"We can order it for you..." aka... the day the music (shop) died...

Highlander · January 15, 2013, 11:51:15 AM

"We can order it for you, Sir..."

Those words echoed through my childhood... there was a chainstore familiar to both sides of the Pond called Woolworths that is long gone here, but it is where my late dad, in the 60's, used to go and buy the number one UK single every week, but once I got into more specialised music but shopped locally did not even stock Alice Cooper records or tapes... So, around the corner was this little record shop, and although they did not have a massive stock level they would order some items for you, for a reasonable deposit... I bought Billion Dollar Babies there, and Muscle Of Love, and WTM Nightmare, as well as some GFR, Made In Japan (by some minor UK outfit barely known by this forum's members), RB's Rainbow... all my formative stuff... I had two items on order for a year: one came in which I still have, albeit now mine after my dad passed as I got it for him; it is now considered to be Scotland's "National Anthem" and was the original artist/release on a private label in Scotland, so it has more than sentimental value... the other item was called Man On The Silver Mountain and due to a technicality it never came in - turned out it was released under the guitarists name, and not as a band name... I did eventually track it down but have now passed it on to someone who appreciates it more than I...

So, what has this got to do with what has happened today...? Well, the UK's last music chain-store, HMV, went into administration and is on the verge of closing it's doors forever...

As a company they failed to embrace the digital market and has been struggling to make headway for some years... this is symptomatic of the modern-world's love of the internet... only 10% of the UK is on-line, but so much music and DVD's are now bought via that means... Here, now, the only large-scale access to music and DVD's will only be through the "Wallmart" type outlets...

As for that "specialist" outlet...? Now gone and the site is part of a shopping centre/mall that has been there for over twenty years - the building of it also took out the instrument shop where I bought the Peter Cook...

The joy of browsing through a record shop and picking up a tape, an LP, or a single, or a video, or nowadays, a CD or DVD, even a computer game, are consigned to history, unless it is a top-ten seller...

Pilgrim · January 15, 2013, 02:02:09 PM

There was a story about HMV on National Public Radio's Morning Edition today. Another casualty of advancing technology.

patman · January 15, 2013, 02:34:18 PM

We still have a couple decent bricks and mortar stores, where you can even buy lp's if you want...I found a CD title recently that is out of print, and that I have searched for, for at least 20 years. Was kind of cool.

nofi · January 15, 2013, 02:43:48 PM

the only hmv in atlanta bounced out of here about twenty years ago. however, we have several good used record stores where you can find a lot of good stuff on vinyl and cd.

OldManC · January 15, 2013, 06:42:19 PM

I bought a lot of albums and CDs at HMV in Manchester and Liverpool. Truth be told though, I bought far more at an indy shop in Bolton called X Records. That place had more bootlegs, B-side singles, and oddities than any shop I've ever seen and that includes both coasts in the U.S. They were even on the 'net in the late 90's but somewhere along the way they also disappeared...

I spent hours as a teen in local record shops. We had a few really good ones with imports and some bootlegs. I had the first Ozzy album before it was released in the US, discovered Iron Maiden, Hanoi Rocks, and a bunch of other bands, and was able to pad my collection buying used records. It was always fun to discover some new band I'd never heard of, even if they didn't become a favorite. I like that (with the internet) I can find and buy from all over the world these days, but I do miss looking through the bins.

Hörnisse · January 15, 2013, 07:30:39 PM

I'd spend hours looking through bins at thrift stores back in the early to mid 80's. Half Price Books was great back then too. I found so many treasures at that place. Their vinyl selection is still (barely) there but it's not the same......

gweimer · January 15, 2013, 08:00:17 PM

I grew up with a few small shops. In Palatine, the local music store decided to branch out, and opened up a record/head shop called 26 North. It was an old house. It was where I first heard Rory Gallagher (doing "Catfish"), and discovered the original Rolling Stone publication. They had some clever moves. They couldn't sell the Fantasia soundtrack, so they put it in the "Underground" bin, and it started selling.

Then, there was Hotter Than Mothers. They were the place to go for imports. Scorpions, and I was there the minute they cracked open the box of the new Deep Purple Made In Japan (on the Purple label).

Yeah, those were the days for record buying. Spending hours looking at the covers, and reading the liner notes. Sometimes, I bought records just because of those.

Dave W · January 15, 2013, 09:22:19 PM

There are still about ten real record stores here, including a couple that deal only in vintage records.

FlatEric · January 16, 2013, 06:25:37 AM

A sad day, indeed.

The next victims are to be .................................. Musical Instrument Shops!!!!!!!!

I worked in a music shop, in the late 70's and at that time, if you wanted a pick,
some strings, a lead, guitar, amp. . . . . . you had to go to a music shop, there
was just no other way.

Fast forward to the begining of on line selling.

I know LOADS of musos who went to the shop, spent an hour in there - without spending
a single penny, deciding what they wanted, then going home and ordering it on line!!!

I kept tellin' 'em. . . . . One day. . . . .!
You know the rest!
There was just not enough business to survive and a lot have gone to the wall.

It won't be too long before most of them are gone!

I suppose that's change.
Horses lost out to Steam, Steam lost out to Diesel. . . . . .

I too spent many a happy hour in HMV and left the shop having BOUGHT something.

Cheers.

gearHed289 · January 16, 2013, 09:01:05 AM

We used to go straight to the "cutout bin" at Rolling Stone records (which is still there today) in Chicago (Norridge to be exact) and pick out weird stuff like Eloy, Nash the Slash, Jane, etc. THEN go to the regular A-Z section.

Dave W · January 16, 2013, 02:17:15 PM

Quote from: FlatEric on January 16, 2013, 06:25:37 AM
A sad day, indeed.

The next victims are to be .................................. Musical Instrument Shops!!!!!!!!

I worked in a music shop, in the late 70's and at that time, if you wanted a pick,
some strings, a lead, guitar, amp. . . . . . you had to go to a music shop, there
was just no other way.

Fast forward to the begining of on line selling.

I know LOADS of musos who went to the shop, spent an hour in there - without spending
a single penny, deciding what they wanted, then going home and ordering it on line!!!

I kept tellin' 'em. . . . . One day. . . . .!
You know the rest!
There was just not enough business to survive and a lot have gone to the wall.

It won't be too long before most of them are gone!

I suppose that's change.
Horses lost out to Steam, Steam lost out to Diesel. . . . . .

I too spent many a happy hour in HMV and left the shop having BOUGHT something.

Cheers.

Shopping the local store and then ordering online certainly does happen, no doubt about it.

OTOH there have been too many times when the local shop just won't keep what I need in stock. You make a trip there only to find that they're out of your strings -- again.

Either that or the price is way out of line. I know a small business has expenses that an online store doesn't. If you charge $20 for strings that I can buy for $17 or $18 online, I'll buy from you. If you charge $30 and whine about how slow business is, then I'll order online.

OldManC · January 16, 2013, 02:28:20 PM

Quote from: Dave W on January 16, 2013, 02:17:15 PM
If you charge $20 for strings that I can buy for $17 or $18 online, I'll buy from you. If you charge $30 and whine about how slow business is, then I'll order online.

That's how I am. I always have shipping charges in the back of my mind so if I'm in a shop and their price isn't that much more than I'd pay with shipping, I chalk off that few extra bucks as a convenience fee for getting it "now," rather than waiting. No biggie. Much more though and I figure I can wait a few days.

patman · January 16, 2013, 03:17:03 PM

I'm the same way...my local shop sells ernie ball bass strings for the going rate, so that's what I buy...banjo strings are roughly 2x the going rate i.e. $6 instead of $3, but I still usually buy them there.

Highlander · January 16, 2013, 03:52:25 PM

Blockbuster DVD/game rental was added to the endangered list today... long time since I rented a DVD...

George... http://www.xrecords.co.uk/
Possibly somewhat like tasting a favourite food from years gone by that just does not taste as good...?

Robert... did you ever pick up that Solid Senders CD...? seen it a couple of times on greedbay from a US seller...

OldManC · January 16, 2013, 05:19:19 PM

Cool! Last time I spoke with a friend near Bolton they told me the store had closed. Glad to see they're still around!

Of course the bootlegs are nowhere to be seen. I wonder if there's a secret database or something...