Just had an email from a guy at the Detroit Free Press asking me for stories about Bob mayes record store in Detroit. The store is set to close in the near future.There cant be many people who have been record searching in Detroit and not been to see old Bob! I know Gilly has some stories about records being berried in the garden...just wondered if anyone has anything they would like to share...

You can email me on chris.soul@btinternet.com if you want the address of the newspaper guy....

Chris

Just had an email from a guy at the Detroit Free Press asking me for stories about Bob mayes record store in Detroit. The store is set to close in the near future.There cant be many people who have been record searching in Detroit and not been to see old Bob! I know Gilly has some stories about records being berried in the garden...just wondered if anyone has anything they would like to share...

You can email me on chris.soul@btinternet.com if you want the address of the newspaper guy....

Chris

YES I HAD EMAIL FROM JOHN (DETROIT FREE PRESS) TODAY. BIT SAD REALLY I LOVED GOING TO BOBS WHEN IN DETROIT. IAM THERE IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS SO I HOPE BOB DOESN'T CLOSE TILL AFTER MY VISIT.

what's happening with remaining stock etc chris?

woah, this is bad news. any idea when they are officially closing?

Spent many an hour here, Bob is an institution in Detroit, but I guess he just wants to spend more time fishing. Great shop and great guy.

One story about him..........

In the early 60's he found lots of copies of a doo wop 78, not having any where to store them and not being able to sell it. He dug a hole in the garden and stashed them there. About 30 years later someone asks him if he had this 78 and that they would pay $100 for it. Turns out all this time later it is indemand. Trouble was he couldn't remember the exact location, so had to dig up half the back yard to find them. Priceless

I have no more details but will try and find out. Not too many of the old Detroit stores still going now, Cappy closed about 3 years ago...

Chris

was just there monday for the last time...very sad. i've shopped there for close to 20 years and have probably bought a quarter to a third of my collection from bob. some of the lp shelves were already cleared out, though most of the 45s were still there.

his landlords have shut off his utilities and he has to be out by the end of the month to make way for a parking lot. little do they realize that his humble, smoke-filled shop has for years been one of detroit's main draws for international tourists!! the good news is he's planning to continue selling out of his home.

m

I heard back from the Journelist tonight....apparently a lot of the stock has already gone but a lot of it is going to Bobs house, as previously mentioned. He said the date for the store closing was mid Feb.....

Chris.

Hi Chris

I been to Bobs store many times and always found him a good guy. Last time I was there he hands me a vinyl blank label record with hand written credits on it of Brenda Holloway. He reckoned it was old and came direct from Motown but it looked too new to me. When I played it it had On The Right Track c/w My World Is Crumbling. Often wondered where it did come from. Another time he gave me a book of poems he had written, I guess loads of us have a copy of that book.

Sad news indeed.

Mark

I have never seen the book of poems Mark.....I remember one time Shifty and I went out there 2 days apart cause he was DJing or something.....meanwhile i made my way to Chicago and was finding some great tunes, we were a day late picking Shifty up in Detroit and he stayed at Bobs place, went fishing together etc....When we picked him up he was well pissed off...just sitting around Bobs place listening to his stories....but he did manage to find a nice copy of Sam Nesbit amoungst Bobs junk stuff!

Chris

ps, and now you`re gonna believe us.....THE RAMS ARE GOING UP!

I have never seen the book of poems Mark.....I remember one time Shifty and I went out there 2 days apart cause he was DJing or something.....meanwhile i made my way to Chicago and was finding some great tunes, we were a day late picking Shifty up in Detroit and he stayed at Bobs place, went fishing together etc....When we picked him up he was well pissed off...just sitting around Bobs place listening to his stories....but he did manage to find a nice copy of Sam Nesbit amoungst Bobs junk stuff!

Chris

ps, and now you`re gonna believe us.....THE RAMS ARE GOING UP!

The book has about 40 poems all written by Bob. Some very deep stuff mostly about everyday life, and a couple about fishing !!

Theres even one about falling for a girl. Can't picture Bob all loved up!!

Don't get over excited about the Rams theres a long way to go. It's deffo better to watch than last year though!!

Mark

Just had a quick scan through and this one made me laugh, and I've just opened a big tax bill so I needed a laugh

Random thoughts - Robert Mays Jr.

The best things that I receive

are the thoughts that come to me,

when I am completely free

and at perfect ease.

When I stand in this little room,

my thoughts do jell to great,

for I find I am utmost at ease,

when I urinate.

Some of the others are very deep and thought provoking !!

The last time I went there is was maybe 1980.

He had just took delivery of every title on MUTT..Everything was there in huge multiples.

I bought quantity on every upbeat title and just a handful of the slower stuff. So I had 100+ each of Two Fellows/Majestees/Sophisticates etc and bought only 2 copies of Dusty Wilson. I sometimes think what the hell I was doing back then??

Bob was an unforgettable person not seen him since that visit over 25 years ago, but me and Andy Cox always mention him when ever we meet, a most unusual and likeable man. Who drove us "mad" for the whole 7 days we spent at his store and house..

One of the larger than life characters of the vinyl scene.

ah, he'd moved across the street since your last visit, john. i believe that was in '85 or so. by the time i started going circa '87 or '88, the only mutts he still had quantity on were carol jones, jake wade, milton harris, little leon, johnny wellington....

photos and more here: www.tinyurl.com/yr253a

video tour of the store here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2p51pUJIxk

HI,

HAS ANYONE BEEN TO THIS SHOP IN DETROIT,

When in Detroit, please visit People's Records at 615 W. Forest, between Second and Third. We are an all vinyl, all second hand shop, located 5 blocks away from Fortune Records, and 1 mile from Hitsville U.S.A. We have TONS AND TONS OF SOUL 45's!

JOE.

HI,

HAS ANYONE BEEN TO THIS SHOP IN DETROIT,

When in Detroit, please visit People's Records at 615 W. Forest, between Second and Third. We are an all vinyl, all second hand shop, located 5 blocks away from Fortune Records, and 1 mile from Hitsville U.S.A. We have TONS AND TONS OF SOUL 45's!

JOE.

Got any pictures?Joe.

HI,

HAS ANYONE BEEN TO THIS SHOP IN DETROIT,

When in Detroit, please visit People's Records at 615 W. Forest, between Second and Third. We are an all vinyl, all second hand shop, located 5 blocks away from Fortune Records, and 1 mile from Hitsville U.S.A. We have TONS AND TONS OF SOUL 45's!

JOE.

I must agree, Brad the owner is a great guy and is always turning up unusual items. Always worth a visit.

Dave

Just had an email from a guy at the Detroit Free Press asking me for stories about Bob mayes record store in Detroit. The store is set to close in the near future.There cant be many people who have been record searching in Detroit and not been to see old Bob! I know Gilly has some stories about records being berried in the garden...just wondered if anyone has anything they would like to share...

You can email me on chris.soul@btinternet.com if you want the address of the newspaper guy....

Chris

Pat Allen and I went in 1989,Great bloke,always very helpful.Pic of me and Bob September 1990

Got any pictures?Joe.

HI KEN,

SORRY NO PICS,

JUST SPOTTED IT ON EBAY, burl*one IS HIS NAME ON EBAY.

HE'S ALWAYS GOT LOSTOF 45s FOR SALE.

JOE.

Spoken to brad a time or two over the phone. nice guy. he is now djing a northern soul monthly night in ann arbor (north of detroit). hoping to make it over there this summer.

I must agree, Brad the owner is a great guy and is always turning up unusual items. Always worth a visit.

Dave

the article in the Detroit Free Press about the store closing appeared yesterday & the store has been extremely busy ever since - Bob has sold off about 4-5000 lps bulk to make some room - 'commons' mostly - but he's not blowing out the 45s to my knowledge, just shifting them back to his house little by little - he's already moved one of his huge wooden 45 shelves from the store to his living room... fyi - Feb 15th should be the closing date. the landlords behavior has been horrible, she literally just walked in and announced that that he had until the end of the month to leave & that the building would be paved over for a parking lot...

btb

and now on myspace: https://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fusea...endid=152840866

Bob closes the doors on Feb 10th. There 's an open invite to be there and sort of 'celebrate' this institution and it's passing. Think there gonna "Party Down!"

Regards,

Dave

www.theresthatbeat.com

www.hitsvillesoulclub.com