I used to visit The Cottage record shop (second hand if I recall correctly) in around 1969 - 1972. They had a good selection of second hand progressive music at a time when choice was limited, due to the main shops stocking 'middle of the road' music, and the price was high! We had a mono 'square box' record player at home with lift-up lid and single built in speaker. My prized collection of progressive music got quite scratched as, unlike today's gadgets, replaying a track meant manually lifting and resetting the arm, with the danger of scratching the record! Beggars Banquet and the like got a fair hammering! By 1972 I had been at work for 2 years and felt confident that I could purchase a 'Sony Stereo System' using a 12 month hire purchase agreement, although my mum had to sign the agreement, which made her worry! After purchasing the new system I sold all my old records at The Cottage, as I couldn't possibly play them with 'imperfect sound'. Many of them had special 1st pressing covers like the (almost) 3-D cover on The Stones' 'Their Satanic Majesty's Request' - probably worth a few bob now! The plan was to then repurchase new and keep in perfect condition. I don't think I ever replaced them all, although most of them are in my mum's loft, still in good condition!

I have fond memories of the Cottage record shop and shopped there regularly in the 1970s. There was always an excellent selection of classical music LPs and box sets, some of which I still have. The owners were knowledgeable and friendly and I recall my shock on hearing that one of them had been murdered.

The Cottage is where I came musically of age. In the mid 1970s I must have bought every Black Sabbath, UFO and Hawkwind LP they had in the shop at one time or another (and also Jo Jo Gunn's 'Run Run Run' 45 when they dabbled in singles). A truly great second-hand record shop which I am sure initiated and enriched many people's musical knowledge and listening experiences. Much missed. There ought to be a blue plaque on the site.

The Cottage was the best second hand record shop in a time when the town had a number of excellent ones. The jazz, soul and blues sections were always full of extremely interesting records and I bought many which I still have. I still think of that place as The Cottage and hadn't realised it had been closed for nearly 30 years now.

I also used to be a Cottage habitue in the early 70s. Apart from the range of stuff on offer, what I remember most was that, although people were just beginning to realise the value of rare records, the prices weren't silly. In fact, I used to use it a bit like a library - buying albums that looked interesting and selling them back at a slight loss. I'm sure I've still got some albums I bought from there too.

'The Cottage' for a music mad youth was like a second home. I used to go there on a Saturday with my dad in the early 70s after he had finished the Saturday morning shift and then, a bit later on, I spent endless hours of my late teens thumbing through the racks which were refilled on a day-to-day basis. The owners were good blokes who, despite looking like your middle-aged uncle, were always friendly to us naive hairy hippies. I once had the privilege of going into the back 'storeroom' where the new, second-hand, arrivals were stored to have a quick look through. To my enormous surprise the storage consisted simply of an old bath, in the middle of the floor of the very small room. It was filled from end-to-end with vinyl LPs. I met people in that shop, through a mutual love of music, who I still see today over 30 years later. It was a dreadfully sad day when I read in the Argus that one of the proprietors was stabbed to death while out walking his dog! I think the other owner died not long afterwards. It's still 'The Cottage' to me; it always will be. Happy days which will never be forgotten.