A much-loved Liverpool record shop that has been run by four generations of the same family is celebrating 76 years in business.
Located on West Derby Road in Tuebrook, The Musical Box record shop dates back to the 1947 and first sold toys and LPs to customers before it became the business the city knows and loves today. Thought to be Liverpool's oldest surviving record shop, the Liverpool ECHO recently spoke to the business for our How It Used To Be series about the history of the shop and memories throughout the years.
The shop was originally owned by Tony Quinn's great-uncle Jack, but when the family returned to Liverpool, Tony's grandmother, Dorothy, later bought the Tuebrook shop. Tony's mum, Diane Cain, grew up in the shop which used to sell everything from loose cigarettes to Meccano toys, before she took on the business and passed it down the generations.
Read More:
- 'Never before seen' footage shows Liverpool and Birkenhead during the 1953 coronation
- Look back on loved and lost Merseyside festival as new one emerges
Throughout its history, The Musical Box has welcomed the likes of Bill Shankly and The Beatles before they hit the big time. Today, the business is run by Tony and his wife Paula.
Paula told the ECHO: "It's our 76th anniversary on May 7 and we’ve got some big birthdays coming up. My mother-in-law is 86 and I'm 60 on May 12, we both share the same birthday.
"It’s such an achievement knowing it's stayed in the family and it's going to stay in the family as well. Music is obviously in the blood.
"It's remained in the family through my husband's side - through his nan, then his mum, then Tony and then it will be passed on to my son. We're probably one of the oldest in the UK that’s still open in the same place and owned by the same family."
To Paula, it's also their customers from Liverpool and beyond who keep the business thriving. She said: "Our customers love the old photos and Tony's grandad was a photographer who took photos of the shop. All the negatives have been stored upstairs for about 50 years and I've been searching through them and getting them developed.
"It's bringing those memories back to our customers and they’re forever coming into the shop and saying they remember buying their first records here. Even the new customers, they just love what we do. We pride ourselves on the history and people like to learn about that as well."
It's a busy week for the shop, not only for its milestone anniversary and family birthdays but ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest coming to the city. To coincide with the celebrations, The Musical Box is hosting an acoustic band on May 13 - the Eurovision final day.
Join our Liverpool memories and history Facebook group here.
For more nostalgia stories, sign up to our Liverpool Echo newsletter here.
Paula said: "We thought we need one big celebration, so for the first time we’re having a local acoustic band in called Dr.Strangelove and they're doing acoustic classic rock in the afternoon. We’ve also got a few of the old Eurovision singles - it's funny when you play them and remember them from being younger. We've had them in the shop since they were in the charts."
Amongst The Musical Box's Eurovision collection is ABBA's Waterloo, He Gives Me Love by Massiel and Ryder's Runner in the Night. Paula said: "We’re happy for Liverpool to have been chosen to represent the Eurovision as it will enable more people from all around the world to be able to come and see our wonderful city full of musical heritage and to see how friendly people are."
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here
Read Next:
- Liverpool garden centre 'not that many people' know about is 'like a Tardis'
- 46 classic 'your da' jokes that Scousers find the funniest
- Nominate the woman in your life to join The National Lottery’s Big Eurovision Welcome
- 'Best pub on the Lane' pulling pints for over 140 years
- Old toys, consoles and comics hidden away that could earn you a small fortune
