Things I don't miss about the '80s & '90s, music industry edition

[mollyringle]

Things I don't particularly miss about the '80s and '90s, music industry edition:

1. Having to phone the radio station and ask the DJ in order to find out the name of the song and artist. And then having no way to hear it again that day unless you went to the record store. And even then they might not have it. You kids these days with your YouTube and your Spotify, you're lucky.

2. Having to do a somewhat involved math problem in order to best arrange the songs on a 90-minute mix tape.

3. "Hidden tracks" that took the form of a 14-minute track at the end of a CD: a 4-minute song, then 5 minutes of silence, then the hidden track. Srsly, who told them people would like that?

Comments

[pith]

Having to do a somewhat involved math problem in order to best arrange the songs on a 90-minute mix tape.

I definitely don't miss doing it, but it was also a labour of love. Now when people make mix CDs (though that's getting rarer too), a program does all the work for them. I always appreciated a mix tape that was edited and arranged well, in part because I knew what kind of attention went into it. (Bonus points to people who taped stuff off the radio, and had to be quick on the record button to miss the DJ blather but get the song.)

[(Anonymous)]

Recording the DJ's commentary off the radio trying to grab my favorites on tape!
-new_iconoclast

[mollyringle.livejournal.com]

Haha, yes, the supreme irritation over the DJ who'd talk right up until the singing began! Argh! :) But indeed, there was also a certain specialness about mix tapes (even CDs) back then, since collecting and arranging the material was harder. For that matter, there was also a certain magic about that song you couldn't get your hands on, and which therefore became the best moment all day when the radio finally played it. I think I still prefer being able to find it on YouTube instantly when I want to hear something, but that elusiveness did have its charms.

[mollyringle.livejournal.com]

Hee, yep! I had several "taped off the radio" mixes...and nowadays, I'm not even sure I have the capability to record anything off the radio. Not that there's any need, since playlists for most stations can be replayed off their website for any hour of the day going back at least a couple of weeks.