Selectadisc founder Brian Selby dies after cancer battle

BRIAN Selby, the founder of Nottingham's iconic record shop, Selectadisc, has died aged 71, from pancreatic cancer.

He also opened The Garage nightclub in the Lace Market which was one of the first clubs to play house music in the UK.

He died at home in Cropwell Butler on Tuesday morning just days after he and wife Dorothy marked their 50th wedding anniversary.

Son Colin, 48, said: "We got him home from the hospice for four nights at home before he passed away. It was a big occasion for us as he got to spend his last days here with his family.

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"He wasn't able to enjoy it like the rest of us but he did say 'thank God I'm home.'"

He says the family have been overwhelmed with the reaction to the news from around Nottingham and beyond.

"He had a kind of cult following because of what he did with Selectadisc and The Garage. He clearly affected a lot of people's lives."

Brian was adopted as a child and raised in Hucknall where his dad was a head pitman at local colliery.It was in the town that Brian started his first market stall selling bric-a-brac, which he also did at markets in Mansfield and Corby."He gradually started to specialise in second-hand records," said Colin.

Selectadisc's first permanent home was a small shop in Arkwright Street, The Meadows in 1969. After leaving Arkwright Street during The Meadows regeneration of the 1970s he moved to several city centre locations, one of which was in Goldsmith Street, managed by Phil Long.

He said: "I'd been popping into the Arkwright Street shop and we'd chat about music and life, all sorts. He then asked me to manage the Goldsmith Street shop. It was opposite the Mogal-E-Azam where the Royal Concert Hall is now.

"We kept in touch over the years. I last spoke to him in hospital a few weeks ago. Brian was a really generous and modest man who could make you laugh your head off. And despite all of his achievements he had no ego at all."

Selectadisc moved into Market Street in 1980. During 1985, Billy Bragg and The Clash played the shop to benefit striking miners. Other gigs included The Ramones and The Kooks.

He opened The Garage nightclub in the Lace Market which was the beginning of Graeme Park's DJing career. He recalled: "I used to work in the old Selectadisc shop in Bridlesmith Gate, upstairs in the singles and second-hand department. It's where you went to get your alternative stuff. Brian bought the Ad-Lib club in the Lace Market and changed it to The Garage. Everybody who worked there used to go there because it used to a have a reggae sound system and it was the only place in Nottingham that wasn't like a Ritzy or full of idiots.

"I ended up DJ-ing there just because I worked in the record shop though it's not something I really wanted to do. I wanted to be in bands more than anything."

Brian opened a second nightclub in Leicester and briefly a restaurant and Browns bar in Hockley.

He sold Selectadisc, which included the London shop featured on the cover of the Oasis album (What's The Story) Morning Glory?, in 2008.

Said Colin: "The internet was having its impact on the record industry and dad was one of those types of people that if he didn't understand it he didn't want to do it.It was a tough decision because Selectadisc was his baby.

"He won numerous awards over the years as Independent Record Retailer of the Year."

The family plan to raise money for Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund, a charity specifically raising money for funding and research.

Colin said: "In 40 years there has been little advance  in treatment. In most cases once someone knows they have it, it's too late. And it's such a quick death.  Dad's health was relatively normal in early June, although he had been suffering from a few pains in his stomach and back. The doctors couldn't find anything conclusive. By August he was in hospital with suspected pancreatic cancer."

A funeral service will be held next week.

For more about the charity go to www.pcrf.org.uk.

Simon Wilson

@EG_Editor