UB40 – Present Arms Audio Cassette

Present Arms was the second album from Birmingham reggae band UB40 – released in spring 1981. In its day, I bought the album on vinyl, but years later, after the band seemed to try and deny their early history, I lost interest and gave away more than half of my UB40 vinyl as a mark of disapproval. Pretty stupid thing to do, but the guy I gave it to (a major fan of the band) was grateful beyond words, and he was clearly not going to sell it. I did, however, miss this album, so in the 1990s I ended up buying it again – this time on audio cassette – the one you see here.

Early 1980s TDK D 60 Audio Cassette

If you were in any way interested in music, or had a need to record audio during the early 1980s, you must surely recognise this cassette. It’s the ubiquitous-beyond-comprehension TDK D 60 – perhaps the general purpose tape of the era. Not because it was the best – but because it struck the perfect balance between price, aptitude and reliability. There were strong rivals, but TDK was a highly respected brand, and that counted for a lot among typical consumers, who wouldn’t necessarily analyse performance in any great technical detail.

1984 BASF Chromdioxid II Audio Cassette

Perhaps the memory most quickly recalled in a discussion about early 1980s chrome audio cassettes is that of the BASF Chromdioxid II. Heavy advertising on television meant a high profile. In those days the audiences per programme were much, much higher, with no Internet, and in the UK just four TV channels competing for share. So any audio cassette with a TV ad campaign behind it was pretty much assured immense initial uptake.