Tim Burgess of the Charlatans reminisces at Salford Lads Club record fair

Charlatans frontman Tim Burgess reflected on the first record he ever bought on Sunday as Salford Lads Club played host to a record fair.

“If I’m lying, then it was Sham 69 when I was eleven years old,” he said. “But if I’m telling the truth, it was ‘Long-haired Lover from Liverpool’ by little Jimmy Osmond when I was six years old.”

Born in Salford, Tim Burgess arrived at the fair to promote his record label, O Genesis Recordings, and to perform an exclusive DJ set for attendees. Elsewhere in the building were several record sellers offering a variety of vinyl, from classic records to modern hits. Stalls were also setup for PureArt, selling paintings, prints and postcards of famous music legends.

What I thought would be 2 birds/1 stone triumph at Salford Lads Club became 3 birds when not only did I get my Smiths nerd photo fix & incredible one-day @_bands_fc exhibition, but also ace record fair and a signing & DJ performance from the mighty Tim Burgess! @ogenesisrecords pic.twitter.com/jnRsZMHK1C

— Jeremy P. Goldstein (@jeremypopscene) 25 November 2018

Salford Lads Club (SLC) is defined as one of the most iconic music locations in the UK, having appeared on the inside cover of the Smiths’ album: ‘The Queen is Dead’. First opened in 1903 as a male recreational club, SLC is now open to anyone to hire for activities and even sells its own merchandise.

Tim Burgess first became aware of the club from The Smiths album, however was well-acquainted with the area after living in Swinton for the first seven years of his life. “I’ve done a few events here too, so I have some familiarity” he said.

Despite attending the event as a guest, Burgess also has a great love for vinyl.

“I grew up going to record fairs, as well as record shops, so I’ve got a history with records” he said.

Vinyl records recently became popular again after the hype of CDs wore out, offering a nostalgic and quirky way of listening to music.

“There was a gap,” Tim said. “I think the older generation wanted to make more space in their houses so they got rid of their records, and record labels thought they could make more money on CDs.” 

“Streaming is great, listening to music on your phone is great, but listening to records sounds better”.

But will the new age of vinyl remain? The Salfordian musician said it would be too hard to say, but whatever happens, “there’ll always be someone who likes records, at any age”.