Short bio of your record shop:

Piccadilly Records opened in 1978, but were owned by a white goods retail company. When this company went bust, some of the staff decided to keep the shop going, re-launching Piccadilly Records in 1990. Our main reason was that a) Manchester needed a good independent record shop, and b) we couldn’t think of anything else who’d be any good at, or want to do!

Philippa at Piccadilly Records

2) How did you end up working in a record shop?

For me personally, I’m here because of John Peel: Listening to his show meant I used to go up to Rough Trade to get a monthly fix of new records. When I came to Manchester I was asked to start DJing at Mcr Polytechnic because “you’ve got lots of records, you should DJ here”. I used to spend my DJ wages at Piccadilly, so when one of the staff was due to go on maternity leave, I was asked if I wanted a job. The answer was yes, and I’m still here 22 years later. What makes it special is the excitement of hearing something new that totally blows you away – it’s always a thrill, and then passing this enthusiasm on to our customers.

3) What do you love so much about music?

It lifts your spirits! Emotionally engaging, thought provoking, heart-wrenching, visceral, quiet, loud, clever, stupid, melodic, noisy… How could we live without it??

4) If your record shop was an album, what would it be?

It would have to be the most eclectic compilation, because everyone that works here has different taste in music, from the most melodic mainstream soft rock, via dreamy Nordic electronica and wistful alt-folk, to crazy electro and rib-shaking dubstep (with way too much to mention in between!) We’re always pulling in different directions!

5) Do people come to your counter knowing what they want or do you have a huge role in turning people onto great stuff still?

A bit of both. There are always people who know what they want, but plenty more who want recommendations, which we’re always happy to give out.

We have 'recommended this week' racks, and play a selection of our favourite CDs (new, recent, old) all day long. Experience tells us that you can’t sell any old shit, so we just try and stock things we think are good.

6) What’s the local music scene like in your city? Is there a distinctive identity to the type of music coming out?

There's a really vibrant music scene in Manchester, with gigs and club nights going on pretty much every night of the week. Local upcoming bands / artists include The Ting Tings, The Courteeners, The Travelling Band, Twisted Wheel, The Whip, Elektrons and Nancy Elizabeth amongst many others that we’ve probably forgotten to mention – so, as you see, there’s not one defining sound here!

Besides local bands, the club scene definitely influences the music we sell: Clubs like El Diablo's Social Club and The Electric Chair (RIP) play a mix of disco, soul and house, Contort Yourself and Homoelectric are more aimed at electro kids, and there are also big nights for techno, hip hop and breaks, so we stock a wide range of dancefloor tunes for DJ who play at these nights, and punters who want the tunes the DJs play.

7) What's the place for record stores in the 21st Century?

I reckon it’s the personal touch – being introduced to new music by enthusiastic staff, or just hearing something on the shop stereo that takes your fancy. There’s only so far 'People who bought this also bought…' sections take you, and generally not to some music completely outside what you’d usually listen to.
Buying online is quick and easy (we have an online store that does really well), but nothing beats going into a record shop and coming away with an amazing record that’s been recommended to you.

8) If you could make a perfect mix tape from your record shop collection* – what would be on it?

Everyone in the shop chose a track for this, it gives a pretty good idea of what our shop’s about I think, although if you asked us again tomorrow we’d probably all come up with something different:

Nancy Elizabeth: 'I'm Like The Paper'
Ryan Adams: 'I See Monsters'
Elliott Smith: 'Let’s Get Lost'
Glissandro 70: 'Analogue Shanty Town'
Cody ChesnuTT: 'Serve This Roalty'
Fire Engines: ‘Candy Skin’
The Smiths: 'This Charming Man'
The Strokes: 'The Modern Age'
Sonic Youth: 'Teenage Riot'
LCD Soundsystem: 'Losing My Edge'
Syclops: 'Where’s Jason’s K'
Alice Smith: 'Love Endeavor'
Joy Division: 'Atmosphere'

For more info, check out www.piccadillyrecords.com