Happiness is walking into a charity shop a two minute walk from your house and consistently finding great second hand vinyl at £2.50 a pop. Ok, so it might not be complete happiness, but it helps toward it. Last week I hadn’t quite fallen out of love with it, but having bought The Fog on dvd only to discover it was the bloody REMAKE (4% on Rotten Tomatoes) I wasn’t sure if I’d drank that particular well dry. Also, last week the place was full of gramophone records, not the 33.5 RPM albums I have had such success buying there.
Previous posts have highlighted the classics picked up there, including Paul Simon, Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder, but this morning the place has outdone itself.
A ten minute browse unearthed Marvin Gaye – Lets Get it On, James Brown – Revolution of the Mind, the last great live album from one of the greatest. Average White Band & Ben E King – Benny and Us. Rolling Stones -It’s only Rock ‘n Roll and the Jackson 5 Christmas Album. It should be noted that all of these are in near mint condition, the vinyl is flawless, they are all original, the only wear and tear is on a few sleeves, but the majority look untouched and great examples of the art of the album sleeve.
The excitement of finding great NEW music has switched to the internet. Alongside Twitter recommendations from your favourite musicians, sites like DJ Booth, 2dopeboyz, Potholes in My Blog and Okayplayer (and its sister sites) have in the last year or so introduced me to artists like CharlieRED, Solange and Rapsody to name but three. The ease of access and the ability to stream music enables the listener to try out something they may not ordinarily even consider in a record shop. Its immediate, its easy, and whilst it doesn’t have the romance of a trip to the record store, it can be equally exciting when you unearth something fresh. There’s something about the feel of vinyl in a charity shop, and unearthing a classic amongst the Rick Astley, Five Star, and, today, Gary Glitter records is like striking oil AKA Black Gold AKA a really good record in a charity shop. Don’t believe me? Look…
Giant (1956) – James Dean Strikes Oil – YouTube.
Ok, maybe without the fighting and the gloating and the venom. Maybe with just a bit of the gloating, tamed down a bit, but in there somewhere.
Just as a tribute to the shop, here’s today’s haul in glorious technicolour…
thoughtsbeatsandrhymes 