The Best Record Shops in the UK - X Records in Bolton


X-Records                     

44 Bridge Street, Bolton, Greater Manchester BL1 2EG
01204 384579
xrecords.co.uk; xrecords@xrecords.co.uk; @xrecordsbolton
Monday-Saturday 10am-5.30pm
Sunday 10am-4pm
Established 1986
Stock: Vinyl, CD, Pre-owned, Cassettes, Merchandise, Tickets

It is only a 40-minute drive from Manchester to X-Records in Bolton, owned by Steve Meekings. As well as a huge selection of music, the store has a Scalextric track, an impressive collection of boxing magazines and lots of music memorabilia such as T-shirts, music figures and mugs. To give you an idea of how extensive his collection is, this is the merchandise he has in stock from one of his favourite bands, Kiss: Kiss baseball caps, Kiss baseball bats, Kiss coffee, Kiss flasks, Kiss beach towels, Kiss figurines, Kiss guitar straps, Kiss guitar hero faceplates, Kiss perfume for girls and Kiss aftershave for men, Kiss cycling jerseys, Kiss polo shirts, Kiss fridge magnets, Kiss photos, Kiss fanzines, autographed Kiss books. The shop also has the largest collection of cassettes I have ever seen. Steve explains that his is one of the few shops still to retail them, and he sells them for £1 each. They have a huge second-hand section and keep over 70,000 units in stock, while listing another 70,000 items on the X-website  



Steve is a likeable chap and it is clear he has tried everything to keep the business going in difficult circumstances. As well as organising rock and punk gigs in Bolton, he promotes poetry readings. Displayed in prominent positions by the counter are releases by local bands. Steve constantly plays them in the shop, enthusing about each one to the store’s regular customers. He even tried to launch his own record label, but it proved to be a huge drain on the shop’s resources as all the bands he signed lost money. He had high hopes of the rock band Dirty Tryx, who had created a real buzz in the industry. Steve pressed their record to coincide with the band’s UK tour. Unfortunately, due to “musical differences” the band split up on the eve of the record’s release.

Like many record shop owners, Steve started by buying and selling at record fairs before taking the plunge and hiring a table inside an alternative clothes emporium called Xstatic. He didn’t have any racks, just tables held up by beer crates. In 1986, he opened his own shop in a converted post office next to Bolton College. It was a great location as Steve would experience an influx of students at lunchtime as well as in the early evening.

A rock & roll moment occurred at the shop when one of Steve’s customers tripped and fell head first into the poster rack. Steve rushed over to help the man who had seemingly got himself wedged. It turned out to be 1960s pop star PJ Proby, and Steve was relieved to see that his trousers showed no signs of ripping, as they had so often on stage in his heyday. Another regular visitor was Ian Brown of the Stone Roses, who used to deliver the band’s T-shirts for the shop to sell.




X-Records is the only record shop to be sponsored by a pasty company: local independent company Carrs Pasties can be seen handing free pasties out to the queue outside the store on Record Store Day. Once inside, record collectors could pass away many hours, as Steve has so much stock to look through. The shop offers surely the best vinyl deal of all time: a perfect starter for anybody wishing to start a vinyl collection. They have a £1 second-hand vinyl section, where you can choose 20 records for £10. If you are planning to visit this excellent record shop, my suggestion would be take a packed lunch, as you may be there a long time.


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. 

 www.thevinylrevivalfilm.com

 It is available on DVD and can also be watched on Vimeo 



 @Revival_Vinyl

 For film screenings and talks contact Graham at graham@lastshopstanding.co.uk 

 Over 100 record shop articles on this blog - Check them out

 The stories of record shops can be heard each week in The Vinyl Revival Record Shop Podcast.

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