Rare Records

The Story

This old record store started in the 1950s at Oxford Road Station, moved through the Barton Arcade, and only later settled here on John Dalton Street. A young man named Ian Curtis worked here for a time, around the period leading up to the formation of Joy Division. The store's basement also marked the formation of another generation: Johnny Marr, of The Smiths, told Mojo magazine that discovering 45-rpm records there was a decisive moment even before The Smiths existed. The store closed its doors on John Dalton Street in 1981.

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