'The Vinyl Revival and The Shops That Made It Happen'
by Graham Jones
I’m not going to pretend I’ve read ‘The Vinyl Revival and the Shops that Made it Happen’ from cover to cover. For a start it would take me 6 months and it’s not that kind of book. It's a dip in and out of book and a DELIGHT. Meet Graham at Beatons Petersfield on Monday 24th Sept, details here!
I’m not an obvious fan – hailing from the CD era, having a music collection which (until a year ago) topping 12 hrs listening time max and having been into less than half a dozen record shops in my lifetime! But I love people, and so does Graham Jones. And I love good writing too. This is the perfect book for a Guest Room or the resting place of the best collections of books – the Loo. Its even made me want to visit some of these glorious independents, each with their own quirky owners!
I suspect it’ll have you exploring new place to meet the
characters you’ll encounter through its incredible 345 pages.
Sadly, we won’t be able to meet Margaret Finch who the premises of the ‘Book and Record Bar’ in West Norwood was originally named after in its first incarnation as a pub, The Gypsy Queen. Ms Finch ‘could usually be found sitting on the ground, chin resting on her knees, smoking a pipe, with her faithful dog by her side… Her body became so contorted that when she died in 1740, she had to be crammed into a specially-constructed square coffin.’ [Reputed age 108!] Curious. And for the music-lover you’ll be enchanted by anecdote after anecdote about the musicians who populate your record collections.
Sadly, we won’t be able to meet Margaret Finch who the premises of the ‘Book and Record Bar’ in West Norwood was originally named after in its first incarnation as a pub, The Gypsy Queen. Ms Finch ‘could usually be found sitting on the ground, chin resting on her knees, smoking a pipe, with her faithful dog by her side… Her body became so contorted that when she died in 1740, she had to be crammed into a specially-constructed square coffin.’ [Reputed age 108!] Curious. And for the music-lover you’ll be enchanted by anecdote after anecdote about the musicians who populate your record collections.
There’s humour in buckets, too. Especially from the customer
comments and conversations Graham Jones has carefully preserved. No doubt many
of the shops he features will be bemused by their colleagues’ visitors.
Questions such as, ‘Where is the plug on a wind-up gramophone?’, ‘Are the
records for sale?’ and ‘How do I skip to the next track on vinyl?’ are bound to
raise a smile. I’m still leafing through to discover the shop where John Lennon
was reduced to tears…
This is a practical guide, grouped into counties with addresses, contact details and stock listed, along with a plethora of tips. Unusually for a large paperback it boasts some stunning colour photographs. You will be guided by a remarkable man on a mission, Graham Jones has visited more record shops than any other human!
What’s more, Graham’s is a born raconteur who isn’t afraid
to sell himself or his titles. He invited himself to do an evening gig at
Beatons Petersfield which Tearooms Owner Fifi has been delighted to organise
for her customers! Read more here.
I gave this tome to my dad to peruse and I confess he found
the print on the small size, although to have increased the font would have
probably made it too heavy for taking with you on your travels. Small matter, a magnifier will redress.
Graham’s a Petersfield local so grab yourself a signed copy there – and of course our Book of the Month is stocked in all our units, although you'll have to wait until October 1st unless you're in Petersfield!
Liz Darcy Jones
Book Ambassador
Book Ambassador