As a youngster, I had a "Record Player" that, by the early 1970's would play two formats. A "45" was a Single, which consisted of 2 songs, one on each side. Side A was the "Hit" side, and the B-side, as it was called, was another song. It wasn't a radio hit, and it wasn't necessarily by the same artist as side A. The other format was a 10 inch LP or "33". It usually consisted of 10 songs, 5 on a side. It was all by the same artist, unless it was specifically a compilation or live album that featured multiple artists in concert. The music was fine, but it really wasn't portable. And the search began for a portable music medium.
The first attempt was the 8-Track, which came out in 1965 and was not the product of the music industry but the auto industry. I like to say it replaced nothing and influenced nothing. It had a brief run of popularity during the disco era, and that should be all that is said about it. It was compact, but except for the car player not exactly portable. And then there was a problem which was unique to tape based audio formats. The tape would be drawn into the mechanism itself or "was eaten". When an 8-Track experienced being "eaten' it was permanently pulled out of its plastic housing and was ruined.
Fortunately the solution was already anticipated. The Compact Cassette (aka Cassette Tape or simply Cassette) actually came out 3 years before the 8-Track but was lost in the shuffle. It soon took over the industry and coexisted nicely with the vinyl record. The studio at WENC Radio played both vinyl and cassette. The "munchies" of the tape player could be fixed by rewinding the tape with a pencil. And the Sony Walkman, introduced in 1979 finally made music portable. The 80's were grand.
Contrary to Popular Belief, Apple did not kill off the music industry with the mp3. It actually started much earlier, 1988 to be exact, with the advent of the Compact Disc. It was portable, about the same size as the 45. Unlike the 45, though it did not have two sides. Music was recorded on one side only. Also unlike the 45, you could record an entire album (Officially 72 minutes) on one CD. And Sony Came out With a CD version of the Walkman in 1984 in Japan. It took a few years to get to the U.S.
The CD killed off Vinyl and, a few years later, the Cassette, becoming the monopoly of the music industry. For a few years at least. The industry descended into total chaos with the advent of the .mp3 download, which started in the 90's but really began with iTunes in 2001. The iPod Music Player Came out the same year. The Single was now king, and buying an album was an optional experience.
The Mp3 was credited with the death, just because it was the last cut. The CD, however, was what destroyed the standard two side life that existed since reel to reel tape. The Mp3 just brought in The Wild Wild West, which, ironically, is what will save the industry. That, however, will be another story. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply
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