Sweet music
Mark Edmundson (pictured) overcomes a passionate dislike of shopping to indulge his love of vinyl with a trawl round the secondhand record stores of Glasgow and Edinburgh
hopping and l haye always had a loye-hate relationship. But we put aside our differences for record shopping: that ritualistic. solitary actiy‘ity' that's at once sombre yet exhilarating. Secondhand records possess the same mystique as old books: they hold secrets and truths that can only be experienced and enjoyed outwith the shop. at home. in the mind. Slipping the record from its sleeve. placing it on the turntable and gently easing the needle to the opening grooye you are embarking on a journey experienced by others before you. but the meaning will be all your own. flavoured by your own experience and association. Around a year ago. I was surprised and delighted to find a new secondhand record shop had opened on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. Inspired by my discoy'ery. together with the enthusiasm of our guest editor. Ian Rankin. for secondhand record shops. 1 set off to rediscoyer the vinyl emporiums of Glasgow and Edinburgh.
98 THE LIST 1—15 Noy 200."
Glasgow
Among the bars and boutiques of (ilasgow's (‘resswell Lane Lost In Music (l)e(‘ourcy”s Arcade. ()l4l 33‘) 8155) is your classic arcade affair: no frills but a few racks of the customary rock. soul. Jan and country. These days. the collectables on show are (Us or DVDs.
Nearby Oxfam Music ll7l By'res Road. (ll-ll 33-1 7669) has. sadly. become an altogether more sayyy enterprise of late. The Variable stock is now thoughtfully presented. but at less generous prices. which takes a bit of the thrill out of the chase. That said. this place is worth a Visit.
Lost Chord l l l Park Road. (ll-ll 334 5528). which I stumbled on by accident. proyed the boon of the West End. The trsual suspects were all present and correct on LP. supplemented by posters. brie-a— brac and neatly bagged porn rags hidden upstairs. catalogued by a ring-binder at the counter. I had hoped for more of the same from Record Fayre (13-15 Chisholm Street. 014] 552 5696). but it
proved to be your typical one—stop rock shop: dark and pokey with a wealth of punk and rock yiny'l in something passing as a system. and a thousand unwanted 7ins on hand for the patient or truly unfussy shopper. I suspect that most of the trade here comes from the metalwear sold in a snug at the rear of the shop.
Worth a mention while I'm in this
SECONDHAND RECORDS HOLD SECRETS AND TRUTHS THAT CAN ONLY BE EXPERIENCED OUTWITH
THE SHOP
part of town. king of cool Monorail (II Kings ('ourt. (llJl 552 9-458) espouses qtrality oyer' quantity. its mint secondhand section amounting to no more than two tidy boxes on the floor [hill are no doubt slill referred to as racks. The nrain (ilasgow branch of Avalanche (34 Dundas Street. lll4l 333 3000i has obyious indie leanings that push it towards the traditional secondhand camp of classic rock albums and compilations of soul standards. and there is here than I had anticipated. btrt it is nice to spend (for oncel trrrder an hour leafing through sensibly priced albums.
I know I can't rrrakc the return to .»\uld Reekie without yisiting 23rd Precinct (23 Bath Street. llHl 333 4806) although the cluhhy orientation. the often abrasiye or downright antisocial music and the serious staff and punters has historically brought out the mouse in me. What greets rrrc this afternoon. howeyer. is intimidating in quite another way: after trading on many a wax doctor's move to MP3. the shop appears to hayc ruptured internally. leaying an imposing mess of 1)] collections.
less
jammed in tight. sporadically
labelled and at super—low prices. I snatch randomly at white labels and am relieyed to find. at home in the safety of my room. that they're not half bad.
Edinburgh
Edinburgh's secondhand record shops are in the most part directly comparable to those in Glasgow. particularly. and quite obviously