HMV - The End Of A Era?

It has been a weird day. The country appears to be covered in snow with difficult driving conditions. But I was able to travel to Ipswich, Suffolk with no problems and little sign of snow. While I was in Ipswich I went to HMV (it is the nearest store to where I live) traded in a voucher and bought some CDs and DVDs. When I got home at about 2pm two things happened at once. The first was that it began to snow - the second was the news that HMV had gone into administration. Sadly, it seems, my purchases had done nothing to save this business.

HMV has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. It was a notable record label and a big store in London's Oxford Street that I visited, often, as a child. In my teenage years and twenties it was the place to go for the simple reason that if a recording existed then it would be found in HMV.  HMV was to music what Foyles were to books in those days.

Time moved on and HMV expanded but, like any business, times change and the reason given is that HMV failed to move with the times and couldn't handle the competition from the supermarkets. Sounds good....like the pseudo-intellectual man on the street who dismissed the whole thing with the words:"No one buys CDs these days." Like the e-reader lobby who claim that nobody buys books (there are exceptions to that rule). Or those literary folk who claim that the western is dead. Problem is say it enough times and people begin to believe it.

The death of HMV is not down to people downloading music or movies; nor is it a failure to tackle the supermarkets. 'Dredd' in HMV today was cheaper than that in Morrisons and Sainsbury's but 'Lawless' was more expensive.

Then there is online purchasing - both HMV and GAME have online stores and the CDs, DVDs and Games on offer are cheaper than in-store. Game may not be out of the woods but with both these companies competing against their own high street stores - then the high streets are going to empty.

The second reason that I can see is that most of the HMV stores that I have gone to I walk into what looks like a jumble sale. This is meant to display offers etc but is far more confusing than than regulated displays.  More often than not the latest films and CDs are not available - big sellers and blockbusters yes - but where is say 'The Man Who Never Was' either the limited edition or the Blu-Ray version that was released just before Christmas.
This leads to - staff. A little basic knowledge about music and films would come in handy. Kristina Train is a female singer - not a three man group called 'Train'.

Online, HMV, is not a lot better. 'Pre-order now' seems to be handy. At least, that is a problem out of the way. Then there is an e-mail from HMV advising me that the item I had ordered is out of stock. So telephone them and say that item ordered is a pre-order. Response is that the item is out of stock. But, I point out, don't you have to be in stock before you can be out of stock? Re-instate order, then? No, sir, you will have to re-order the item.
OK, no I'll wait until it comes out or maybe go to Play.com.
Then there is a similar e-mail from HMV - I telephone and say that this has to be an error. No,sir, we are out of stock. Me: Not according to your website.

Nor am I alone there.

So, reality is that HMV have no one else to blame for going into administration.

I download music but I, also, buy CDs. I love music but I don't want to be tied to earphones all day long. And my iPod holds only a fistful of favourite tracks. Nor do I want to watch a movie on a mini-screen (on a coach or train journey it's ok) not when I have a big screen.

So, I do hope that someone does buy up HMV who can operate it as a proper business. Yeah, I can dream.

DEAD MEDIUM -update

Dead Medium - for one day only free to download on 13th January 2013.

DEAD MEDIUM by Peter John

May Elizabeth Trump disliked the company of others and death did little to warm her spirit. With a dead cat her only companion, she roamed the living world trying to come to terms with her new condition. Her path crossed with that of another of the newly departed. Penny Saunders needed May's help and May was in a unique position to offer it. For she was a dead medium, a ghost with the power to speak with the living and her services were to become in great demand. Spirits with long awaiting messages were not the only ones to take an interest in May's activities. Something dark was lurking in the shadows, stalking her. Even the dead are not left to rest in peace. Highly addictive and readable with moments of deadpan humour. £6.99 paperback or Kindle version @ £3.20 via Amazon

FAST GIRLS (2012)

FAST GIRLS opens up in the UK on the 15th June. The movie deals with a quartet of young girls and their journey towards taking part as the British relay team in the 2012 London Olympics. The movie stars Lenora Crichlow, Lashana Lynch, Dominique Tipper and Hannah Frankson along with Noel Clarke, Rupert Graves and Phil Davis. One of the stars Noel Clarke has come a long way since playing Mickey in Dr.Who and now enjoys a credit list that includes Kidulthood, Adulthood and 4-3-2-1 to name but a few acting/producing and writing credits. And not only does he act in Fast Girls but co-wrote the script. Fast Girls should have been the feelgood movie that highlighted the work that British athletes do in preparation for the Olympic Games - OUR Olympic games. The same Olympic Games that Londoners are paying for via that 'little bit extra' added on to the Council Tax. There are some people out there who think that some of us have forgotten about that. Return to the Olympic theme - halfway through the making a movie that promotes the Olympics - an idiot from the International Olympic Committee said that neither the words 'Olympic' nor '2012' could be used in the movie as these words were copyrighted. Since when? That means that movies like 'Cool Runnings', 'Chariots Of Fire' and '2012' should have been dragged into court for breach of copyright etc. One of the American Presidents said something along the lines that it wasn't about what you could do for your country but what your country could do for you. Well, my country and the London Olympic Committee could have stood up for this movie So now Fast Girls is about a team of athletes traing for the 2011 World Athletics Championship - but for me it will be just as intended a tribute to the young athletes that put their heart and soul into doing their best for their country at the 2012 Olympics.

THE AFFAIR by Lee Child

The events in Lee Child's latest Jack Reacher novel takes place in March 1997 just six months before the events in 'Killing Floor' (the first Reacher novel). Janice May Chapman's body is found with her throat cut behind a bar in a small Mississippi town - but this is an army town and the question is was the killer a local or a soldier from the barracks.Duncan Munro of the Military Police is already on the base and has shut it down - all leave cancelled. Reacher's job is to go in undercover. However, the local sheriff is a woman, Elizabeth Deveraux, a former Marine and MP - so it takes her all of five minutes to blow Reacher's cover. Nor is it long before we discover that the killer has struck before with the same M.O. only the first two victims were not white. Also, Alpha and Bravo Companies based at Kelham Army base have on-off clandestine ops in Kosovo and that all the murders had taken place after the return of Bravo Company. And that is where I leave the plot summary. Of course, there is a cover-up going on - and the suspects are quickly revealed so that all is needed is a procedural story of how the reader arrives at the conclusion. However, there is, I felt, an unnecessary side story that was intended to throw the reader. For me it didn't work but there you go and that is only my opinion. To be honest having read 'The Enemy' and 'Killing Floor' I enjoyed this book just as much and still look forward to 'A Wanted Man' which will be out in September this year. I read on the Piccadilly Publishing blog and The Tainted Archive that 'One Shot' renamed 'Reacher' is to star Tom Cruise in the title role. The New York Times describes Jack Reacher as "That legend of a tough, cerebral drifter, a latter day 6-foot-5-inch cowboy...." Need i say more?

BODIE by Neil Hunter (e-book)

It was great to see that Neil Hunter's 'Bodie' was about to make a comeback. The original Star paperbacks ran to a series of six - all of them coming out at the wane of what had been a successful era for the western. On the spine the books were called 'Bodie The Stalker' - not a name that was used in the story. This time the series is coming out in e-book format from Piccadilly Publishing. And the brains behind this new publishing venture who hope to bring more series from the group of writers known as the Piccadilly Cowboys are David Whitehead and Mike Stotter. Both men have a long history with the western genre from their childhood in London's East End right through to today where they are western writers in their own right. They have always championed the genre and the writers of such series as 'Herne The Hunter' and 'Hart The Regulator' and many others. Bodie is a bounty hunter and the action of these books take place at a time when bounty hunting was legal. While Bodie is a man of action, he is also a thinker and plans ahead to his own exacting rules and regulations. A man of few words he gets the job done - sometimes fairly as is seen in the opening to 'Trackdown' the first book in the series. Bodie 1: Trackdown is available from all the usual outlets.

THE VOICE

So the Beeb want to sack Jessie J because she thinks that the show is lame. Why? For saying how it is? I would have thought that it would be a good idea for the BBC to rethink their show. Mind you most of the coaches failed to turn around for about 90% of the talented singers and took just a small per centage on. I lost interest way back when Jaz Ellington was asked to sing another song - and the backing band knew exactly what to play. So the word 'rigged' comes to mind - and, of course, this is the guy who is the bookies favourite. Though, I think there is a dark horse in the shape of Bo Bruce - except that she keeps reminding me, in looks, of a mature Alex Parks and sounds like her. I half expect to hear her sing 'Beautiful' at some stage. Can't help but think that way. And, in case, anyone has forgotten Alex Parks well she won the 2005 Fame Academy (an older version of The Voice) on the BBC. She recorded two albums (and, yes, I have them both) and then disappeared. And what was Holly Willoughby doing apologising for a brilliant and raunchy performance by Becky Hill? Now, if Becky Hill or Joelle (who got shown the door last week) came out with albums tomorrow I would buy them. Actually, the whole show is a waste of time and not much different in texture than 'The X Factor' or 'Britains' Got Talentless'. In fact, I'm not sure why I'm even bothering to write about it. Well, I do as I find it difficult to understand why it is the talentless who win these shows - and not those who do. Becky Hill has talent - but will she be able to cope with the pressure that would result. Will Joelle disappear into obscurity - I'd like to think that there is a record producer out there who spotted her. The same goes for the Ruth that is on Tom Jones team. As Tom Jones said, women are able to express themselves much better than their male counterparts. Still all was not lost. At least Chelsea beat Bayern Munich - so my evening viewing ended on a happier note.