Beat The Clock Records – Alan Wilder Personal Record + CD Collection

Alan’s comments:

Hi, I’m Alan Wilder, ex-member of the well-known group Depeche Mode. It is true: I have made my entire vinyl and CD collection available. It is going on sale on 18 August 2024, at 11 a.m., at Beat The Clock Records, in Palmeira Square, Hove, just off Church Road. It’s a great collection. My first record, I think, was The Man Who Sold the World by David Bowie, in about 1973, and [the collection] goes through my teenage years to when I joined [Mute Records], and there are loads of Mute rarities within the collection, and everything else. All kinds of bits and pieces. I hope you’ll enjoy that. So get down there and have fun.^[1]

As far as I know, I don’t think any items will be subject to bidding but there might be a few gems where you’ll need to get there early.^[2]

It’s an eclectic mix of all genres, featuring around 4000 items including plenty of rarities from the Mute Records archives. The collection spans a lifetime of trawling through record stores starting in Notting Hill Gate around 1973. Of course, each object holds a special place in my heart but I am at a stage where I need to downsize so I try not to get over emotionally attached to ‘stuff’ as I get older — you can’t take it with you! And after all, the music itself never disappears, it lives inside us.^[3]

References

Editorial note: Wilder referred to the event as a “special auction” and described Palmeira Square as being “just off Church Street.” Most items were offered at fixed prices, starting at £1, with only a small number auctioned in store on the day of the event, including his copy of The Man Who Sold the World; Palmeira Square is on Church Road, not Church Street.