I am not a difficult person to entertain. Leave me alone in a room with a tea cosy and I'll be pretty much happy for hours. But I have, of late, lost a bit of my mojo. Been a bit disequilibriated. Why? Not really sure. People letting me down. Bit more work than usual. Losing an FA Cup semi-final. All factors.
I've just been to Bristol for a hospital appointment and to visit the Wesley Owen bookshop for some crack cocaine oops I meant Bible study resources. It was a fine sunny morning and the dermatology specialist (see posts passim about pityriasis rosea) was young enough to be my daughter and mighty attractive. Confirmation ensued that I was on the mend and some stuff prescribed to get things speeding along to ensure I looked as good as ever in swimwear. Don't laugh at the back. Or at my back.
I wandered along Park Street towards my car, gazing into windows, ogling students and resisting clothes shopping, basking in the glow of it not having taken as long as hospital appointments can and that West Brom had jumped from 5th to 1st in the Championship with one mighty away win bound. Then I saw it. Where Waterstones had been. College Green. The big, red, unmistakable splat.
Yes friends. HMV-rescued Fopp! have re-opened. Stacks of cheap stuff. All the popular products. Books, DVDs and CDs and a small vinyl selection. Helpful dry-wipe boards with forthcoming release dates. Special shelves of staff recommendations and displays of material to do with local tours. I'm £19 worse off but brandishing the new Seth Lakeman and an album by Yeasayer purchased based on one track heard on Later Live last night. I am also, officially, happy once more.
Don't let Fopp! fail again. Spend, spend, spend brothers and sisters.
5 comments:
O no - waterstones gone - my favourite store! My day would have gone downhill as yours sored. Horses for courses heh? Debbie K
HOORAY!!! Another place to fritter away the student loan on music! Bring it on.
x
Hurrah! For a matching food-related cheerer-upper, head up Park Street and bear left into Queen's Row, where you will find The Magic Roll, a super-duper takeaway eatery. Original food, friendly service. Tip-top. Do try before returning to Fopp for more gramophone records. Hurrah!
Debbie fret not. Watestone's have merely moved. They still have two branches in Bristol city centre. I wil be there often.
I used to be a fan of fopp, but wasn't really by the time it shut down, as it had become more like all the other chains. The "Head" that replaced fopp (in Leamington), although only one of two stores, is still like fopp was when it died, rather than fopp when I loved it.
The only shops that might give that personal touch, recommend music I should listen to, and generally be staffed by people who are music obsessed are a classical specialist and a vinyl specialist on the more jazz/funk/hip-hop/drum&bass/breakbeats/soul end of the spectrum. These are both good, but leave so much uncovered.
Still, at least there are some non-shop-based ways of discovering stuff left, like Jools' show or some random podcasts, and I suppose if I'm lost for music to listen to I'll just have to ask you.
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