#9 STERNS, LONDON
Situated behind Warren Street Station, Sterns was the foremost African music shop in Europe. Initially a backroom in Stern’s electrical goods shop on Tottenham Court Road, it seems Mr Stern realised that the African students at SOAS university were struggling to get music from home. This was the 1950s, and so he began selling African 78s, then 45s, then LPs – often buying suitcase loads from visitors – and, by the 70s, Sterns had such a reputation Eno, John Peel and Charlie Gillett were customers. In 1983, the lease ran out and Stern retired. Regulars Robert Urbanus, Don Bayramian and Charles Easmon, pooled together to buy the name and stock, relocating nearby. This was perfect timing as the world music boom was under way and Sterns became a record label (Salif Keita’s Soro was their biggest seller) and booking agent. The record shop remained a blast of colourful noise witha huge selection of African and Latin albums and became one of the first to house a café. I found albums here that I’d never seen before and would often hang around to chat withother aficionados. By the 90s, Sterns was largely CD-oriented, yet CD burners meant their new releases were being bootlegged internationally. Downloading hit hard and the shop closed in 2009, Stern’s existing today solely as a record label.