Neges Andy Davies (Andy's Records, Aberystwyth)

[nicdafis]

Ces i hon trwy'r rhestr <a href="http://www.clwbmalucachu.co.uk">Clwb Malu Cachu</a> y bore 'ma. Mae'n gofyn cwestiynau pwysig ac yn wneud awgrymiadau da hefyd. Dw i wedi sylw fod e bron yn amhosib i ffeindio unrhyw CDs Cymraeg ond stwff Sain a Fflach yn Aberteifi, erenghraifft. (Mae'n haws/gyflymach i mi prynu stwff trwy Amazon na trwy siop Awen Teifi).

>Hi there
I am trying to instigate a new approach to distributing Welsh bands'
releases to shops in this country.
Can you think of any places to put this message out to get attention of
interested parties?
Please forward it to anyone you think may be willing to help, or
publish/take on board the information.

Do you ever listen to Radio Cymru, say GangGang BangBangBangor and hear
a song by a Welsh band and wonder where the hell to get hold of it?
It is often the case that if you dont know the drummer in the band, you
haven't a hope in hell of finding it in any shops.
I happen to run a record shop in West Wales and I must confess I have the
same problem.
Unless the band has a distribution deal with Shellshock, Sain or one of the
other more motivated labels, chances are I never get offered stocks of new releases by new bands.

Maybe the bands feel that the " if you build it, they will come" outlook
will pay off in the end, or maybe they feel that their role in proceedings
(or their options) end at making the music and flogging a few 7"s or CDs at
gigs.

It is time we had a more organised distribution service for new labels,
bands and artists to get the product into the shops across Wales who are
keen to help the scene move up to the next level.

We have always been able to apply ourselves in this Great Nation to
arranging gigs and shifting people in sufficient numbers to make events
work, (take a bow, Cymdeithas) often with little more than word of mouth
and the media infrastructure as it currently exists here i.e. Fanzines, Radio
shows, TV coverage, flyposting college halls etc, but when it comes to
promoting the "hard copy" of product by these acts we are sadly lacking to
the point of futility. Were it not for the often maligned Sain/Crai
network, and a handful of band owned labels (Pep le pew, Jarcrew,Post Office, Dockrad, Estella to name a few) the shelf in my shop marked "Roc Cymraeg" would be empty of all but major label acts (SFA, Manics etc) and Shellshock marketed labels' releases.

Sain have at least one van on the road serving the whole of Wales and have shown an interest in this scheme, at least in principle.
I urge all bands who wish to have their music on sale in shops to consider
the following possibilities.
1/ Call me at Andys records Aberystwyth on 01970 624581 and discuss terms with us. We supply the National Library of Wales with copies of all releases by Welsh acts on all formats.

2/ Decide on your terms of trade, dealer prices and some idea of suggested retail prices, and PLEASE sort out your own invoice system so you know who gets what, and follow up frequently to see if more stocks are needed, and call before you drop in to settle up any money you may be owed.

3/ Here is a link listing of most of the shops in the UK, get your
representative to call them up and talk about terms.
<a href="http://www.moremusic.co.uk/links/uk_shops.htm">http://www.moremusic.co.uk/links/uk_shops.htm</a>

4/ I suggest sending at least 5 copies of all the titles you release on a
Sale or Return basis to all the shops in Wales (phone them first, please)

5/ Provide a small poster with the goods for display purposes, and a dummy CD case is a good idea if your single is on vinyl only, so browsers of CD racks can be made aware of it's existance.

6/ Consider making all you gig posters/ flyers bilingual, never assume that
non Welsh speaking people are not interested in your band.(Cymdeithas,
ydych chi'n gwrando hefyd?)

7/ Remember this anecdote ... back in the early 90s I got regular visits
from a small North Wales label manager who provided me regularly with releases by then unknown bands. He was always quietly confident that his
persistance would one day pay dividends, as did the bands who trusted their fortunes to him. Many of those bands have fallen by the wayside, but these days that man's label (Ankst) is still a going concern and Mr Alun Llwyd and Super Furry Animals are still very much in business.
I am proud that my little shop may have played a small part in their
development process, and we want very much to be part of yours.

Thanks for listening
Andy

[Mihangel Macintosh]

Ie, dwi'n gweld pwynt Andy. Yn amlwg ma na botenshial i ffurfio cwmni dosbarthu tebyg i Shellshock neu Cargo yng Nghymru - Cwmni i wasanaethu y siopau bach a mawr fel Virgin yng Nghymru, yn ogystal a dosbarthu i siopau yn Lloegr, Ewrop, America a gweddill y Byd. Nid rhyw half-arse operation fel sydd gan Sain, ond cwmni deinamig fodern gyda gweledigaeth fyd-ehang a sy'n barod i gymryd cerddoriaeth gyfoes ymlaen.

O fy mrhofiad i o ddelio gyda siopau Cymraeg, tra'n trio cael nhw i stocio ffansins a tapiau, ma agwedd rhai o'r gwrachod sy'n rhedeg y llefydd yn ddigon i atal unrhyw werthiant. Cer i Siop Y Pentan Caerfyrddin, a newn nhw geisio dy siarad di mas o rhoi stoc iddyn nhw achos fod e'n rhy gyfoes! Neiff llawer o'r Siopau Cymraeg ffernol ddim hyrwyddo dy gynhyrch di drwy rhoi poster lan neu rhoi dy dap/ffansin/cd yn y ffenest.

Ar ddiwedd y dydd diw e ddim werth y ffycin hasl o ddelio gyda'r fath dwats. Ma nhw jyst moen stocio John a ffycin Alun a dolie ffycin Gymreig.
Yn y pendraw fi sydd ar golled, gyda costie petrol a bil ffon anferth yn ceisio ffeindio allan be sy'n digwydd i'r stoc, a ffeindio mas fod nhw wedi gwerthu un copi allan o ugain mewn tri mis. Dwi di cal llond bol o ddelio gyda nhw.So sorri os da chi ddim yn byw mewn tref gyda siop recordiau gall fel Andy's, Spillers, Tangled Parrot neu Cob - sda fi ddim bwriad mynd a stoc i Siop y Daten, Cwmtwat, Abercrap, Dyfed.

[Alys]

Tria Awen Meirion, Y Bala. Mae Gwyn bob amser yn barod i stocio stwff cyfoes. Shop wych.

[Mihangel Macintosh]

Tria Awen Meirion, Y Bala. Mae Gwyn bob amser yn barod i stocio stwff cyfoes. Shop wych.

Ydy chware teg. Un o'r ychydig Siopau "Cymraeg" sydd werth delio gyda, a werth mynd iddo hefyd. Hyd yn oed siop Oriel [Nawr TSO] lawr yn y Ddinas ddrwg yn wastraff amser, cael ei rhedeg gan hen wrach sydd a dim diddordeb mewn hyrwyddo "pop" Cymraeg. Es i yna gyda ffrind sy'n dysgu Cymraeg. Roedd fy ffrind, sydd heb lawer o hyder i ddefnyddio'r iaith, wedi magu digon o blwc i siarad yn Gymraeg a'r rheolwraig - Beth naeth hi? Wel siarad nol yn Saesneg wrthgwrs. Dweud cyfrolau am ei hagwedd nhw ondiwe. Di ni ddim moen hyrwyddo'r Gymraeg, just ishe cadw fe'n glwb bach ecscliwsif - Mae nhw'n waeth na Mewnfudwyr o Loegr sydd ddim yn trafferthu i ddysgu Cymraeg.

[nicdafis]

Diddorol. Pan o'n i'n gweithio yn siop Oriel roedd y staff i gyd yn ddwyieithog (ond fi, dysgais i er mwyn cadw fy swydd ar ôl y trosgwyddio i reolaeth TSO) ac yn gefnogol iawn i ddysgwyr. Maen nhw'n dal i dderbyn grant gan y Cyngor Celfyddydau. Falle dylet ti <a href="http://www.celfcymru.org.uk/contact/directoryfinance.asp">gwyno at CCC</a> neu <a href="mailto:mailto:ymholiadau@bwrdd-yr-iaith.org.uk">Fwrdd yr Iaith</a> (dw i'n siwr y daw Oriel dan Deddf Iaith '93).