I had to turn it up and just sing along. Loverboy’s “Working for the Weekend” was on. I had this vivid image of red vinyl pants in my mind and while I’ll never win any awards for singing, I knew every one of the words. This song was very popular when I was in high school. I never had really decent looking cars, but I always had some type of stereo that I could play music on. Even if that meant a boombox on the dash run by D batteries.
The first car I drove had an 8 track deck in it. I know I am absolutely dating myself but I really do not care. The 8 tracks I personally bought with my own money were Journey “Escape”, AC-DC “For Those About to Rock We Salute You”, one from KISS and one other that I cannot remember now. I can remember I played these so much I wore them out. You remember, that sickening crunchy crinkly noise the tape made as it got stuck in the tape deck. If you didn’t act quick enough it was a goner and you could never listen to it again. Or you had to tape it where it was torn, careful to make it exactly the same size only to hear a lapse with no sound as that part fed through the machine.
So the next car I drove had a stylish cassette deck in it. Now I was able to not only purchase cassette tapes, but I could record my own music off the AM radio. If I was lucky, I could carefully wait by the radio, praying the dj would shut up before the song started where the recording was all music and no talking. That did not occur often. I also recorded from vinyl records as well which was a painfully slow process to get it recorded just right without a lot of background or excessive noise.
I still have a ton of those cassette tapes. I even have a player that can still play them. Sad but true! It’s still really good music but still I cringe when that sickening crinkly noise occurs and I rush over to the tape deck to pull out the cassette as ribbons of brown shiny tape dangle. Once it’s all disengaged from the machine carefully, then you gotta get a pencil to roll it all back up very patiently. Such was the life we lived.
There is a lot of music that transports me back to the days when life was so much simpler. When all I had to worry about was the sickening crunch of the tape being munched by the tape deck. Where I and my friends could ride around in my car on the drag on a Friday night with the music blaring, bopping back and forth and singing at the top of our lungs.
What songs instantly transport you back in time? I have many that all have significance, and I find that I always remember most if not all the words to them. I can’t remember a lot of other things it seems as I age, but this never changes. Try to stop and sing the music sometime! It’s good for the soul!!
Kathie Hitt
Email: kathiehitt@yahoo.com
You had a tape deck in 1981? I was pretty sure they died around 1975, when cassettes took over the realm...
ReplyDeleteMy tape deck was a Hammond Organ (Gibbs) original from 1970 (custom installed). By 1975, cassettes were options in vehicles...
But, it was nice remembering the music (as you can see, I remember the years for some of those tunes...)
It is nice remembering the music and I love the way you know the dates. And yes I had a deck in a not so pretty car. My first cars tended to be whatever ran or they could get running out of the oilfield yard my grandfather owned. Several of them had decks installed. As to what type it was, that I have no clue. The one in my Mom's Ford van (think top of the line fancy schmancy velour seats) had an 8 track player in it that was really neat. She still has one in her home I think that works. Thanks for contributing!! :)
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