In the 1980s before the internet came along, buying Showaddywaddy records was an interesting challenge.
In 1983 I was 5 years old - my Mum bought a Showaddywaddy cassette tape from a record shop in Bradford called Bostocks. I’ve no idea why she bought the tape, as she wasn’t really a fan of Showaddywaddy, but recalled being entertained by them on Top Of The Pops and other TV shows.
The cassette was a compilation on the Pickwick label, and the first track on the cassette was Pretty Little Angel Eyes. In those days my Mum didn’t drive, but I remember being in the car (an Austin Mini) with my Dad, and him playing the cassette. As soon as I heard the first song, I was hooked straight away. I also particularly remember Somethin’ Else, Hey Rock And Roll and A Night A Daddy Gee's being on the cassette too.
As I got older and started earning pocket money, all I wanted to buy was Showaddywaddy records. I soon discovered that my friend’s Mums & Dads on the street had Showaddywaddy LPs too, and often they said I could have them. I even used to hire LPs from the Bradford Central Library record department.
Left: I still own the cassette purchased by my Mum, the tape that got me into the band in 1983.
I soon amassed a reasonable collection but some were harder to get hold of than others….
The ‘Showaddywaddy’ debut LP yellow album and red Greatest Hits albums - given by friends parents.
Step Two and the blue Greatest Hits LP - found in a secondhand shop.
Trocadero, Red Star and Good Times - bought at Record Fairs.
Crepes & Drapes - bought with pocket money from Morrisons, when they used to have their own Records department.
Bright Lights - went on a day trip to Bridlington aged 10 or 11, and found in a second hand shop.
Living Legends - purchased in the very early days of the internet (1998) using postal orders! I remember this one as the description said “Mint” but the record was scratched and the spine of the LP torn!
When I first got connected to the internet in 1998 (56k dial-up - no broadband available!), I found it was relatively easy to get hold of Showaddywaddy records from abroad, and also that they had different picture sleeves from different countries - so it wasn’t long before I built up a large collection of offshore Showaddywaddy vinyl. I wasn’t alone though - I remember getting up at 5.00am one day to bid on a Portugese release of Sweet Music on eBay and bidding £90 but still getting outbid. I don’t have that sort of money to throw around anymore!
UK single releases were not without interest - even though they often came without picture sleeves, the labels were often different (paper label, pressed labels etc), and of course I had to collect them all, often to hear the B-sides which were not always available on the band’s LPs.
In recent years, getting hold of what you might call ‘rare’ Showaddywaddy material has been easier. The likes of Good Times and Living Legends were re-released on CD for the very first time, which was great for many fans as the original vinyl was - and still is in some cases - very hard to get hold of. And of course in recent years, we had ‘The Complete Studio Recordings’ box set released, which not only contained all of the original LPs in mini replica sleeves, but unreleased material from the vaults and the band’s own archives. After 40 years of Showaddywaddy, and many years of collecting Showaddywaddy records, the ultimate collection had been released.
In 1983 I was 5 years old - my Mum bought a Showaddywaddy cassette tape from a record shop in Bradford called Bostocks. I’ve no idea why she bought the tape, as she wasn’t really a fan of Showaddywaddy, but recalled being entertained by them on Top Of The Pops and other TV shows.
The cassette was a compilation on the Pickwick label, and the first track on the cassette was Pretty Little Angel Eyes. In those days my Mum didn’t drive, but I remember being in the car (an Austin Mini) with my Dad, and him playing the cassette. As soon as I heard the first song, I was hooked straight away. I also particularly remember Somethin’ Else, Hey Rock And Roll and A Night A Daddy Gee's being on the cassette too.
As I got older and started earning pocket money, all I wanted to buy was Showaddywaddy records. I soon discovered that my friend’s Mums & Dads on the street had Showaddywaddy LPs too, and often they said I could have them. I even used to hire LPs from the Bradford Central Library record department.
I soon amassed a reasonable collection but some were harder to get hold of than others….
The ‘Showaddywaddy’ debut LP yellow album and red Greatest Hits albums - given by friends parents.
Step Two and the blue Greatest Hits LP - found in a secondhand shop.
Trocadero, Red Star and Good Times - bought at Record Fairs.
Crepes & Drapes - bought with pocket money from Morrisons, when they used to have their own Records department.
Bright Lights - went on a day trip to Bridlington aged 10 or 11, and found in a second hand shop.
Living Legends - purchased in the very early days of the internet (1998) using postal orders! I remember this one as the description said “Mint” but the record was scratched and the spine of the LP torn!
When I first got connected to the internet in 1998 (56k dial-up - no broadband available!), I found it was relatively easy to get hold of Showaddywaddy records from abroad, and also that they had different picture sleeves from different countries - so it wasn’t long before I built up a large collection of offshore Showaddywaddy vinyl. I wasn’t alone though - I remember getting up at 5.00am one day to bid on a Portugese release of Sweet Music on eBay and bidding £90 but still getting outbid. I don’t have that sort of money to throw around anymore!
UK single releases were not without interest - even though they often came without picture sleeves, the labels were often different (paper label, pressed labels etc), and of course I had to collect them all, often to hear the B-sides which were not always available on the band’s LPs.
In recent years, getting hold of what you might call ‘rare’ Showaddywaddy material has been easier. The likes of Good Times and Living Legends were re-released on CD for the very first time, which was great for many fans as the original vinyl was - and still is in some cases - very hard to get hold of. And of course in recent years, we had ‘The Complete Studio Recordings’ box set released, which not only contained all of the original LPs in mini replica sleeves, but unreleased material from the vaults and the band’s own archives. After 40 years of Showaddywaddy, and many years of collecting Showaddywaddy records, the ultimate collection had been released.