Soul music runs deep along the Lincolnshire coast, and few places embody that better than Stars & Stripes, a long-standing record shop on Drummond Road in Skegness that has been feeding the appetites of collectors since 1978.
Background / History
The shop is the work of Dave Raistrick, a well-known and widely respected figure on the British soul scene who began supplying rare records to collectors in 1978. What started as record dealing that reached buyers across the UK and overseas grew into a permanent home at 35 Drummond Road, a short walk from the seafront and the town market. Over the decades the business has become one of the country’s more distinctive soul specialists, and it now sits alongside the Tamla Coffee Bar, a music-themed space that shares the same Motown and Northern Soul spirit as the records on the shelves.
What You’ll Find
Soul in all its forms is at the centre of everything here. Northern Soul, Motown and Tamla, rare and modern soul, funk and jazz fill the racks, with thousands of 7-inch 45s sitting alongside albums, 12-inch singles and CDs. The stock spans the 1950s right through to current releases, taking in original US imports, sought-after pressings and the kind of hard-to-find pieces that keep serious collectors coming back. It is a genuine specialist shop rather than a general one, so anyone chasing a particular label, artist or elusive floor-filler will find plenty to dig through. The shop also trades with collectors worldwide, so its reputation reaches well beyond the Lincolnshire coast.
Experience / Atmosphere
Browsing here is a proper crate-digger’s experience, unhurried and rewarding, with the pleasure of flipping through boxes in the hope of turning up something special. Dave Raistrick’s deep knowledge of soul and its many sub-genres means advice and conversation are always close at hand, and the adjoining Tamla Coffee Bar gives visitors a reason to linger over a coffee once the digging is done. The shop is very much a hub for the soul community, drawing in DJs, dancers and lifelong enthusiasts, and it comes into its own around the Skegness Northern & Rare Soul Weekender, for which it acts as a familiar meeting point and information hub. Trade is seasonal, with the shop busiest through the summer and open on some Saturdays over winter, so a call ahead is always worthwhile.
Why Visit
- A genuine soul specialist trading with collectors since 1978
- Thousands of Northern Soul, Motown, funk and jazz 45s, LPs, 12-inch singles and CDs
- Music spanning the 1950s to the present, including original US imports and rarities
- The attached Tamla Coffee Bar, themed around Motown and Northern Soul
- A key gathering point for the Skegness Northern & Rare Soul Weekender
- Expert guidance from an owner steeped in the soul scene
Summary
Stars & Stripes is far more than a place to buy records. It is a cornerstone of the British soul scene, run by someone who has spent a lifetime immersed in the music, and it offers a depth of specialist stock that rewards both the dedicated collector and the curious newcomer. Between its shelves of soul, funk and jazz and the welcome of the Tamla Coffee Bar, it gives Skegness a musical destination with real character and a national reputation. For anyone with a love of soul, a visit is time very well spent.
