Dr John – In a Sentimental Mood audio cassette (1989)

Here’s someone who’s lived a life. One time rogue, prolific session musician, immensely respected figure in American roots music… Mac Rebennack, much better known as Dr. John, is a genuine New Orleans pianist, vocalist and musician, most associated with the classic New Orleans blues/jazz style of piano. Whilst he’s also played guitar for a good proportion of his career, it’s the influence of Professor Longhair and a number of other cool and unorthodox American pianists which defines what he’s about.

The Type I Normal Bias Audio Cassette

The Type I normal bias audio cassette was the standard and most widely compatible tape format – the direct descendant of the original compact cassette. The tape preserved sound by means of a ferric-oxide coating, and first appeared on the consumer market in the mid 1960s. Heading the post you can see a fairly early Type I musicassette demonstrator, which was used to help drive the cassette format into wider use in 1970.

Voice of the Beehive – Let It Bee Audio Cassette (1988)

In 1987 and 1988, I was a trainee working with a group of largely incompetent painters and decorators…. Papering walls, doing odd jobs, accidentally pulling down the odd ceiling, and once in a while being ordered to take a door off its hinges and burn it because the customer was so dissatisfied with the painting. Invariably, we’d have the radio on, and Voice of the Beehive tracks such as I Walk The Earth and Don’t Call Me Baby would keep us as enthusiastic as was feasible. When this Album – Let It Bee – was released in June ‘88, combining existing hits with new or lesser known songs, I bought it straight away.