CD's are being phased out as early as 2012

it was only a matter of time and we knew it, think about how many CD stores have closed their doors over the last couple years, how many are where you live or even in the mall for that matter? I hardly remember the last time I went and purchased a physical CD. At the end of the day at this point, it's them losing money to press albums people are buying digitally.
 
I am nearly speechless. (Good thing I can type...) I almost don't know what to say. I guess I had no idea my youth was the golden age of the recorded disc- another one of those things you can only recognize in hind-sight, I suppose. I remember buying albums like Neil Diamond- Hot August Night, ELO's Out of The Blue, and Chicago 4- not just multiple discs, albums were literally "albums," that had "extras" like librettos, liner notes, posters, etc. I heard someone on NPR say it best, several years ago when CD's had supplanted vinyl- the album was an artifact, something you could hold in your hand, that had some heft and substance. You got an entire experience when you bought an album- you brought it home, called a good friend who you knew would like to hear it, and got him to rush over RIGHT NOW to listen to it with you.

Once he got there (Hurry up, HURRY UP... Man, what KEPT you??) You would remove the shrink wrap and reverently pulled the paper or acetate sleeve and disc from the cardboard jacket. You got a sense of the artist's stature with the label from looking at the sleeve- some artists' records were sleeved with an off-the-shelf sleeve, promoting the label or other artist on the label, but if the act was hot, they got a unique sleeve, designed for that particular album.

Refreshments/libations/drugs were usually handed out. Then, holding the disc by the edges ONLY, you would lift the dust cover of your turntable with your elbow (we never seemed to remember to do that before we had the album in our hands,) and gently guide the disc onto the turntable. You usually had time to turn the volume up a little more in sweet anticipation, and assume the "Is it live, or is it Memorex?" position on the couch. Then, the all-important "first listen" would take place. (Only the truly obsessive would record the album to either cassette or open-reel tape on the very first playing.) Most comments were brief, either spoken in the short time between songs or after the album was played, only occasionally during the songs- I remember my friend Dan Enslen saying, when we auditioned the first Dire Straits album, "That lead guitarist doesn't have things too much his own way, eh?" Mark who?

We often analyzed the most minute detail of the album- it was a given the songs were recorded in a particular order, the only mystery was what was the intent of the order- was it telling a longer story with several songs? Usually it seemed the songs most likely to be hits were in the first and last positions, but not always- we wondered if that was because the intended hits were not as hot as the label or artist thought they would be, or were they messin' with us, just to keep us on out toes? The afternoon or evening would be spent blissfully listening and talking- I got to know my friends much better over a new album and a cold beer or hot joint.

Eventually duties or other diversions would beckon, and the little party would wind down. Empties were collected, smouldering roaches and butts snubbed out, tapes were promised, friends would head out the door. Posters, if included, were often loaned out, as a sort of "Thank you" gift to the friend for dropping everything he was doing and coming right over to share the experience. When these impromptu parties took place after I was married, my then-wife and I would often start the album over, again, and screw each other's brains out with the stereo cracked up. We were never sure if it was the music or the drugs that made us so horny...

All that started getting lost when the CD gained the upper hand. Like I said, we had no idea we were living out the golden age of the recorded disc. The generation or half-generation before us bought and listened mostly to 45's, the generation before that had 78's- both formats that were paradigm-changing during their day, but they were "singles:" they had just ONE song per side. the 33 1/3 rpm album changed all that, and we were there- but we had no idea it would peak and fade during our lifetimes.

When CD's came on the scene, we were quite impressed- better sound, easier to play, bullet-proof and forever-lasting (or so we were told.) Some had librettos, but they had to be much smaller to fit in the jewel cases, and folded in quarters. Liner notes were either shortened or done away with altogether. And POSTERS?? Yeah, right- where the label gonna PUT them?

Now, downloads are, technologically, wonderful things- they cut costs, allow us to buy only the songs we want to listen to (even stealing the music is easier- do you have any idea how difficult it is to stuff a 12-inch disc down your pants and walk out of the store without getting caught?) They are even "greener" than both albums and CD's. But the whole psycho/social/"enhanced" experience is gone. "Records" have, if you will pardon the pun, come full-circle- we buy 'em by the ones, again.

Sigh. And stop bogart'ing that joint, my friend- pass it over to me.
 
someone posted that same article to headheritage.co.uk. four days ago.

the general consensus there is that it's not likely to happen for a few years still.
although 50% of us here in America choose to download our music, the rest of the world is far below that number. more like 15% in Europe and even less in Germany where there's still alot of music retail.

i tend to agree with them. record companies are not going to cut off a still-thriving revenue stream so quickly. what we probably will see is big retail chains getting alot smaller and eventually record buying being limited to smaller specialty shops. i still buy new vinyl (yep, they still make it) and buy alot of my music in shops like that anyways.

and lets not forget, there are still alot of albums out there that aren't even available for digital download at all.
 
IDO1957,
You do like stirring the possum don't you!
SteveB,
That's a familiar story. Rituals ingrained with the process and enjoyment. Sitting on floors or beds whilst still living at home, carton of cold beer, like minded friends, anticipation, clean stylus, volume turned up only after the stylus was in the groove, commentary saved for the end of side turn over etc.
Moving on from CD won't entirely happen for ages yet. People who like wav. quality sound won't buy downloads: particularly when MP3 quality is so poor. To my mind it's just itunes trying to flex its proprietry muscle & increase "market share". CDs are very cheap to manufacture & insanely so when compared to vinyl. The unit cost of digital music neatly bypasses the concept of the cost of the line to do the downloading and the download allowance of the ISP contract: stepping up the quality, to FLAC for example, would increase the storage & download costs significantly & there's not been a great takeup in FLAC enabled players so the industry would be forgoing the section of the market that likes music to sound good as well as be portable.
I still buy vinyl and CD & only download those things that are offered free (& either as FLAC or 320MP3s) or as a taste test for an album I'm considering buying. If I like it & it's available I buy the real thing on CD or plastic.
 
stevieb said:
I am nearly speechless. (Good thing I can type...) I almost don't know what to say. I guess I had no idea my youth was the golden age of the recorded disc- another one of those things you can only recognize in hind-sight, I suppose. I remember buying albums like Neil Diamond- Hot August Night, ELO's Out of The Blue, and Chicago 4- not just multiple discs, albums were literally "albums," that had "extras" like librettos, liner notes, posters, etc. I heard someone on NPR say it best, several years ago when CD's had supplanted vinyl- the album was an artifact, something you could hold in your hand, that had some heft and substance. You got an entire experience when you bought an album- you brought it home, called a good friend who you knew would like to hear it, and got him to rush over RIGHT NOW to listen to it with you.

Once he got there (Hurry up, HURRY UP... Man, what KEPT you??) You would remove the shrink wrap and reverently pulled the paper or acetate sleeve and disc from the cardboard jacket. You got a sense of the artist's stature with the label from looking at the sleeve- some artists' records were sleeved with an off-the-shelf sleeve, promoting the label or other artist on the label, but if the act was hot, they got a unique sleeve, designed for that particular album.

Refreshments/libations/drugs were usually handed out. Then, holding the disc by the edges ONLY, you would lift the dust cover of your turntable with your elbow (we never seemed to remember to do that before we had the album in our hands,) and gently guide the disc onto the turntable. You usually had time to turn the volume up a little more in sweet anticipation, and assume the "Is it live, or is it Memorex?" position on the couch. Then, the all-important "first listen" would take place. (Only the truly obsessive would record the album to either cassette or open-reel tape on the very first playing.) Most comments were brief, either spoken in the short time between songs or after the album was played, only occasionally during the songs- I remember my friend Dan Enslen saying, when we auditioned the first Dire Straits album, "That lead guitarist doesn't have things too much his own way, eh?" Mark who?

We often analyzed the most minute detail of the album- it was a given the songs were recorded in a particular order, the only mystery was what was the intent of the order- was it telling a longer story with several songs? Usually it seemed the songs most likely to be hits were in the first and last positions, but not always- we wondered if that was because the intended hits were not as hot as the label or artist thought they would be, or were they messin' with us, just to keep us on out toes? The afternoon or evening would be spent blissfully listening and talking- I got to know my friends much better over a new album and a cold beer or hot joint.

Eventually duties or other diversions would beckon, and the little party would wind down. Empties were collected, smouldering roaches and butts snubbed out, tapes were promised, friends would head out the door. Posters, if included, were often loaned out, as a sort of "Thank you" gift to the friend for dropping everything he was doing and coming right over to share the experience. When these impromptu parties took place after I was married, my then-wife and I would often start the album over, again, and screw each other's brains out with the stereo cracked up. We were never sure if it was the music or the drugs that made us so horny...

All that started getting lost when the CD gained the upper hand. Like I said, we had no idea we were living out the golden age of the recorded disc. The generation or half-generation before us bought and listened mostly to 45's, the generation before that had 78's- both formats that were paradigm-changing during their day, but they were "singles:" they had just ONE song per side. the 33 1/3 rpm album changed all that, and we were there- but we had no idea it would peak and fade during our lifetimes.

When CD's came on the scene, we were quite impressed- better sound, easier to play, bullet-proof and forever-lasting (or so we were told.) Some had librettos, but they had to be much smaller to fit in the jewel cases, and folded in quarters. Liner notes were either shortened or done away with altogether. And POSTERS?? Yeah, right- where the label gonna PUT them?

Now, downloads are, technologically, wonderful things- they cut costs, allow us to buy only the songs we want to listen to (even stealing the music is easier- do you have any idea how difficult it is to stuff a 12-inch disc down your pants and walk out of the store without getting caught?) They are even "greener" than both albums and CD's. But the whole psycho/social/"enhanced" experience is gone. "Records" have, if you will pardon the pun, come full-circle- we buy 'em by the ones, again.

Sigh. And stop bogart'ing that joint, my friend- pass it over to me.
Click to expand...

Holy shit. Summary please.
 
I haven't bought CDs since the late 90s to be honest, but when I'm given one it always gets lost somewhere. My buddy collects records and is so proud of his rare and hard to find classic death metal albums. I wish I had what it takes to be a collector, but I just can't keep something sitting on a shelf taking up space. I'll enjoy my guitar collection just fine though :D
 
I still have my first ever CD - Sex Pistols - Never Mind the Bollocks. bought it in 1988. It's very quiet. :D
 
I also have my first ever CD. Bought it in 1991. It's "Freedom's lament"`callinan.jpgby Callinan~Flynn. I had really gotten into Irish folk~rock that year and in Tower records free mag, I saw this interesting record review that described it as "Irish folk played on rock instruments". Having fallen in love with the music of Horslips and Spud, I was intrigued, especially as it had been recorded in 1972. I'd resisted buying CDs for 8 years and in '91, vinyl was still the kingpin when it came to recordings. But the tide was turning.......
Anyway, I went looking for the vinyl but it had long been deleted {apparently, only 200 copies had been pressed !} and the cheapest I saw it was £400 !
So I bought the CD in Oxford Street for a tenner. Great album.
Symptom of the download age though, you can download it for free on a blog with the approval of Dave Callinan.
The phasing out of CDs isn't that drastic. I bought loads of Lps in 91 at Tower. When I went back there a little while later, there were none and the staff told me that vinyl was phased out. Then ten years later, demand brought vinyl back, albeit in limited quantities. Now, the market is heading in the download direction.
But human beings can be naturally pessimistic and often we're so short sighted. We love a dark dramatic explosion with which to get our knickers in a twist. You can still buy vinyl. You'll be able to buy CDs for a while yet. And whatever the future holds, there'll be something to record it on and play it back on. The rapid changes in technology and life over the last 25 or so have taught me at least, that you can't stay still anymore. Well, you can, but you have to at least keep abreast of what's happening.
 
The new medium will not rival live music any more than those goofy looking cylinders did back in the day. Sousa was right; all you need is a good imagination, something to write with, a baton, and a band. He was on a stamp by 1940 with a whole sling of hits. When the clouds settle in you won't actually need to own all those zeros and ones now will you?

Best,

Dahl
 
dahlbaker said:
The new medium will not rival live music any more than those goofy looking cylinders did back in the day. Sousa was right; all you need is a good imagination, something to write with, a baton, and a band. He was on a stamp by 1940 with a whole sling of hits.
Click to expand...
That sounds like it was written in 1941 !
The opposite is true, live music does not, can not and arguably in the last 60 years never has rivalled recordings. Just by a process of sheer logistics. How many times is anyone going to see a particular artist/band ? I'm not saying live music ain't great, not at all. But something you can listen to in your home/car/bath/the bus/train/aeroplane/ in jail/at work/morning/afternoon/night/loud/quiet/via speakers or phones/ while working/making love/writing/typing/surfing/riding/DIY~ing/cooking/washing up/swimming/etc, etc, etc at your own leisure has live music battered and beat forever and a day.
Sorry !
 
yeah .... and vinyl records are no more either.
Oh wait ....... I can still get around lots and lots of releases on vinyl.

The majors might not be doing CDs but for popular titles someone will. A small company won't care that they might only sell 50,000 of something. That's not worth doing for the majors but a small company can make a decent living off of it.

There's lots of vinyl releases that might only sell in the tens of thousands and a lot of small companies that do ok with those numbers.
It'll be the same way with CDs.
 
I never was that enamored with the "quality" of CD. Vinyl sounded just fine to me. For me, the coolest thing about a CD was effortlessly skipping from song to song or jumping back to the beginning of a song for a replay. No rewinding or skipping needles. Brilliant.
 
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