The Smithereens – Green Thoughts Audio Tape (1988)

I first became aware of The Smithereens in the mid 1980s when they played live on a UK ‘alternative entertainment TV show’. I’m guessing it was probably Saturday Live, but if not, it was certainly a variety format because I remember one of the comedians cracking a rather cheap, desperate and poorly-executed joke about the lead singer’s comb-over.

Aswad – Live and Direct Audio Cassette (1983)

That music dealing with the issues felt by disillusioned and disenfranchised youth had such a presence in the early 1980s, says as much about today’s environment as it does about that of three decades ago. The issues are still there, but it feels today almost as if the music business has tried to fence off the disaffected as some kind of ‘worthless market’, unable to provide a sufficient return on a record company’s investment.

The Guitar Magazine Guitar Greats Cassette (1992)

Here’s a nice little collectors’ item which is twenty years old this month. Well, going by its official birthday it’s twenty years old. In reality it’s slightly older. This is the free Guitar Greats audio cassette, as given away on the cover of the April 1992 edition of The Guitar Magazine. Because of the way these mags were published the month prior to their cover dates, however, the cassette would have been made available in March ’92.