Recently celebrating its 12th year in business, Vinyl Eddie is a family-run, independent record shop operating from Tadcaster Road, a stone’s throw from York Racecourse.
Manned by a father-and-son duo of music lovers, Eddie and John, Vinyl Eddie commands a diverse customer base of loyal local regulars, dedicated diggers, passing window shoppers, and tourists from as far afield as America and Japan.
In a feat that must be worthy of some kind of world record, Eddie and John have managed to cram an almost incomprehensible number of records into their small shop. We were met with countless boxes packed with vinyl, encompassing everything from rock, pop, folk and hip-hop to jazz, psychedelia, reggae, soul and funk, from new and reissued bargains (there’s a 3 for £10 deal on selected vinyl) to rare, lesser-seen records and highly collectable goldmine finds. As well as brand-new, hot-off-the-press releases, the shop offers a wide range of high-quality, lovingly refurbished second-hand records, minus the stylus-offending muck and grime.
Eddie and John started their own record label in 2019, which was set up “with the mission of giving talented local musicians a platform to release their music on vinyl”. Homegrown bands featured on Vinyl Eddie Records so far include Soma Crew, Violet Contours, Snapblades, The Receivers, Percy, Segrëgates, and longstanding York guitar heroes Skylights, whose 7” comeback single ‘Fever’ recently achieved the number 4 spot in the UK vinyl singles charts!
After having a natter with Eddie and John about their stint at Jorvik Radio, the challenges of running an independent label and record shop, and the sad closure of cherished local venues Fibbers and the Victoria Vaults, it was time to get into the shop and start digging…
The website features an enormous, old-school stocklist, which we used to write a shopping list ahead of our visit. Eddie and John went to great lengths to find the titles we were after, scrambling around the shop, knee-deep in record crates, rifling through box after box. When they couldn’t locate one of the records, they even threw in a generous freebie – now that’s customer service!
Find Vinyl Eddie at 86 Tadcaster Rd, YO24 1LR. Visit www.vinyleddie.co.uk to browse the stocklist, or www.vinyleddierecords.bandcamp.comto see the latest Vinyl Eddie Records releases.
Our Vinyl Eddie shopping list:
The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967)
Beastie Boys – Beastie Boys Music (2020)
George Harrison & Friends – Concert for Bangladesh (1971)
Mad Professor – Dub Me Crazy!! (1982)
The Cribs – Night Network (2020)
The Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God (1988)
Various Artists – The Big Wheels of Motown (1973)
A Tribe Called Quest – Anthology (1999)
Various Artists – Motown Gold (1975)
Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks (1975)
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