Get Involved blog

Well, yesterday’s World Record Store Day came and went in London, rather like any other day - although I did see that the BBC picked up on it. Next year I hope to get it in the diary in advance so I can at least get some bunting and some beers, and take my mini celebration to some of my favourite independent record shops in London. Or something…

To mark this year’s WRSD, admittedly belatedly, I’ve FINALLY got round to making a selection of some photographs taken late last summer in my all time favourite London record store; JB’s. I’ve been going in to this little shop, tucked away in a side street just off bustling Oxford Street, for a number of years and anyone that has followed this blog will know that I often reference the shop when talking about records I’ve picked up that are blowing my little mind… Needless to say, I would be absolutely gutted if JB’s disappeared.

So when Rob and Bill who run the shop told me last year that rent was going up and they thought they were going to have to leave the premises, I called up my buddy, Dean Chalkley, and asked if he would be interested taking some shots of the shop, for posterity and as part of the ongoing Record Shop Love series of images and stories archived on this very site. All the shots you see on this post (and the one on the site’s homepage) were taken by Dean one Friday evening last August.

Since then, I’m delighted to report that the shop hasn’t disappeared or moved – you can still find Rob and Bill dishing out top tips for sounds that you might like in JB’s on Hanway Street next to Bradley’s Spanish Bar. If you’re around in London, pop in and have a rummage!

This post contains a selection of Dean’s shots, taken in August last year. Long live JBs!

Rob and Bill. Doing a great job!

JB’s Record Shop
36 Hanway Street
London W1T 1UP
Nearest Tube: Tottenham Court Road
+44 (0)20 7436 4063

All photography in this post copyright Dean Chalkley

Interior of Carmel Records, Southend - shot by Dean Chalkley

Considering I spend a lot of time in record stores and on various websites hunting down vintage vinyl - I was surprised to learn only yesterday that this Saturday (tomorrow), 18 April 2009, is, in fact, World Record Store Day…

Yes, it’s time to show some love to the shops that still pay the rent to give us the chance to get our hands dirty (literally) thumbing through real, tangible music and pick the brains of the knowledgable and friendly staff that run them. I don’t need to waffle on here about the importance of paying a little over the eBay / online odds for a great record in a shop. Shops have overheads, bills to pay but the experience of going in to such places, if it suddenly wasn’t an option, would be HUGELY missed.

I can’t find a UK site that has all the details or a list of events happening in UK stores - which is a huge shame - but I did find this BBC news bulletin about it.

So what’s happening in your local record store tomorrow? Why not give them a call and find out. If there are no festivities planned - maybe turn up to your favourite vinyl hot spot tomorrow with some bunting, a few bottles of beer (to share with the staff) and a few quid to spend. Please check the Record Shops section of this site for deets of some great shops worth paying a visit.

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL RECORD SHOP!

If you’re in London, come along to my regular rock’n'roll shindig Gerry’s Joint up at The Boogaloo in Highgate. Records bought in shops will be played!

J.B. Lenoir & His African Hunch Rhythm – I Sing Um The Way I Feel (G the P tweak)

I only recently came across this amazing blues tune, I Sing ‘Um The Way I Feel by J. B. Lenoir, when I got a copy of Island’s excellent This Is Blues compilation LP (put together by the legendary Guy Stevens) in a small second hand record shop in London. And I must have played it a hundred times since the needle on my record player first hit this particularly hypnotic, bongo-led blues groove from 1963…

A few weeks ago, in the company of my buddy Brad Downey, a late night listen prompted me to cut and paste this slightly extended edit together. I mean no disrespect by it - I’m a purist at heart – this version is simply one for the late night session.

Gotta love a minimal bongo blues groove!

This Is Blues LP, Island (IWP5, 1969)