Must Visit Record Shops Badlands in Cheltenham



11 St George’s Place, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL50 3LA
01242 246242
Monday-Saturday: 9.00am-5:30pm
Established 1985
Stock: Vinyl, CD, Tickets, In-stores

Cheltenham is a town famous for its spa and horse racing festival. But for Bruce Springsteen fans Cheltenham means one thing: Badlands Records. Not only is Badlands a great record shop but it is the world’s number one specialist in Springsteen. As well as his music, they also sell a vast range of merchandise, concert tickets and even organise holidays around the world to see The Boss perform.

The shop was started by two Manchester-born brothers, Phil and Steven Jump who have lived in the area since they were toddlers when their parents moved to the Cotswolds. After leaving school, Phil worked in insurance while Steven started a painting and decorating business. Phil left his job after the company refused to give him time off to travel to Leicester to see The Jam. He started working with Steven in the painting and decorating business, but profits were increasingly being spent on expanding Steven’s record collection. One day while at the top of a ladder above a butchers shop in Cheltenham high street, Phil shouted down to Steven that he had had enough of painting and wanted to pack it in.  They stopped there and then, and never went back to the butcher’s to collect their brushes and half-used tins of paint, which may be still up there on the roof.
 
The following Saturday, on a cold October day in 1985, they set off with a pile of records to Evesham market where they hired a stall for £3.50. They took £38 on the first day of trading. The brothers had different tastes in music but the one artist they both loved was Bruce Springsteen. They chose the name Badlands after the opening track from the album Darkness on the Edge of Town. A song about a man down on his luck, angry with the world and looking for a better life, it resonated with both of them.

The turning point for Badlands was when one of the biggest collectors of Springsteen memorabilia contacted them to say he was moving abroad and wanted to dispose of his collection. The asking price was £3,000 and much as they wanted to buy the lot, the brothers did not have that much spare cash. They contacted another avid fan and between them they raised the money. The purchasers decided the best way of splitting the collection was to put all the records on the floor and take turns at picking what they wanted.

Choosing the name Badlands turned out to be an inspirational move. Soon Springsteen collectors throughout the world were sending them their wish lists. By accident Badlands was becoming a Springsteen specialist. Soon an opportunity came to move to bigger premises (well 10-foot by 10-foot) in an outlet above BHS in the Regent Arcade. Thanks to a government initiative, their rent was covered by a grant.   The only stipulation was that they had to attend college one day a week to study business skills.


They took customer service to new levels. If somebody asked for a title they did not have they would say it would be in later that afternoon. When the customer had left one of them would rush out of the shop and call in to one of the other record shops in town to purchase the item. They would then sell it to the customer on his return but make no money on the deal. For them it was more important that the customer came back and the constant running between the shops kept the boys fit.

Not long after opening, Badlands had another stroke of good fortune. Sony, one of the UKs biggest record companies, had a dispute with Our Price who at that time had a large branch in Cheltenham. The result was that they stopped offering product to the Our Price shops temporarily.  Sony phoned Badlands to ask if they would like a credit account and offered most favourable terms.   Phil and Steven took up the offer and filled the shop with Sony product, enjoying the fact that Our Price had no Sony new releases or back catalogue in their Cheltenham shop. They then phoned the other record companies to inform them how well they were doing with their new credit account from Sony and all then offered them credit terms.

In 1989, Badlands founded The Ties That Bind, an unofficial Bruce Springsteen fan club which has proved a great success. They produce a quarterly magazine and give the clubs 2,000-plus membersdiscounts on mail order and shop purchases.

The shop is so successful at selling tickets that they are the only alternative outlet that the Harvey Goldsmith organisation allows to be official Bruce Springsteen ticket sellers. It is thanks to the Springsteen connection that Badlands continues to thrive. According to Sony the shop is responsible for 10% of all Springsteen sales in the UK.  Badlands regularly has artists playing the shop.  They are still waiting for Springsteen to turn up and do an acoustic set, but they count passionate performances from Frank Turner and Billy Bragg among their favourite events so far.

The shop was voted Independent Record Shop of the year in 2010. Jump Travel Ltd is the Badlands Travel Company, set up to create well-designed holiday packages for the greatest shows around the world. Initially concentrating on tours by Springsteen, Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones along with a host of other legendary acts, their packages combine excellent seats for the show with top class hotels near the concert venue itself or within the city center of the holiday destination.

Having been avid concertgoers themselves (both brothers have seen Springsteen more than 100 times), Phil and Steven know what makes a well-designed package.
They will often arrange social gatherings or pre-show parties where you can meet up with like-minded fans from around the world.   They recommend bookings at some of their favourite restaurants for a pre-show get together and where possible arrange excursions or guided tours of the area. The Memphis packages include visits not just to the concerts but also to Gracelands, Sun Studios and The National Civil Rights Museum.

Phil informs me that they have had people who have met on their trips and got married. One couple had their wedding on a trip. Many of these couples now have children. They were impressed with one customers dedication to Springsteen, when the fan left the trip to go back for the birth of his child before returning to finish his holiday.

The shop suffered a desperate blow in September 2013 when Steven unexpectedly passed away at the age of 56. He brought joy into the lives of thousands of music fans throughout the world, and his memory lives on in this great record store.

Check out 220 more independent record shops in the book  'The Vinyl Revival and the Shops That Made it Happen' 

The books of Graham Jones are available in record shops or online. The latest book The Vinyl Revival and the Shops that Made it Happen has been turned in to a film. It has just been released on DVD and is available in record shops or online. Distributed by Proper Music.

Each week I record The Vinyl Revival Record Shop Podcast. It contains lots of funny tales from the crazy world of record retailing. It is also available on Spotify.

Twitter: @Revival_Vinyl

My blog has over 100 features on record shops and vinyl.

grahamjonesvinylrevival.blogspot.com

For film screenings and talks contact Graham.  


 


As the person who has visited more record shops than any other human, I often get asked my advice on buying turntables. I always say do not purchase a budget model. What is the point of buying one that costs the price of a few albums? The sound will not do the recordings justice. For a long time, I have recommended
Rega Turntables as they are superb quality at great prices. They got more brownie points for sponsoring 'Record Store Day' and manufacturing limited editions just for record shops. 



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