VF editor Kelly Doherty is invited to the Beggars Group archive and experiences analogue nirvana.
Nestled in a quiet corner of Wandsworth, South London, lies an unassuming home to one of the most comprehensive archives in independent music: the Beggars Arkive. Though modest from the outside, within its walls, thousands of physical objects tell the story of the influential Beggars Group, an organisation known for its powerhouse labels and pioneering releases.
Founded in 1977 by Martin Mills, Beggars Group began with its flagship label, Beggars Banquet, and quickly gained momentum through early releases from artists like The Lurkers and Gary Numan. The record store-turned-label soon expanded, absorbing labels such as Wiija, Too Pure, and Mantra in the ‘80s and ‘90s. Today, Beggars Group encompasses 4AD, Matador Records, Rough Trade Records, XL Recordings, and Young—major names to anyone with an interest in independent music.
The organisation’s private archive, the Beggars Arkive, is an unmatched historical collection, capturing the reach and impact of the labels that make up the Beggars Group. Browsing its tall, packed shelves feels like a journey through alternative music history, from artists like underground heroes Cocteau Twins and Saint Etienne to modern outfits like Big Thief and The xx and even pop icon Adele.
It’s an overwhelming space filled with items that elicit whispers of “oh, wow” ad nauseum. For this writer, the chance to visit the archive was akin to giddily embarking upon a safari of the various artists that have shaped me as a listener and person – it’s humbling to get this intimate glimpse at the physical footprint of the greats.
Beyond its star-studded cast, the Arkive offers a charming insight into the evolution of music formats, with vinyl records, reels, cassettes, minidiscs, and VHS tapes sitting side-by-side with promotional materials, magazine cut-outs, badges, and even XL-themed Christmas crackers. For analogue enthusiasts and music nerds of all sorts, the archive is a dream come true.
The archiving project, managed by Lesley Bleakley and Florence Pick, has been ongoing for the last decade. Bleakley, who joined Beggars in 1988 and later served as CEO of Beggars USA for 14 years, took on the project in 2013 after a brief hiatus.
“When I got back in 2013, they asked me to look after this and organise the archive. It was a matter of talking to all the different labels and seeing where all the assets were,” she recalls.
This meant tracking down Beggars’ history piece by piece. “There was a shop in Richmond with a load of 4AD stuff, a Rough Trade cage in Camden, and XL had cages in Notting Hill,” Bleakley shares. “We then spent the next eight years going through it, which is a huge job.”
Longevity is vital to any archive — it doesn’t matter how many rare reels or artist promotional materials have been preserved if future generations don’t know how to find them. Inspired by the British Library’s meticulous cataloguing, Bleakley and her team organized by format and alphabetized by artist.
“People are not going to necessarily know what band was on what label, so we felt if we kept it all by artist, it would be easy to pick out what you needed. We’re always future-proofing everything,” Bleakley says.
The archiving journey hasn’t been without challenges. Unsurprisingly, artists’ inconsistent and occasionally flippant attitude to labelling over the years has complicated the process. “One of the big difficulties is when artists went into studios and sometimes they changed the names of the tracks,” Bleakley says.
“What we now call metadata was just a producer writing versions and masters on this and that. You’re so reliant on people giving you accurate information. If it’s a band that at the time wasn’t very big and wasn’t so precious, there could be doodles and smiley faces and stuff. It’s fun but it’s detective work.”
The archive isn’t simply a museum of Beggars’ successes; it exists as a living operation within the label’s wider activities. Serving as the source material for Beggars’ ongoing reissues — including the likes of Bauhaus, The Fall, Pixies, and Cocteau Twins—the archive ensures high-quality reissues that are accompanied by unseen or rare photography, artwork or unheard music. It’s a way of offering something new for fans and honouring the original artists’ work.
“We make sure that what’s released is done in a very respectful and well-thought-out way,” Bleakley says. “I want it to be special and curated.”
For fans, the Beggars Arkive offers an intimate encounter with a rich history. Visitors, including artists like singer-songwriter John Grant, are often moved by the collection. “He’s a massive 4AD fan and stood in front of the Cocteau Twins’ stuff and was getting quite emotional. We’ve got it all on film, it’s so cute,” Bleakley recalls.
“People get really emotional because it’s the soundtrack of their lives, isn’t it?”
In today’s world of streaming, physical archiving has gained new significance. “I’m the biggest Spotify and TikTok user going,” Bleakley admits, “but with this, it’s physical. You’ve got the 12” and you can listen to the whole album, looking at the art and inner sleeve. As a vinyl lover, I just appreciate that.”
Scrolling through playlists and social media posts about a band will never come close to the sheer joy of touching and breathing in the individual reels and tapes that ferried groundbreaking music from the studio to the fans, and the sights and smells of the Beggars Arkive is a testament to this.
Every promotional postcard, live set video, and shopping bag serves as a reminder of just how many people and steps have been involved in every album release. The back catalogue entries don’t just represent the artist — they’re the result of every sound engineer, designer, marketer, and enthusiast who played a part in these records’ successes.
Thanks to projects like the Beggars Arkive, the richness and legacy of that work will be acknowledged for generations to come.
Find out more about the Beggars Arkive here.
Photo credit: Daniel Sheehan