I woke up a little earlier than usual yesterday, so decided to go and join the queue for Record Store Day at Square Records in Wimborne.
I used to do this every year, with my earliest arrival time having been pre 4am. In recent years I’ve taken my chances, heading over a few hours after doors have opened and the initial crowd has dispersed.
Arriving at 8:30am, I managed to get the two limited edition records I was after, plus a couple of impulse buys. More importantly, I got the sense of community I’ve been missing out on by turning up later.
My queue-mates on either side were first timers. I talked them through Square’s impeccable, first come, first serve process and that got the ball rolling on further music related small talk. One chap was after a pressing of Kim Wilde remixes and another release he was reluctant to reveal for fear we’d judge him. I insisted there was absolutely no judgement here whatsoever, regardless of tastes, we were all in this together, a line of fanatics / idiots.
“Steps – Deeper Shade of Blue” he finally admitted.
Some friends reading will know of my childhood love for Steps. They were the first concert I went to, back in December 2001 (thanks Dad), just a few weeks before they “split”. I’d seen this 12” zeotrope picture disc repress of the single on the RSD list and I’d be lying if I told you I hadn’t considered it for old times sake. Had it not been a bit pricey, I might have.
I shared the coincidence and reassured him that he was one behind possibly the only other person who might be going for that record in Wimborne. It led to a great and totally unexpected conversation about an act that were quintessential to my formative years, who I rarely pay much thought to almost 25 years later.
His stories of drinks being cleared from bars and tables, for clubbers to jump up and perform the dance routines were a far cry from my own of trying to convince friends on the playground to learn the sequences with me, and yet, the shared appreciation for what could be easily categorised as ‘disposable pop’ had given two total strangers a connection, two and half decades after the fact, on the sleepy streets of Wimborne.
I stuck around after purchasing my own choices to see if he managed to get his. I’m pleased to report he got both.
Liam Toms 