In this video I sit down with Neil Barker from King Bee Records in Chorlton to talk about Manchester record shop culture, vinyl collecting and the legendary music scenes connected to the shop over the last four decades.
Neil started working at King Bee in 1990 at just 17 years old after insisting he wanted to work in a record shop rather than anywhere else. From there we dive deep into Manchester music history — from Piccadilly Records, Yanks, Power Cuts and Pandemonium Records through to The Ritz, Isadora’s, The Haçienda and the explosion of Manchester music in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
We also talk about:
* rare and valuable records
* Morrissey visiting King Bee
* Ian Brown and The Stone Roses
* Northern Soul culture
* cassette tapes, CDs and the vinyl revival
* Japanese record dealers travelling to Manchester
* Manchester club culture
* Dave Booth and Isadora’s
* the importance of independent record shops
King Bee Records has survived changing trends, the rise of streaming, the changing fortunes of vinyl and the internet era to become one of Manchester’s most respected independent record shops.
If you enjoy Manchester music history, vinyl culture, record shops and oral history interviews, please like, comment and subscribe to Manchester Scene Stories.
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