I Miss Record (C.D) Stores

Mikey Forrester
Sep 1, 2015
2 min read

Cover to DJ SHADOW's TRIP HOT MASTERPIECE "ENTRODUCING"

Hopefully whoever reads this remembers them and looks back with muchos huevos (more than lots) nostalgia. I have a bias because I spent most of my youth and money on vinyl, in the 70's /80's and then worked a record store all through university in 1990's. Got Paid bugger all but you got discounted or free C.D'S, i.e. free tunes (back then it was like gold ). The point I’m trying to make as it was not so much about the service we were providing and making squillions for the record companies, but more so the culture and sub cultures that came along with the record store.

To own a compact disc, which just came out, worldwide release at 12am in the morning, people would line up in the freezing cold to get the first copies, kind of like what the nerds do for IPhones these days. It meant so much to people becuase it could be claimed almost exclusivley, that " this band is all mine", some devotees went all gollum over their bands.It was special.

Que for new Iron Maiden Release 1980 London ( yes you heard right Iron Maiden ) photographer unknown

The record store was aquarium of dreams and loosing yourself in all the big displays/ posters and weirdoes who would throw you into a headlock if you said something derogatory about their heroes. I commented once on Depeche Modes music (who I love now) saying their drum tracks are like a girls blouse, but i didn’t realize i was working with New Zealand’s no. 1 fan at the time. He lit up like the towering inferno gave me the: “you just crossed the point of no return A hole" . At the time it was the usual banter but now its gold, because the congregation of music listening and appreciation has changed, its more a solo effort, like masturbation.