Record Store Day Shops - Day 36 - Tallbird Records - Chesterfield



Tallbird Records

10, Soresby Street, Chesterfield, Derbyshire S40 1JN
01246 234548
tallbirdrecords.co.uk; tallbirdrecords@gmail.com; @TallbirdRecords
Monday-Saturday 9.30am-4.30pm
Established 2013
Stock: Vinyl, CD, Pre-owned, Art, Books, In-stores, Merchandise, Turntables

“Who doesn’t want to own and work in a record shop?
It is the best job in the world.” Maria Harris -Tallbird Records

Maria Harris walked into Richard’s Records in Canterbury and asked them if they needed any part-time staff.  The answer from Richard Rodgers, the shop owner, was “Yes” and so she took the first step towards realizing her dream of owning a record shop. Maria stopped off at a few other legendary record retail establishments along the way, including another part-time job at Beggars Banquet in Kingston-Upon-Thames, manager of a branch of Alto in Carnaby Street, and a head office product manager role at Virgin Megastores.

Maria opened Tallbird Records in Chesterfield in 2013, a couple of years after the closure of HMV and the much loved CE Hudsons (Keith Hudson appeared in the Last Shop Standing documentary film and was the proprietor of the oldest, family-run record shop in the world, having traded for 105 years). Not content to live in a town without a record shop and looking for a new challenge after more than 10 years as a stay-at-home mum, Maria decided the time was right to open a new shop to take advantage of the resurgent interest in vinyl.

CE Hudsons had been forced to close because of spiraling rents and rates, but Maria was fortunate to secure an affordable, small retail premises just around the corner from the old Hudsons site. Chesterfield is famous for its Church of St Mary’s and All Saints with its crooked spire, so she toyed with the idea of calling the shop Spire Records, but that seemed a bit too obvious. As Maria has spent her entire life being told how tall she is (more than six foot in her heels) she thought it would be fun to call the shop Tallbird.  Maria’s graphic-designer dad designed the much admired Tallbird logo which now appears on T-shirts, mugs, slip mats and even the own brand record cleaner (years of working for a corporate brand like Virgin has obviously rubbed off!)



The first record sold when the shop opened its doors on October 4, 2013 was a pre-owned copy of The Man Who Sold the World by David Bowie, which, as a Bowie fan, Maria took as a good omen. The shop has gone from strength to strength ever since. The new vinyl and CD section has expanded, and the shop stocks a wide selection of new music and reissues across most genres.  There’s also plenty of great, reasonably priced pre-owned vinyl and CDs, which are topped up weekly with dozens of new titles to keep the racks interesting and fresh, plus four bins of bargain vinyl at £2.99 each or two for £5.  Maria has managed to cram in as much stock as the little shop can hold without looking cluttered and untidy. Everything is well laid out and titles are easy to find.  Pre-owned vinyl is all given a clear, colour-coded grade and there is a loyalty card scheme for regular vinyl customers.  



The shop has built up a great reputation for its good product range and excellent customer service and has had visits from vinyl junkies from around the world including Japan, Australia and the USA. The shop has also had a few celebrity visits. There was one occasion when it felt like the shop had been transported back in time to a 1980s episode of Top of The Pops, with visits from Marco Pirroni of Adam & The Ants, Tom Bailey of the Thompson Twins and Captain Sensible of the Damned, all popping in on the same day. Marco is a regular and came in with his girlfriend who was promoting the Damned gig that evening, hence the visit from Captain Sensible. Tom Bailey was up visiting his dad who lives in the town. Tom is from Chesterfield as are most of the original Thompson Twins. So, if you are a vinyl fan passing by Chesterfield, call in and you might meet a 1980s star. If not, you will find Maria the extremely likeable “tall bird“ behind the counter and star of the shop.


Over 220 independent record shops featured in The Vinyl Revival and the Shops That Made it Happen



 Available at your local record shop or online at http://smarturl.it/vinylrevival

Look out for the film based on the book. The Vinyl Revival'  which is released on Record Store Day  April 13th. The film comes free with the album The Vinyl Revival. Only available in independent record shops on RSD


Check out the trailer


https://youtu.be/dDYrd0N2cIA


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