Latest news with #musicshop
BBC News
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Shropshire's Alex Harris leaves roadie life to open music shop
Alex Harris could never have imagined a chance encounter with Slade guitarist Dave Hill would lead to 20 years as a roadie for some of rock's biggest despite working for the likes of Slade, The Waterboys and The Futureheads, he still had a dream to fulfil - to open a music now, back home in Shropshire, he has taken the step to unveil Big Al's Music Emporium, in Wem, stocking everything from Fender Stratocaster guitars to clarinet reeds and violin bows. "I've always had a dream of opening a shop," the 50-year-old said. Music has always been part of Mr Harris's life - his parents were semi-professional musicians who met in a Birmingham youth orchestra."My dad played trumpet, my mum played violin, so as a child I was always around music," he said."But I went down the rock and roll route." 'Roadie was unwell' After a stint in the Army playing the trumpet, Mr Harris returned home to it was while working in a Shifnal music shop for acclaimed guitar designer Jamie Davey, Mr Harris got the opportunity of a lifetime."Dave Hill, from Slade, was in the shop one day looking at guitars," he said. One of the band's roadies was unwell, and, needing someone to cover, Slade's lead guitarist asked whether he wanted to step in for him."I was like, 'Uh, yeah!'." After that first tour with Slade in December 1999, Mr Harris' career took off as a roadie and guitar technician. "From making contacts on the road, I ended up touring with [...] people like Midge Ure, The Waterboys, Howard Jones, The Futureheads," he eventually life on the road started to become too much, especially after getting married and becoming a father."I know too many guys who don't see their kids because they're always on tour around the world, and I didn't want that, I wanted to be a proper dad," he coming off the road having worked in the "high-pressure" events industry, the 50-year-old said that initially he was "feeling lost." 'Wide range of budgets' Opening his own shop was "always a dream" and his new venture seems to be serving the need he was left with having come off the Harris is keen to appeal to a wide range of budgets - not just top-drawer, pricey instruments, but pre-loved ones too. "I know that my local community in Shropshire can't necessarily afford thousands of pounds to spend on a guitar," he said. Despite the booming success of online shopping, the 50-year-old said he is not daunted by the prospect of competing with internet retailers."Your instrument needs to speak to you and feel right in your hands," he said. "If you buy an instrument off the internet, you do not know what you're getting.""You need to go to a place that's got several instruments you can try, and find what feels right for you." There are some first-day nerves, but Mr Harris feels confident he will be welcomed to Wem's high street with open arms. "The support and feedback I've had locally has been absolutely immense," he said."I'm crossing my fingers - as long as I can put fuel in my wife's car, take my daughter to school and put food on the table, that'll do!" Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Iconic Long Island's Kolstein's Music appears to close doors for good, clears out dozens of pricey bass violins
A Long Island violin shop that's been open since the 1940s appears to have closed its doors for good — but the bitter business dispute between the founder's family and current owner still has no coda in sight. About three dozen bass violins, including a $250,000 Panormo bass violin, in the storeroom of Kolstein's Music in Baldwin were loaded onto a truck last week by owner Manny Alvarez, according to court papers. Alvarez, who has been accused of failing to pay out proceeds from consignment sales to instrument owners, has been locked in a legal battle over the business with Barrie Kolstein, whose father Samuel launched the store in 1943, according to court papers. Kolstein ran the business himself for decades before handing the reins to Alvarez in 2019 — but alleges in his lawsuit that the instruments Alvarez took belonged to him. 'I worked my whole life in this shop. My father put his whole life into this shop, it's internationally well-respected and in almost five and a half years the shop is no more,' Kolstein told The Post. Alvarez worked at the store on an off since he was 15, when he first came in and saw a violin his family couldn't afford, Kolstein said. So the owner offered him a job. 'It's just such a sad situation,' Kolstein, 75, said. 'I didn't want this for him. I didn't want this for my shop. I didn't want this for my clients. It's heartbreaking.' Along with the inventory, Kolstein retained ownership of the building and the store name, keeping a small office in the store while Alvarez ran the business, he said in court papers. The two were embroiled in an ongoing legal dispute over their ownership agreement when Kolstein noticed something wrong with the store's surveillance cameras Thursday. By Friday, the cameras were disconnected and an employee's wife confirmed Alvarez took the instruments, along with Kolstein's personal computer, file cabinet and items from his dad including handmade bows, according to the litigation. Both sides are due in court June 9. 'I hope I can get my inventory back. That would be my wish,' Kolstein said. 'What probably hurts me more than anything is to see the work of my father gone. I would love to see the business close with some dignity.' 'We will be addressing the matter in court,' a lawyer for Alvarez said.
