The mere mention of the 8-Track Tape usually induces laughter among those who remember the ’70s and early ’80s. Their bulky plastic shell made them one of the more obnoxious recorded audio formats, and although many Quadraphonic titles existed, they certainly were never an audiophile media. The “endless loop” design allowed for continuous playback (an advantage over flipping an LP), yet prohibited rewinding (though some players did have a ‘fast forward’ or ‘seek’ button):
These underlings of music consumption are also guilty of being the true origin of my thrift store music buying history. These things were 25ยข each (or 5 for $1.00) back in ’95 when I began habitually buying records – so as cheap “throw away” items, they ultimately seduced me into buying a number of Quadrophonic stereo receivers, portable players, and other related 8-track junk.
To this day, surprisingly, 8 tracks tapes are still showing up at thrift stores – and many are still in quite playable condition. By design, they are actually a bit easier to bring back to life than a conventional cassette tape. Ailing 8 Tracks have a few common issues:
- The foam pads have deteriorated The worst part of this is cleaning out the sticky, gummy rubber with a cotton swab. The best part is that felt pads or new foam are quite easy to install.
- The tape splice has split If both ends of the tape are visible, it is very easy to repair. If one or both ends are lost inside the casing, it’s not impossible (but very time-consuming) to open the case and re-spool.
- The rubber roller has turned into sticky goo This one’s tricky, but just crack open an unneeded title (like some Charlie Rich or Kenny Rogers) and swap a good roller for the glob of goo (after a thorough cleaning, of course).
Here’s a few of the more interesting and unusual tape finds I still have:
Michal Urbaniak Trio ‘The Beginning’ is a great sounding rarity that is explosive and wild free jazz stuff quite different from the spry fiddle-driven fusion stuff I associate him with. I believe I read somewhere that this release combined two European LP pressings of early material. I also like how the fella in the middle looks a LOT like Piggy from Voivod.
At Home with Ernie and Bert Recently found this one on LP, but the 8-Track is really the ideal format. Since it’s basically a voice/sound effects recording of scenarios involving these two Muppets, it provides “virtual playmates” in endless loop playback.
Black Sabbath ‘Vol.4’ The inverted colours of the cover motif make this a novel heavy metal find. Also, nice sequencing with each channel playing at just about 11 minutes.
Ernie Ashworth ‘Legendary Performer’ He certainly is a legend, and with plenty of web presence. I have to admit that I bought this one simply because of that kooky “lips” leisure suit.
Gil Trythall ‘Nashville Gold’ Gil’s Switched-on Moog is quite legendary as well, with lots of blog coverage: it seems that his catalog has indeed been re-issued on the sonically superior compact disc medium.
Moog Groove: The Electronic Concept Orchestra This ambitious title oozes style, right from the jaw-droppingly hip cover art. A great rip of the album appears at the 36 15 Moog blog.
Jimi Hendrix ‘Jimi’ A 1970 offering by Pickwick that appears to be an unauthorized bootleg release. Probably one of my earliest 8 Track finds.
Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory A bit rough around the label edges w/ some bubbling and casing wear, but still the most playable and durably long-lasting tape I own.
The Amazing Music of the Electronic Arp Synthesizer This robust RCA product has a metal screw post in the bottom of the casing, refusing to be out-done by all the Moog titles found here.
…and thankfully, there are still recordable 8 Tracks trickling through the thrift marketplace. You may be excited about making 8 Track mixes of current CD stuff (and there’s been a number of indie bands releasing 8 Track versions of their albums), but I tend to keep unopened tapes for the Truly Heartfelt Productions archives.
8 Track Heaven is an astounding and definitive web presence that covers everything one could need or want to know about 8 Track tapes. And be sure not to miss their gallery of portable players!
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