Vinyl Records & CDs – Buy, Sell & Part Exchange.
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The History of Record Collector
Largest selection of vinyl records in Sheffield
Record Collector opened in Sheffield in 1978, and has sold vinyl records continuously for forty years. We have purchased vinyl collections from the public throughout that time, even when other vinyl shops closed or moved over to the CD format. Our dedication to vinyl has enabled us to build a large and varied stock over many years, now numbering around 50,000 records. Our store is now four times larger than the original shop was in 1978. This expansion enabled us to open the CD shop, containing 25,000 CDs. If you’d like to check what we have in stock, call us today on 01142 668493.
The Stories
Public Enemy At Record Collector
In December 2015, Record Collector hosted a pre-gig in-store autograph session with the legendary American hip hop group Public Enemy. The shop hit news and social media after the taxi booked to take Public Enemy to Sheffield Arena after the signing session failed to arrive.
Sheffield photographer (and Record Collector regular) Kevin Wells was on the scene, and came to Public Enemy’s rescue by taking the group to the Arena in his Ford Focus!
Kevin had nipped into the store for a quick autograph ahead of a busy night photographing other gigs across Sheffield. He said: “Public Enemy had a taxi booked for 6.30pm, but it drove off before the guys had finished signing autographs. People started panicking and looking for someone to drive, so I volunteered.”
Putting his knowledge of the city’s back roads into action, Kevin began the ‘most surreal journey’ of his life. He drove the multimillionaires in his faithful Ford Focus.
Kevin said: “They were such nice guys, we had a right laugh. We were chatting away, but the phone was constantly going as their management were clearly worried. Then as we were coming through Attercliffe, Bohemian Rhapsody, by Queen, came on the radio. Everyone was singing the words and rocking out in the back of my car, it was like a Wayne’s World moment. I was looking in the rear view mirror thinking, ‘is this actually happening?’”
He added: “We got to the arena about 15 minutes before they were due on stage. I drove up to security and said, ‘I’ve got the band in the back.’ They looked at me as if I was having them on, but then I rolled down the windows and Chuck D showed them the security pass. Amazing, it just didn’t feel real.”
Kevin posted a selfie of Public Enemy in his car the following day, which was liked and shared hundreds of times online.
Barry Everard, owner of Record Collector, said Public Enemy had contacted him the week before the show to arrange the signing. He said hundreds of fans braved the rain to turn up for the event. He said Public Enemy had been using taxis to get about as their tour bus is too large for smaller roads.
Barry said: “Public Enemy were absolutely brilliant; such nice guys and they were great with the fans. Sometimes fame can ruin people, but it clearly hadn’t with them.” He added: “They are arguably the biggest act we’ve ever had in the store. It really was an honour to have them and I’m glad they made the show on time.”
Urban Myths TV Show
In 2017, Sky TV announced a dramatized re-telling of the Public Enemy incident to be broadcast in 2018 as part of their Urban Myths series on Sky Arts.
Urban Myths: Public Enemy (feat. Kev Wells) tells the story of how rap revolutionaries Public Enemy got stranded in Broomhill after their tour bus left without them, and they had to rely on a local bloke and his old Ford Focus to get them to their show on time.
Starring Philip Glenister as Kev Wells, Paterson Joseph as Chuck D and Abdul Sallis as Flavor Flav.
For this episode, the production team created a replica of the Record Collector shop-front and signage to feature in the show.
Tim Burgess: Tim Book Two – Vinyl Adventures From Istanbul To San Francisco
Record Collector was featured in this 2017 book written by Tim Burgess, singer-songwriter and frontman of The Charlatans (Faber & Faber). After the success of his memoir, Telling Stories, Tim set himself a quest. He got in touch with people he admires, and asked them to suggest an album for him to track down on his travels, giving an insight into what makes them tick, while also giving Tim a chance to see how record shops around the world were faring in the digital age
Ian McCulloch (Echo & the Bunnymen) sent Tim on a mission to find an Echo & The Bunnymen LP. Tim arrived in Sheffield looking for Record Collector, which had been recommended to him by iconic music photographer Tom Sheehan:
“I had been trying to find a record shop called Rockie’s in Sheffield. Tom Sheehan, who photographed us for the cover of Tellin’ Stories, had taken me there sometime around 1996. I have vague recollections of a hill. And an afternoon spent in the pub. As it turned out, the day in the pub made the hill seem bigger.
“My guide to Sheffield vinyl was Pete McKee, an artist who’s worked with Richard Hawley and the Arctic Monkeys, and is as Sheffield as a stainless-steel bottle of Henderson’s Relish…
“I left with a list of shops, but there was no Rockie’s. I guessed it must have closed down. The first was Record Collector. The CDs were banished to a shop next door; the half I was in was vinyl only. There was a John Carpenter soundtrack playing as I went in and I nodded my approval at the guy behind the counter.
“The shop felt familiar, but I always kind of feel at home in record shops; they can be very much alike – boxes of vinyl, posters, maybe some sew-on patches.
“‘You’ve been in here before,’ the guy behind the counter told me. He must have seen me looking puzzled, trying to work it out. ‘You were with Tom Sheehan, who used to live near by.’ I asked if the shop used to be called Rockie’s, and he explained that was Tom’s nickname for the owner.”
111 Places In Sheffield That You Shouldn’t Miss:
In 2017, Record Collector was featured in Michael Glover’s book “111 Places in Sheffield That You Shouldn't Miss” (Emons Publishers). Described as the ultimate insider's guide to Sheffield, the book features interesting and unusual places not found in traditional travel guides. It is part of the international 111 Places/111 Shops series with over 170 titles and 1 million copies in print worldwide.
Where do you go to see Sheffield at its best? Where can you have a latte in an indoors tropical garden? Or read a public poem by Roger McGough which twins Sheffield with Mars? This book will lead you through the back ways of Sheffield and all its hidden, undersung delights.
Independent
Record Collector has featured many times in lists of the best Independent Record Stores. The shop featured prominently in the best-selling book “Last Shop Standing”, whose author regards us as his favourite record store. The book was also the basis for a documentary film of the same name, which featured Richard Hawley interviewed at Record Collector. The owner of Record Collector also featured alongside a crowd of hundreds of customers on Record Store Day. The documentary was chosen as the official film for Record Store Day, so it was a great honour to be included.
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