09/01/20: Erratic pricing (British Heart Foundation)

An unsuccessful trudge around five West Kensington charity shops. The only item of interest was a copy of Broken English by Marianne Faithfull, but it wasn’t in very good condition.

One of the shops, British Heart Foundation, has split the CDs into two categories: some are 50p and some are £2. It didn’t make any sense to me, because one of the £2 discs was by Robbie Williams, available in every charity shop in the land – and usually for 50p.

17/12/19: CDs return! #2 (Geranium Shops for the Blind)

Went in Geranium Shops for the Blind, High Street Kensington. As with Dogs Trust, they have inexplicably started selling CDs again. Snapped up Easter by Patti Smith for just 50p.

14/12/19: CDs return! (Dogs Trust)

Went in Dogs Trust in Whetstone. They are selling CDs again, but only a few. Maybe other people complained as well.

16/11/19: No more CDs #3 (Dogs Trust)

It happened again. Went to Dogs Trust in Whetstone and they had stopped selling CDs. They’ve stopped selling DVDs as well. I asked the woman at the till and she said “There isn’t enough profit in it.” I explained that this was the only reason I ever came in the shop and she just said “Ah.”

What’s going on? That’s two in a week. Why have they done this at the same time? You can still buy new CDs in supermarkets, so they format isn’t completely dead.

Fortunately, I then crossed the road to North London Hospice and found, for 50p, Brian Wilson Presents Smile – complete with booklet and slipcase.

14/11/19: No More CDs #2 (Geranium Shops for the Blind)

Went to one of my favourite charity shops today, Geranium Shops for the Blind in High Street Kensington. The CDs were all gone. I asked the lady in charge and she said that they no longer stock them because “They don’t sell.” That’s not strictly true. They do sell because I must have bought 50–100 from that shop myself. Then again, that was over a period of a year and a half. Not exactly a big income for the shop at 50p a go.

It’s all about space. However cheaply they sell CDs, they can make more money using that part of the shop for selling clothes. If that’s better for the charity I suppose I shouldn’t complain too much.

Books and DVDs are clinging on.

06/11/19: Noah’s Ark (Cancer Research)

For £1 I found an unopened (shrink-wrapped) copy of Noah’s Ark by CocoRosie in Cancer Research, West Kensington. The Pitchfork review calls it “one of the most annoying records you’re liable to remember”, which just makes me more intrigued to hear it.

13/08/19: No more CDs (Cancer Research)

Cancer Research on High Street Kensington have stopped selling books and CDs to make space for Christmas cards. A real shame.

02/08/19: CD bargains (Cancer Research/British Red Cross)

After a few barren weeks I found the following 13 CDs today for £1 each in Cancer Research, West Kensington:

• David Bowie – Tonight (1984)
• David Bowie – Black Tie White Noise (1993)
• David Bowie – Outside (1995)
• Tin Machine – Tin Machine (1989)
(None of these are exactly Bowie’s best work, but I “needed” them anyway.)
• Patti Smith – Gone Again (1996)
• Patti Smith – Gung Ho (2000)
• Small Faces – Ogdens’ Nut Gone Flake (1968)
• Philip Glass – “Low” Symphony (1993)
• Captain Beefheart – Bluejeans & Moonbeams (1974)
• Van Morrison – Too Long in Exile (1993) – with "promo" sticker
• Grace Jones – Nightclubbing (1981)
• Steve Miller Band – Recall the Beginning: A Journey from Eden (1972)
• The Doors – L.A. Woman (1971)

I also found Cream’s Wheels of Fire (1968), but upon examination it sadly turned out not to have disc two (Live at the Fillmore). In its place, bizarrely, was the first album by Gorillaz. When I pointed this out, the girl let me have the surreal pairing for free. Not sure I particularly wanted it, but there you go...

In the British Red Cross charity shop, further down the road, I found:

• Rush – Moving Pictures (1981)

CDs were again £1 but the girl at the till said there was a “four for a pound” offer, so I chose another three:

• White Stripes – Elephant (2003)
• White Stripes – Icky Thump (2007)
• Blur – "M.O.R." CD single

White Stripes CDs are ubiquitous in charity shops, but for nothing (or 25p each, depending on how you look at it) it seemed daft not to have them.

03/06/19: Cuts Both Ways (British Heart Foundation)

British Heart Foundation, West Kensington. Cuts Both Ways by Gloria Estefan is one of those CDs you see a lot of in charity shops. The same goes for Starsailor and All Saints.

19/03/19: CD bargains galore (British Heart Foundation)

British Heart Foundation, West Kensington. The quality of CDs in charity shops has gone up a lot lately – perhaps because of the silly "declutter" fad. These shelves included great albums by Elvis Costello, The Smiths, The Byrds, Bruce Springsteen and David Bowie.

21/01/19: The Smiths (British Heart Foundation)

British Heart Foundation, West Kensington. "These are the riches of the poor."

13/10/18: CD shelf (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. Loads of good stuff here today: Paul Simon, the complete Simon & Garfunkel, Dylan, Van, Beatles, Beach Boys, Joan Baez. Bruce Springsteen and so on. It was a bit like finding out that someone had raided my own collection and taken it to the charity shop.

Wait a minute...

28/06/18: Frank Sinatra (British Red Cross)

British Red Cross, West Kensington. A lot of Sinatra and Dean Martin.

07–08/06/18: Stack of 50p CDs (Geranium Shops for the Blind)

I was in High Street Kensington and tried the Oxfam. The CDs were priced at £2.99. I know it’s High Street Ken, where different rules apply and all that, but that still seems excessive for a CD these days.

Better bargains were to be had (just a few metres away and across the road) in Geranium Shops for the Blind, where I was able to buy the following CDs for 50p each:
• Booker T. & The MG’s – In the Christmas Spirit
• The Who – Tommy
• Marillion – Misplaced Childhood
• Mark Knopfler – Local Hero (the film soundtrack)
• Paul McCartney – Back in the World Live (a double set)

They also had a Jane Birkin/Serge Gainsbourg album I would have liked, but it had the wrong disc inside the box. When I told the three kindly old people behind the till about this, the man tossed the mismatched items straight into the bin. (Let’s hope the correct disc doesn’t show up in another box and prompt a similar query from another customer.) There was a fee for using the card machine unless I spent £3, so I bought a £1 book to take the overall total to £3.50 – Michael Moorcock’s “Sci-fi Masterwork” Dancers at the End of Time.

I was so pleased with that little lot that I went back the next day and bought another CD – Ultimate Prince (a 28-track 2-CD compilation of hits and rare tracks released soon after his death in 2016.

When I was at the till getting ready to pay for Prince, the nice old lady said they had some other CDs and pulled out a large plastic bag for me. I went through those (along with another woman, who also seemed suddenly keen to rummage and possibly as thrilled as I was) and bought the following 50p bargains:
• The Beatles – Revolver
• Bruce Springsteen – Born in the U.S.A.
• Simon & Garfunkel – Greatest Hits
• Donna Summer – A Love Trilogy
• Donna Summer – Once Upon a Time
• The Bangles – Everything
• Tears for Fears – The Seeds of Love

I’m not sure I really want the Tears for Fears album, but clearly I had got slightly carried away in the excitement. Likewise, it turns out I already had the Bangles CD. But despite that, this was my best charity shop experience since Emmaus at All Saints (see HERE).

03/05/18: Life for Rent (Emmaus)

Emmaus, Chipping Barnet. Dido's Life for Rent (2003) sold 12 million copies. Quite a few of them can now be seen in UK charity shops.

25/02/18: Celine Dion (Dogs Trust)

Dogs Trust, Whetstone. They seemed to have pretty much the complete Celine Dion discography on CD. Unfortunately, I can't stand her music.

24/02/18: The Who by Numbers (Cancer Research)

Cancer Research, North Finchley. Good to see another No Parlez. It is still THE charity shop LP. I bought the Heaven 17 album and the Sarah McLachlan CD. The album by The Who was missing the disc. But next to the empty sleeve was a different record called The Story of The Who – in badly scratched condition. I went to the till and asked if they had the record for The Who by Numbers and the sleeve for The Story of The Who, but they didn't, so they gave me both for free. So now I have an unplayable Who album in the wrong cover.

14/10/17: Blur (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. The first six (of eight) albums by Blur.

08/10/17: Madonna 'n' Britney (Dogs Trust)

Dogs Trust, Whetstone. Four Madonna CDs. Eight Britney Spears CDs!

29/07/17: Charity shop hop, Finchley Central

1. North London Hospice. Bought All is Lost DVD, still shrink-wrapped, for £1. This is a tremendous film starring Robert Redford about a man whose boat sinks. Basically: Gravity at sea.

2. Cats Protection League. Joan Baez – "Silver Dagger" 7" EP was £1.99. Tempted, but didn't buy. Also on the shelves: several Duran Duran CDs.

3. Cancer Research. Several Primal Scream CDs, plus an entire shelf of guitar tutorial CDs. There was a man sneezing a bit too close to me, so I didn't hang around.

4. Sue Ryder. Seriously overpriced. A Shirley Bassey vinyl compilation was £3.50. A water-damaged paperback was £2. No, thanks.

5. All Aboard. Tiny selection of CDs virtually hidden behind the till, making for awkward browsing.

6. Oxfam – small shop, overpriced vinyl. Weary by this point. Headed back to the car in the rain.