Mark Elliott heads to the home of Robin Hood in search of vinyl, discovering a varied selection of stores catering for all…

The trip

Illustration Ben Talon

Nottingham is, of course, a city famous for Robin Hood and his merry men; it’s sometimes been suggested that my record buying is a form of charity. Buying the discs that no one else wants and giving them a good home… I’m not entirely sure about that. There are, after all, only so many JoBoxers releases a man can store, but I do my best. I hadn’t been to Nottingham in almost 20 years, and knew little about how the city had changed since I was last here.

Sleaford Mods are the standard-bearers for the city’s vibrant music scene, but what of the record shops?

Nottingham is famous for Robin Hood – some say my record buying is a form of charity

Like most towns across the country, there has been a renaissance of sorts (with strong rumours of another store opening this side of Christmas), and although many talk of retailers that have shut up shop, this makes for a decent day’s cratedigging (and maybe longer, if you have time to try a couple of places outside the city).

There’s a lively and thriving arts scene – check out Gate To Southwell Folk Festival and Rockingham in October – there are some great bands to catch, too.

You can’t necessarily escape the shadow of Robin here, but I can promise no one mentioned Bryan Adams once…

1 FOREVER RECORDS

This is the sort of easy, friendly record store you need to kick off a day’s cratedigging. Nicely curated stock – not too much of it; just the best of a fair range and priced keenly, too. The store has been here two years and business is going well. “We did Record Store Day again this year – with queues kicking off at midnight – but it was nice and relaxed. Everyone said they liked how we organised it”, says owner Joey Bell. “I tend to stock stuff that I am passionate about and stay away from the stuff I am not into”, he adds. “I like to talk to people about the records and what they’re buying. The secondhand stuff just flies out, but I don’t want to be one of those shops that has piles of allsorts selling for £1.” Joey’s band Slumb Party are currently on tour, so I’m lucky to catch him at the store, which he set up after much-loved local charity The Music Exchange closed its doors in 2016. The Social Enterprise project helped the city’s homeless by offering them retail experience in a unique record shop. Joey used to work there, and there was no question whether he would continue this line of business when it ended. Slumb Party’s album is, naturally enough, on the shelves and I can recommend this 12-track collection of frenetic B-52’sesque power pop. I also pick up The Style Council’s ‘lost’ album Modernism: A New Decade, originally created in 1989.