That glorious emporium of musical tat and marvels, Soho's Cheapo Cheapo Records, closed its doors on the 29th of March 2009. The shop had been central to my life ever since I came to London in 1985, and I wrote a series of posts about coming to terms with its loss; click on any title below to be taken to the full post.
In January 2018 I reworked these posts into a single piece called Cheapo Cheapo Records - The Complete Story, which can be found here.
Please note that it's "Complete" only in the sense that the main beats of the story are present. To make it easier to absorb as a single piece the material in the original posts has been heavily condensed and reworked. The original posts are more discursive.
There is also a post called Cheapo Cheapo Memories, here, collecting comments by others.
Below is a list of the original posts in chronological order from January 2010 to March 2011. Click on any title to be taken to the full piece.
A Wreath for Cheapo
13th January 2010
"Whether or not my place of work was in dire need of a comprehensive collection of the recordings of Rosie and the Originals was not uppermost in my mind at that moment."
Nowhere (to buy records) Boy
15th January 2010
Cheapo Revisited
19th January 2010
"Subjecting my battered psyche to this ordeal could only strengthen it - and I had to go into town anyway."
Cheapo Cheapo closure closure
19 May 2010
"I have achieved a kind of closure. And it all came about from a conversation at a party (ooh, get me) on Sunday."
Cheapo - a musical tribute by Alastair Dougall
21 May 2010
" ' Closing time, Cheapo Cheapo Records, green paint peeling in the Soho rain...It's a shame no one will look through your racks again.' "
Cheapo 2008
28th May 2010
"I may have contributed to the wearing out of the floor."
Cheapo - slight return
13th June 2010
"When people talk about the guts being ripped out of a building ..."
Cheapo Cheapo's Vinyl Stock still for sale
18th June 2010
"Perhaps the Museum of London ... "
Cheapo Cheapo Records update February 2011
"Didn't have my camera, but it doesn't really matter now, does it?"
Cheapo Gone Madd
25th February 2011
"Don't get me wrong: I endorse the consumption of fruit - at least in theory."
Madditional
26th February 2011
" 'Playful, versatile and bold.' "
Non-cheapo mango
22nd March 2011
"I went right up to the back, where once the nostalgia CDs lingered."
