Then and Now: Brixton Road by Brighton Terrace
Photographic comparisons of old and modern views of Lambeth
(Modern photo © urban75, updated June 2009)



c 1921 Looking north up Brixton Road from the junction with Brighton Terrace, you can see the two railway bridges in the distance. Signs above the shop nearest the camera announce, 'Singing School,' 'Voice, Violin and Piano Academy' and 'Music Studio', reflecting Brixton's long association with musicians and variety acts. Note the bus queue to the right. (pic: Lambeth Archives)



May 2003 Appropriately enough, the shop now serves as a record store (Red Records), although the Piano Academy has long gone. Huge traffic increases led to the road being widened in the 1930s - so that the bus queue seen above would now be standing in the middle of the road!

Update June 2009: Sadly, Red Records has closed, with a 'nail bar' now using the premises, thus breaking a century-old tradition of the site's asssociation with music.



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