Behind The Counter with Ian Rankin Various Artists

FEATURES JOY DIVISON, SCRITTI POLITI, ENO, MAGAZINE, THE CURE, SIMPLE MINDS, ISAAC HAYES, BRIAN ENO, KING CREOSOTE, THROBBING GRISTLE AND MORE.

Rough Trade Shops presents Behind the Counter with Ian Rankin, the second instalment in a compilation series inviting artists to curate mixes of the music that has most influenced them, sourced from records sold on the Rough Trade shop floor.

This compilation mix from Scottish writer and music obsessive Ian Rankin follows the first Behind The Counter mix from much-loved British composer Max Richter, released in 2017.

As a longtime vinyl enthusiast who has always dreamed of working in record shops, Rankin’s curation is inspired by some of the first singles he ever bought and songs which have inspired titles of his best-selling novels – Jackie Leven’s ‘Another Man’s Rain’ (which became ‘Another Man’s Grave’) and The Cure’s ‘The Hanging Garden’.

“I still haunt record shops and play vinyl and I still compose playlists, just in case the chance of working behind the counter arrives." Rankin says. “Here’s some of what you’d be hearing if you pushed open the door and walked into my emporium, tunes I never tire of listening to.”

Split across two LPs, the vinyl edition features a 23-track compilation complete with sleevenotes.