The Ron Kane Files

Writing About Music

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

July, 1980


3-5-08 July 1980

THE DAMNED, GRUPPO SPORTIVO, JACQUES PLAFOND, CRISTINA, THE BIRTHDAY PARTY, DALEK I, AARDVARK, HUMAN HANDS, PETER HAMMILL, THE ROLLING STONES

MEIKE TOUW’S TUTTI FRUTTI, ARTURO STALTERI, JOHN OTWAY & WILD WILLY BARRETT, THE CURE, KATE BUSH, NEW MUSIK, JOE JACKSON, THE BUDDY ODOR STOP (aka Gruppo Sportivo), LUCIO BATTISTI, THE BUGGLES, MI-SEX, THE HUMAN LEAGUE

I made this C-90 (Type II) cassette in July, 1980 – looks like I was pretty ‘on target’ – nothing here I am ashamed of. Some favorite artists, and some ‘new music’. The real ‘oldie’ here is Aardvark, whose sole 1970 LP I’d probably recently obtained in ’80. Everything else was ‘current’.

I had worked with Human Hands, so that’s where that came from (I bet it was a track that I recorded / produced). Probably, whatever track this is, it’s found on their “Bouncing To Disk” collection CD.

Gruppo Sportivo, Jacques Plafond (his sole LP?), Meike Touw’s Tutti Frutti, and The Buddy Odor Stop are Dutch artists – I suspect I had just visited Holland that summer.

Aardvark, The Damned, Dalek I, Peter Hammill. The Rolling Stones, Otway & Barett, The Cure, Kate Bush, New Musik, Joe Jackson. The Buggles and The Human League are British artists. Looks like I was working that side of the street in the summer of 1980.

Leaving Human Hands and Cristina (U.S.), The Birthday Party (Australian), Arturo Stalteri and Lucio Battisti (Italian) and Mi-Sex (New Zealand). Had my 7 years of hard-core Kiwi fandom not yet fully bloomed? Frankly, I am surprised that there is not more Kiwi content here.

Aardvark, Peter Hammill and Arturo Stalteri are clearly ‘progressive rock’, the rest, ‘new wave’ in orientation. I think Dalek I is the only artist here that was totally ‘new to me’.

Pretty cool that I can look back on a tape made nearly 28 years ago, and see my present taste in music fully formed. It would be a pleasure to re-construct this cassette as an MD or CD-R. I’d have to play the cassette to see exactly which tracks I used – but even that would be a pleasure.

This cassette would’ve been made right before I turned 22 years old. I will become 50 years of age next August. Looks like I have been me for at least 28 years. I suspect I have been me for even longer than that. I wonder how far back I could go before the monthly cassettes get really embarrassing?

5 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ron - do you really stick magnetic media on a scanner? Not too swift, m'friend! The magnets in the stepping motor are small, but I wouldn't take the chance of it demagnetizing the tape.

12:00 PM  
Blogger Ron Kane said...

Won't do it again.

Any thoughts on the content of this C-90?

6:27 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Only that I probably have over half of the contents and therefore would love it! I might have said that I didn't make too many tapes for myself but I was often called upon to make them for others. Often was the time when a casual acquaintance would give me a chrome C-90 and ask me to "fill 'er up."

5:24 AM  
Blogger Ron Kane said...

I am familiar with this scenario. I have one friend who used to borrow my 'monthly' music tapes - in order to make his own 'best of'.

So, Jim-san - were you 'there' by July, 1980? Or did it take longer where you were?

7:03 AM  
Blogger Brian Ware said...

In mid-1980 I was right on the cusp. Just starting to warm up to new wave. I did not get Devo, B-52s, early Talking Heads, etc in their early days. I took a pass on the whole U.K. late 70s punk thing, so I totally missed early XTC, Magazine, and Ultravox as well. I didn't have cable so no MTV. And of course it would be a few more years before I met you and Mr. Donato. Finally found Trouser Press magazine. I found good used record stores with cheap promo bins. Once I got on board it came fast and furious - fantastic new groups almost every week!! Man, those were the days...

10:26 PM  

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