DOORS OPEN FOR GREAT VINYL REVIVAL

If you thought old-style phonographic recordings had gone the way of the dodo you are in for a surprise

Far removed from the ring roads and grand avenues that punctuate Beijing are its historic alleys, and in these you can stumble over well-hidden shopping gems.

Until a year ago one of these was a tiny shop called Free Sound, in the downtown area, which prided itself as an independent purveyor of vinyl records and other musical recordings.