Great Record Shops Vinyl Tap in Huddersfield
Vinyl Tap *International
rock star mistaken for a motor vehicle*
42
John William St, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD1 1ER
01484
517720
vinyltap.co.uk;
vinyltapshop@yahoo.co.uk; @vinyltaprecords
Monday-Saturday
9am-6pm
Sunday
11am-4pm
Established
1984
Stock:
Vinyl, CD, Pre-owned, In-stores
Vinyl
Tap is located opposite Huddersfield train station. The shop had long been off
the media’s radar, but that all changed on the day before Record Store Day in 2017,
when Lauren Laverne broadcast her BBC 6 Music radio show live from the shop.
The shop is owned by Tony Boothroyd who has established
the shop as one of the best in the UK.
Upstairs
it is a traditional record shop, selling new vinyl and CDs. The department is
run by charismatic duo Matt Scholey and Marc Kershaw, the Ant and Dec of music
retailing. Matt pestered his way into getting the job, calling in nearly every
day to check if any vacancies had cropped up since he last asked 24 hours
earlier. Marc already had a background of working in record retailing, having
served at the defunct System Records, which originally traded at Hebden Bridge
before moving to Bradford.
The
highlight of Marc’s time working at System Records was when DJ John Peel came
in. He bought lots of vinyl from African artists, along with an album by a Bradford-based
brass band. Marc queried the latter selection, and John pointed out that the
brass band came from where his wife Shelia was born. Marc left System to help
set up a new branch of Andy’s Records in Halifax.
At
that time, Andy’s was the largest independent record chain in the UK, with more
than 40 branches. It had been started by Andy Gray, who sold records on
Felixstowe Pier in 1969. Over the years, it changed its name to suit changing
trends, becoming Andy’s Records & Video and then, during the CD boom, just
Andy’s.
At
the start of the new millennium, like hundreds of independent shops, Andy’s
began to lose money and started closing shops. Eventually they called in the
receivers and the final shops were closed on September 13, 2003. These days
Andy Gray owns and runs the successful Beat Goes On reissue record label.
Like
many ex-staff of Andy’s, Marc has happy memories of working there. Andy Gray’s
brother Billy was the marketing director, and both came down to help open the
new Halifax branch. Marc recalls them creating a strong team work ethic. Marc
has always been keen on introducing the public to new music. When he started
there, staff could play what they wanted in-store, but as time went on things
changed. A new rule came in, dictating that between 11am and 2pm they had to
play chart music and later the shops were sent playlists of titles they were
required to play. For Marc, who was a big fan of funk, soul and jazz music - all
of which the playlist lacked - it was time to move on.
Downstairs
at Vinyl Tap you will find one of the largest collections of second-hand vinyl
anywhere in the UK. There are more than 30,000 7-inch singles alone, along with
tens of thousands of LPs and dozens of collectable albums. Any vinyl fan could
spend hours in the shop’s £1 vinyl room. The department is run by long-serving
staff member JP. At the far end of the department is a full-size stage and the
shop has put on free gigs featuring Hooton Tennis Club among others.
Vinyl
Tap has an impressive website where you can listen to all the new music the
shop recommends. One thing the boys regret is creating such an iconic logo - a
giant tap with vinyl records pouring out of it - for the shop’s signage. They
have lost count of the number of people who have come in, walked past thousands
of records, and asked for bathroom taps, kitchen taps or for plumbing to be
done. Still not as bad, perhaps, as the person who came in and enquired “By any
chance, do you stock records?”
Marc
remembers the massive sale that never happened, back when he was working at
System. One day near closing time a bunch of well-dressed, middle-aged men came
in and started picking lots of stock out of the racks. One of them approached
Marc at the counter and said, “You have got some cracking stuff here. Would you
mind staying open a bit later and I will go and get a van?” Marc immediately
asked the rest of the staff if they would work a bit longer, as they were
expecting a mega-sale. These guys were going to buy so much that they needed a
van to take it away. Ten minutes later, the man who had gone to get the van
came back. Never has a team of record shop staff been so disappointed to see an
international rock star walk through the doors.
It
wasn’t a motor vehicle that the man had gone to get: it was Van Morrison. the
men who had been looking through the stock were Van’s band. Although the staff
never got the massive order they had hoped for, Van bought a lot of records and
it gave them a great comic tale to tell people down the pub.
I
have a lot of time for Van Morrison, about whom tales of visits to record shops
abound. Barry at Record Collector in Sheffield recalled an occasion back in the
late 1970s, when Van’s record label Warner’s threw a party in a posh London
wine bar to celebrate the release of one of his albums. This was in the days
before Van started wearing his distinctive hat, suit and shades, and he turned
up wearing an old pair of jeans, a scruffy T-shirt and a jacket with patches on
the elbows. The doorman stopped him from going in. “They’re expecting me,” Van
said. “Just a minute then,” said the doorman, before going into the bar and
shouting: “Did anyone order a minicab?”
Vinyl Tap
can claim to have the least intelligent Kate Bush fan. They had a signed album
for sale. A man asked if they could give him details of who it was signed by.?
Over 220 independent record shops featured in 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 is released on 13 April on DVD and is available in record shops.
Distributed by Proper Music.
www.thevinylrevivalfilm.com
@Revival_Vinyl
For
film screenings and talks contact Graham at graham@lastshopstanding.co.uk
Comments
Post a Comment