It Bites – The Big Lad In The Windmill Audio Cassette

When I first heard talk of the ‘eighties band It Bites in 1986, the associated phrase ‘prog rock’ prompted me to steer as great a distance clear as I could. I was one of the kids who’d fully supported all attempts by the punk and new wave movement to completely wipe ‘70s prog rock off the map of musical history. I couldn’t stand endlessly long songs, self-indulgent guitar and drum solos, or technique for the sake of technique, and since those were the features I associated with prog rock, any band billed into that category would be a band for me to avoid.

1987 BASF Chromdioxid Extra II 60 Audio Cassette

The BASF CR-E II audio cassette (or Chromdioxid Extra II, as it was identified on the outer packaging), filled the space in the range previously occupied by the Chromdioxid II. Despite the ‘Extra’, this tape was still BASF’s standard CrO2 offering, and I couldn’t really tell any difference between this and the previous Chromdioxid II. The CR-E II arrived in 1985, even sporting the same basic colour scheme as its predecessor, although the grey label on this cassette had a sort of metallic effect which changed the shade of grey as the shell was moved in the light.

The Style Council – Home & Abroad Audio Cassette

What a fantastic album this was. The Style Council was the natural progression for Paul Weller after the split of The Jam at the end of 1982, shedding the punk rock feel, but retaining much else of what The Jam had encompassed in their final phase. The Jam’s Beat Surrender, for example, is easy to imagine as a Style Council track, just as The Style Council’s Walls Come Tumbling Down (featured on this album), is easy to imagine as a Jam track.