JGBollard's Charity Shop Challenge (as yet Unofficial) 2012

**JGBollard** · 12-07-2012, 11:02 PM

With last year's Charity Shop Challenge I made no secret of the fact I deliberately chose locations that had in the past been good to me vinyl wise, so this year in a complete reversal I chose somewhere I've never knowingly ever set foot in:

Knutsford

I have to admit I know bugger all about Knutsford except I seem to remember David Beckham may have lived there at some point. One thing I certainly didn't know is that during the wilderness years a certain 60's LA rock icon settled here and opened a shop selling tables and cupboards.

Here's a pic of the main shopping street. Google says there are 3 charity shops around here, but, as we'll learn, Google lies.

First shop, Oxfam

The usual moderately interesting selection of over-priced LPs.

Toyed with buying a Johnny Otis LP but this chose itself, even at £7.99

Freddie Hubbard & Ilhan Mimaroglu "Sing Me a Song of Songmy"
Yeah I know it's a reissue but when I am I ever gonna find an OG. I remember the Wire giving a recent reissue quite a panning, and I can see where they were coming from. A mix of free jazz, (often) pretentious spoken word, Penderecki strings and musique concrete, it's perhaps better described as interesting rather than intriguing.

Cost: £7.99
Total cost so far: £7.99

So off down the road with 79.9% of my budget blow I reach Barnardo's

Box of vinyl in window (why do they do that?) and a few 7"s on a shelf.

A few 80's 12"s I wouldn't mind but all knackered, as is this:

"Close Encounters of the First Kind" (Stereo Gold Award)
Been after one of these for a while for the synth stuff on the b side so I take the gamble only for it to prove unplayable once I get home. Not the end of the world.

Cost: £0.99
Total cost so far: £8.98

Shop three: The Children's Adventure Farm Charity Shop

Nothing in here. Or these two that Google didn't seem to know about.

Cancer Research and Red Cross

Heck, this one appears to have closed down.

Sue Ryder

Only having ten minutes to get my train I take a gamble and head in the opposite direction from the station and quickly find what proves to be the last of the town's chazzas.

Age UK

Records!

However they are all £2+ and they all suck. Did find this though which I'm very happy with.

And back to the station.

Now, one LP would be a pretty pathetic haul for any CSC so I have a back up plan, that being on the return journey to Stockport I'd jump off the train at Altrincham and to see what I could find there. However on the way out of Stockport I noticed there appeared to be plenty of shops in Hale so figuring it shouldn't be too hard to fritter an hour there instead.

Get off the train and I am immediately impressed with the station.

This really is hour a proper semi-rural station should look. It's got a level crossing and everything.

There's even a clock in the middle of a roundabout just as you go out the front entrance. Yes I think I like Hale, I certainly love it's railway station.

I'm feeling thirsty now as I've not had a drink for almost three hours and the suns shining a lot warmer than I expected. So having looked both ways and judged it safe to cross the road I head for the just out of picture Hale Newsagent.

Then...

Sccccrrrreeeech!!! "Stupid idiot! Try (incompressible)"

Some lady (my guess in her 50's) had came zooming over the level crossing in a new looking Jaguar and missed me by about 2 feet. I consider apologising but instead give her the old one finger salute and tell her to "Go f*** (her)self", then carry on on my way.

Pop into Hale Newsagent and pick up a can of Sunkist Pineapple juice only to be told it was going to cost me £1.75. Now in the space of one minute Hale has gone right down in my estimation.

"That sounds like a lot for a canned drink" I say. The shopkeeper starts laughing and says "Sorry, I meant 65p" and descends into a fit of giggles. I have a feeling he's tried this trick before with a surprising amount of the local bourgeois paying up unquestioningly.

So my mood lightened I head for the shops.

Turns out there are plenty of shops but only one chazza

Age UK

No records here.

Actually, this is a really dull little town. So I head back to the station and spend twenty minutes reading a book ("Oh Mexico!" by Lucy Neville in case anyone's interested. Well written and entertaining but I really could do without all the lusting after her handsome flatmate) until the level crossing alarm goes off and my train comes round the bend.

Next stop Altrincham. However having improvised once I come over all confident and devil may care and decide to stay on until Stockport and from there get one of the frequent trains to Levenshulme, a place I haven't been to for a good couple of years.

Getting off at Levenshulme I almost walk straight into this (the son was shining right in my eyes)

It says Levenshulme in Arabic. And here's a photo of the station entrance nicked off Wikipedia because it's much nicer than the one I took.

However almost as soon as I get out of the station I spot a 192 bus, get on that and make the 3 minute trip to Longsite, another place I haven't visited for two or more years.

Get off the bus, walk down towards the market and "Holy sh*t! A charity shop. I really need to buy some more records or this CSC will look like a complete flop. Maybe they'll have some"

Scope

They haven't got any

Well, I seem to remember there's at least one more charity shop on the main road.

There is, the ever unreliable Islamic Relief

They do, literally half a dozen...

...and I actually buy one.

Enya "How Can I Keep From Singing?"
I like Enya so f*ck off all of you. That price tag's gonna take all my sticker removal knowhow.
Donovan "The Hurdy Gurdy Man"
The Donovan CD was a pretty random find among a pile of Mojo/Uncut freebies and CD-R copies of Phil Collins type albums.

Cost: £2.00 "the lot"
Total cost so far: £10.98

So I head back to Levenshulme on a 192, and get off when I spot one of these.

No records (obviously) but shedloads of cheap DVDs, including this.

I love the Carry On films. I don't care what you all think. Now got 17 on DVD, so another 14 to go.

Wander up and down the main road and it turns out there's now only one charity in Levenshulme, The Children's Society...

...and they've got records!

I choose:

Michael Garrick Sextet "Promises"
Haven't played this yet but very happy to pick it up for 99p. Can never have to much Brit Jazz. Especially for 99p.
"Close Encounters of the First Kind" (Stereo Gold Award)
A mint up for a record bought approx 3 hours 45 minutes earlier. Honestly, you spend years looking for something and you turn up two in one afternoon.

And also purchase this for a very modest £2.99:

And that's that. Back to Stockport and disembark from train exactly where I started my first Charity Shop Challenge back in 2011...

And that's that.

**eine** · 13-07-2012, 12:03 AM

A record odyssey with many hazards, DVDs and empty charitys, balanced by a lovely station and a sweet score:

Originally Posted by JGBollard

Michael Garret Sextet "Promises"
Haven't played this yet but very happy to pick it up for 99p. Can never have to much Brit Jazz. Especially for 99p.

nice one!!!

**Brainbomb** · 13-07-2012, 12:06 AM

Very nice!

The Ilhan&Freddie is a killer record. But disturbing and a bit scary. You have to be in the right mood.

**JGBollard** · 13-07-2012, 12:17 AM

Originally Posted by eine

A record odyssey with many hazards, DVDs and empty charitys, balanced by a lovely station and a sweet score:

Thanks. However you didn't seem to notice the several typos.

Also just remembered that I made a load of notes in the note book I always carry around in my record bag, meaning that the version of this I'm going to post on my blog (where no one will ever see it) will also contain:

01 - Loosing the ability to speak in proper words and sentences when being served by quite the loveliest looking blonde haired lady I've seen for many a day in Knutsford Barnardo's.
02 - Almost getting run over by another 50something woman driving a posh car in Knutsford.
03 - The overheard "David Cameron? Worst Prime Minister of both centuries." conversation

Oh well, it was too long anyway.

**JGBollard** · 13-07-2012, 12:22 AM

Originally Posted by Brainbomb

Very nice!

The Ilhan&Freddie is a killer record. But disturbing and a bit scary. You have to be in the right mood.

It's been on my wants list ever since a couple snippets were included on that old Warner's "Psychedelic Jazz" comp from 2001.

I liked what I heard but I do think I'll have to be in the right mood next time I play it.

**Sam** · 13-07-2012, 02:24 AM

Nice one. ++ for the Platform 0 photo.

**AlanP** · 13-07-2012, 03:36 AM

it's all about the journey innit, and that really was a lovely looking train station.

also, as you're interested in views on typos, blonde haired is a rather fetching tautology.

**Expiry2011** · 13-07-2012, 07:32 AM

Wow - amazing find on the Garrick - that would be my find of the year!

**reza** · 13-07-2012, 07:40 AM

Nice pics and story but Michael Garrick Sextet "Promises" !!!!!!
Best charity result I've ever seen

**Mr Muench** · 13-07-2012, 08:28 AM

Hale & Longsight, must the two most opposite places ever visited within one Charity Shop Challenge. I saw a lot of familiar charities and train stations in your write up, we had Knutsford on our shortlist for this years challenge. It used to be pretty good there (and it also has some excellent Kitchen showrooms but that's not really of any interest to anyone outside the kitchen industry unless your after a 40k + kitchen, anyway i digress..) on my first ever visit we found a haul of Fausto Papetti LPs in the Barnardos and the Cancer Research used to have a basement full of records... Last time i went i think i came back empty handed. Not record related, but i went to a wedding evening do in Knutsford once. I went to the bar and was charged £3.70 for a can of boddingtons! They put it in a glass but still... bit steep. I think i then grumbled away to myself and once my wife told me to stop winging, i began sending text to everyone i knew who would be equally enraged at such day light robbery. On top of that i decided to wear a black shirt which turned out to be identical to the bar staffs shirts so i spent most of the night giving directions to the toilet and being asked to clear away glasses...

Altrincham is always worth a visit and i did it for my CSC a couple of years ago. If you haven't been before it may be worth a trip back some day although i haven't been since our SCS so it may have gone own hill in the mean time.

Anyway, an enjoyable read and always nice to see platform 0..

**Daddy Ya Ya** · 13-07-2012, 10:29 AM

A great journey and very enjoyable read with a really satisfying result on the Garrick at the end. Smashing photos and nice details in the story. This has inspired me to have a go at a CSC this year.

It's all about the journey not the finds as AlanP said.

**leebrady** · 13-07-2012, 10:41 AM

Great stuff,
Never been to Knutsford or Hale. The Garrick is an amazing find well done. I lived in 'Levvy' back in 2003 it was pretty dry for vinyl you did well. I seem to recall a house clearance shop called Hiper Store that carried records.

**ROCKPROF** · 13-07-2012, 01:25 PM

Excellent. Some nice station shots and a Garrick rare too. Inspired to do a Bristol venture CSC now, it will tough though on the vinyl front as it is getting very dry these days.

**Sie Vulture** · 13-07-2012, 03:23 PM

I really enjoyed this. And, as it transpires, after initially approaching the CSC with a sense of doom and gloom, you've since found a top jazz album and become an inspiration to others.

Award yourself a double huzzah! and have another gin and tonic. A large one - you're worth it.

**JGBollard** · 13-07-2012, 07:11 PM

Originally Posted by Sam

Nice one. ++ for the Platform 0 photo.

I was hoping I'd end up there at some point. Gonna try and get a platform 0 photo every year from now on.

Originally Posted by AlanP

it's all about the journey innit, and that really was a lovely looking train station.

Best thing about that rather uninteresting little town IMO.

Originally Posted by Expiry2011

Wow - amazing find on the Garrick - that would be my find of the year!

Originally Posted by reza

Nice pics and story but Michael Garrick Sextet "Promises" !!!!!!
Best charity result I've ever seen

Thank you. I seem to have impressed a lot of people with that find.

Originally Posted by Daddy Ya Ya

A great journey and very enjoyable read with a really satisfying result on the Garrick at the end. Smashing photos and nice details in the story. This has inspired me to have a go at a CSC this year.

It's all about the journey not the finds as AlanP said.

Originally Posted by ROCKPROF

Excellent. Some nice station shots and a Garrick rare too. Inspired to do a Bristol venture CSC now, it will tough though on the vinyl front as it is getting very dry these days.

Yeah, it was a good day, and that spontaneous trip to Levenshulme really paid off big time.

Good luck with your CSC's.

Originally Posted by leebrady

Great stuff,
Never been to Knutsford or Hale. The Garrick is an amazing find well done. I lived in 'Levvy' back in 2003 it was pretty dry for vinyl you did well. I seem to recall a house clearance shop called Hiper Store that carried records.

Knutsford was nice, and if I've got my geography right is dead near Tatton Park and as such I plan to go back for a proper day out come summer. With Hale you're not missing much.

Used to regularly visit "Levvy" when I lived in Heaton Chapel and can't remember ever finding a single really good record in all that time.

Originally Posted by Sie Vulture

I really enjoyed this. And, as it transpires, after initially approaching the CSC with a sense of doom and gloom, you've since found a top jazz album and become an inspiration to others.
Award yourself a double huzzah! and have another gin and tonic. A large one - you're worth it.

Thanks on all counts. When I read it back it didn't seem very interesting (not enough vinyl) but people seem to have liked it.

**JGBollard** · 13-07-2012, 08:29 PM