The Record Shop Opened as an Act of Revenge- The Diskery in Birmingham

 

The Diskery

99-102 Bromsgrove Street, Birmingham, B5 6QB

0121 622 2219

thediskerymusic@gmail.com; thediskery.com

Monday-Saturday 9.30am-6pm

Established 1952

Stock: Vinyl, CD, Pre-owned, In-stores, Memorabilia

 

In 1952, Morris Hunting started a small jazz specialist shop The Diskery in Moor Street. It is the only shop I know of which was started as an act of revenge. Morris regularly purchased his 78-rpm records from a Birmingham record store called Mansell’s until one day when, in front of a crowd of customers, the owner of Mansell’s challenged him to open his coat. “Why?” Morris asked. “So that I can see how many records you’re trying to steal,” the owner responded. Morris was so angry that he vowed never to set foot in the store again. Not only that, when he came into some money – as compensation for being the innocent party in a road accident – he set up his own record shop as a direct competitor to Mansell’s with the express intent of showing the customers of Birmingham how a store should treat its customers. The point was well made and while Mansell’s is long gone, The Diskery continues to thrive.

 

In 1972, The Diskery moved to its current location on Bromsgrove Street. With an ever expanding and diversifying range of music and with new records imported directly from the USA, the shop went from strength to strength and soon became a popular haunt for local musicians to explore music and exchange ideas, including Robert Plant, UB40, Slade and Ranking Roger of the Beat. Many other artists have popped into The Diskery over the years, including ELO, Chaka Khan, Steve Winwood, Black Sabbath, Paul Barber, Joe Cocker, Jimmy Page and Winston Edwards.

Morris Hunting passed away in 2012. “Morris was a real legend in music in Birmingham,” said the shop’s manager at the time, Jimmy Shannon. “I do not think that the Birmingham music scene would have been anything like it became without this shop.” Jimmy retired himself in 2015, whereupon the current owners Lee Dearn and Paul Dearn appointed Jimmy’s assistant Liam Scully as manager. 

 

 

“This has got to be the longest-ever stint as an apprentice,” said Liam, who has worked at the shop for 44 years. What began as a part-time trial job when he was starting out as an art student looks like it is going to end as a life sentence.

I associate Liam with promotional T-shirts. You never see him wearing anything else. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, record company sales reps gave them away like confetti to record shop staff in order to curry favour. When the supermarkets started selling music, the record companies switched their promotional budgets to them and the T-shirts dried up. For some reason Liam didn’t get the memo, and whenever I call into the shop his opening line is always “Got any T-shirts?” Although I seldom get given any to hand out these days, whenever I do, I always save one for Liam.

 

 

Posters from a bygone era adorn the shop’s walls, including original Beatles, Elvis Presley and Eddie Cochran material, and the shop has an amazing collection of memorabilia, including wind-up gramophones, copies of Melody Maker dating from 1947, Matchbox cars and photographs from the Carry On movies. It stocks more than 100,000 vinyl records, of which 12,000 are 78s, with 7-inch discs starting from 10p. If a vinyl fan cannot find something to buy here, they are probably best advised to take up another hobby. To top it off, an endless supply of free tea entices customers to stay and browse for hours in this wonderful record shop. Since Lee and Paul have taken over the business, they have dramatically increased the amount of new vinyl they stock, and have started to host gigs in the shop. Named as one of the five most treasured record shops in the UK by the BBC, The Diskery is a must-visit destination. 

 

 

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.at graham@lastshopstanding.co.uk

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.