pointing me in the right riection on many occasions. The chains I will only miss for the ability to binge in them, I am in invererate record shopaholic who hates to walk out empty handed from a record shop no matter how bad a shop!! Posted by simon on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 18:15 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	Yes... On the few occasions I go into record shops, I always come out with something... And often some things... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 20:05 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	Clinker	Apparantly Fopp is on the way back. I used to do simlar to you. When I was supposed to be in college, I used to go to a second hand record shop instead. Got me in shitloads of trouble. Posted by Clinker on Monday, February 04, 2008 at 14:10 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	tiffany the lass à la piratepods	vinyl lives Posted by tiffany the lass à la piratepods on Monday, February 04, 2008 at 15:19 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	they came from the stars, i saw them	odd, that. i been going through 20 year old tapes lately. they sound a bit wobbly... hj ;o) Posted by they came from the stars, i saw them on Monday, February 04, 2008 at 20:09 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	It's the recap before the pop power storm of 2008....! Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Monday, February 04, 2008 at 20:11 [Remove] [Reply to this]

: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :

Oh, and I was writing a blog about you, as you were writing a comment about this blog.... Bez would be amazed with the magic!!!!!!! Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Monday, February 04, 2008 at 20:13 [Remove] [Reply to this]