Reading town centre is host to an array of different stores and restaurants. The Oracle Shopping Centre is the go-to spot for clothes and gift shopping, whilst Broad Street Mall offers budget-friendly items and coffee shops.
Back within the 1970s and 80s the city centre looked very different in order to how it is today. There was one type of shop that dominated the high street.
Record stores were everywhere and vinyl was all the rage. It was the particular best way to listen to your favourite band and some shops even had soundproof booths where you could sit back, relax and put on some tunes.
READ MORE: Quicksilver: The lost Reading vinyl shop where Ricky Gervais bought his first-ever album
Ricky Gervais grew up in Reading plus used to go into town just to visit the vinyl shops. The particular Office star lived on an estate in Whitley and bought his first-ever record in the Butts Centre (now known as Broad Street Mall ).
The comedian said that he purchased the album when he was around 12 or 13-years-old. He recalled the experience during a Twitter livestream earlier this year.
This individual said: “I went into city. Saved the bit of money. What would I have been? 12? 13? I can’t remember the name of the store. I think it was Quicksilver. Or another one?
(Image: Getty Images)
“It has been at the particular Butts Center in Reading. I know We had to go up the escalator to a little shop. It had been cool. It was really cool. It had been one associated with those shops where its like actually dark, with a red light, do you know what I mean?
“Lava lamps, joss sticks, it had been one of those plus I keep in mind I felt so grown up. Yeah, Stranded by Roxy Music. I believe I’d only heard one track. I think I’d just heard Road Life and I took a chance, but this was different in those days because you loved having an album. ”
Other people in Reading through also recall visiting Swallow. Michael Fairburn said: “Now That’s what I Call… a proper record store. I used to buy up to 30 12” singles a month from them. Once they got in order to know a person, they’d put aside promos & (back in the day of chart pushers) 12” & 7” singles at half the price (to get them to chart). ”
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Susan Chatterton used visit Quicksilver as well and said: “We almost all went there. A great shop Used to go to the one opposite the station too”. Tony Burrow said: “Happy Times. Pre-Internet days. We were so lucky.
“Great shop. The joy it gave me to come away with the white label or a t-shirt along with a standard release. Chats with like-minded people about music. Often u hadn’t even heard the song before as it wasn’t released. I was always so excited in order to be upon that escalator. ”
(Image: BerkshireLive – Grahame Larter)
This isn’t the only record shop fondly remembered by individuals in Reading through. Helen Mace said that she kept in mind going to Cavaliers which utilized to sell t-shirts too.
Other people liked to visit Hickies on Friar Street (which is still up plus running). Back in the particular day, the music store had a record collection upstairs.
Browns was a go-to spot for music lovers while well and customers adored the sound-proof listening booths. There was also Red House Records on London Road which had a jukebox.
All the lost record shops in Reading that we miss:
Quicksilver – Butts Centre
Cavaliers
Green River Records
Rumbelows – Friar Street
Boots Audio Shop – Friar Street
Hickies – Friar Street
Hackers – Market Arcade, Broad Street
Browns – Friar Street
Broadmeads
Wax Records — Friar Street
Record Basement – Oxford Road
Woolworths : Broad Road
Red House Information – Greater london Road
Harlequin – Smelly Alley
Fopp Records – West Street
Knights — Broad Road
Virgin Mega Store : Broad Street
HMV – Friar Road
Barnes plus Avis — Friar Street
Are there any record stores that people missed? Let us know in the comments.
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