Pink Floyd's Nick Mason Saves Childhood London Music Store

Posted on Dec 19th 2012 12:00PM by Jason MacNeil
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Leon Neal, AFP

Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason is ensuring the London music shop he knew as a child will continue to operate for years to come.

According to an article in Musical Instrument Professional, the drummer has intervened to save Foote's, the London store where Mason purchased his very first drum kit.

"After 40 something years of playing, I still have great affection for a real drum shop," Mason said. "And Foote's has a special significance for me."

Mason recalled going to the store in London's West End back in 1958 where "a kindly man called Sid, in a white coat (maybe that's significant as well) sold me my original kit for 7.50 BP (British Pounds)."

The drummer added that he purchased various cymbals and drums.

"Armed with this devastating kit I joined my friends to form 'The Hotrods,'" Mason said. "The fact that none of us could actually play our instruments seemed a minor problem on our road to stardom."

Both Mason and the store's sales director Rob Wilson are purchasing the business from the family who owned it since the 1930s. Wilson said Mason's assistance was invaluable after a bank turned down a business loan.

"It was a major blow to our plans, but Nick came to our rescue," Wilson said. "Without him, and our collective of generous investors, Foote's would be no more."

The store will relocate to London's Bloomsbury area from its current neighboring location in Soho. It will also open in mid-December.

The news comes weeks after Mason revealed he'll be receiving the university degree he set out to get back in 1962. According to Gigwise, Mason will receive an Honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of Westminister for his musical contributions. The drummer was attending Regent Street Polytechnic and studying architecture when Pink Floyd emerged in the 1960s. The band even used the school for a rehearsal space in its infancy.

Mason left university to commit to the group, which obviously paid off handsomely.

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