When the first compact disc came off the line in Hanover in the summer of 1982 � either a Stauss symphony or The Visitor by Abba (no one seems to remember) � Germany was still divided in two. So were our choices when it came to recorded music. Some preferred the cassette, which had been introduced 18 years earlier and was enjoying a boom, thanks to a new thing called the Sony Walkman. But most people stuck with the vinyl record.
The 331/3 RPM LP was introduced by Columbia Records on June 21, 1948. RCA � intent on launching a Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD-type format war � countered the following February with the 7-inch single. Together, they reigned as the kings of the formats until that Strauss (or Abba) CD was pressed more than three decades later. Pre-recorded cassettes disappeared. Singles and LPs were pushed to the back walls where their rack space shrunk to almost nothing.
Meanwhile, the music industry became wildly profitable as people dumped their vinyl and re-purchased their collections on CD. Anyone remember HMV�s no-hassle CD return policy? Or their �buy 10 and get one free� loyalty card? (Really!)
But now it�s the compact disc�s turn to fade away. Many people will say it was doomed by the Internet and downloading but the truth is the CD began to die the moment that Strauss (or Abba) CD was made back in 1982. Once there was an unprotected digital format that could be flawlessly and endlessly copied, its fate was sealed. CD burners began to appear as standard equipment in computers in the 1990s � well, who hasn�t ripped and burned a custom CD? And once you had a perfect digital copy in your machine, all we needed was something like Napster to get us sharing our music with people we didn�t know.
Today, the world�s largest music retailer is iTunes while the former No. 1, Wal-Mart, has signalled that it will be stocking fewer CDs. A recent report predicts that digital downloads will blow past CDs by sometime in 2010. Over the next three years, the Canadian market for CDs will drop by 50 per cent. That�s more than $250 million.
And as for vinyl records? Sales are up 36 per cent this year. Go figure.
By the way, thanks for your input on last week�s column on new musical terms. Read what people suggested in my Music Geek blog today at www.ongoinghistory.com.
� The Ongoing History of New Music can be heard on stations across Canada. Read the Music Geek blog at www.ongoinghistory.com
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