With this, it came to my attention after returning from football on a cold wednesday evening that a place very close to my heart may never be seen again. A few large companies have fallen that I can remember in my life time. Pan Am, C&A (still exsists outsite of the uk apparently) and SEGA not making consoles anymore. But the closing of the local high street store 'Woolies' cuts deep. It was woolies, my late father, the family allowance benefit and my patient mother that got me into music.
When I was a young boy, around the age of 3 or 4, sporting my large afro and haute coutre fashions as applied by my mother, Woolies was my Mecca. And not for the pick and mix that every other child my age loves, but for the top 40 7" record section. It was my treat on the way back from play school in a church which still stands in Colindale to this day, that my mum and I would venture to the post office to collect the family benefits and then mosey on over to woolworths where I would get my treat.
I have been told by my mum that I was rather a celebrity in the colindale branch of woolworths. I would spend ages looking at the labels of the records, only choosing ones that I had before or strange colourful ones that would be good to add to my collection. The music on them never concerned me really, but the excitment I get from purchasing new vinyl must be the same as I experinenced all those years ago. Once purchased, I was allowed to play my new 'cut' on my dads all in one stereo unit. It was a turntable with cassette deck built in which meant when I got a little older, I could make my own 'mixtapes'. Soon my father tired of me using his stereo and I landed my own record player. Hours were spent in my room, spinning 7" records like David Roddigan. On one afternoon, I learnt about the affects of heat on vinyl, I can still picture the large brown electric heater on with my records on top taking a who new shape. The record I lost that day was a kid creole record. If I wasn't on my phone writing this, I'd be able to show you the sleeve its that ingrained in my memory.
My love of records never faded untill the Colindale branch of woolworths closed and I was without somewhere to purchase vinyl. I had moved onto 12" LPs but they wernt the same as those magical 7"s.
It later re-opened as a wetherspoons pub and funily enough, I used to play records next door in the back of a cab office for pirate radio. How things go in circles.
Thank you woolies for all those 7" I still have at my mums :)
This message was sent from my C3P0
