Compact Disc Archives - Alan Cross' A Journal of Musical Things

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Retro fun: A BBC report on the introduction of the CD in 1983

November 17, 2022November 17, 2022 Alan Cross 0 Comments 1983, BBC, Compact Disc, EMI

Almost exactly 40 years ago, a new music format called the “compact disc” was being touted as the future of

close up of compact discs

Music History Music Industry Tech

40 years ago today–October 1, 1982–the first CD went on sale. Here’s an oral history of how it happened.

October 1, 2022October 4, 2022 Alan Cross 2 Comments CD, Compact Disc, Philips, Sony

The introduction of the compact disc brought the music industry out of a terrible post-disco recession but also created a

close up of compact discs

Does this weird simple hack make compact discs sound better?

September 11, 2022September 11, 2022 Alan Cross 3 Comments CD, Compact Disc, Shaving discs

I remember a period in the 90s when people swore that there was an insanely simple way of making any

close up of compact discs

Music History Tech

Here’s a 40th birthday salute to the compact disc

August 22, 2022August 22, 2022 Alan Cross 0 Comments 40th Anniversary, ABBA, Billy Joel, Compact Disc, Philips, Sony

[This was my weekly column for GlobalNews.ca. – AC] After more than a decade of work, building on an idea

Forty years ago this week, the first commercial-produced CD was made

August 18, 2022August 18, 2022 Alan Cross 0 Comments ABBA, CDs, Compact Disc, Philips, Sony, The Visitor

It was on August 17, 1982, when the first commercially-available compact disc rolled out of the Philips factory in Germany.

Music News AJMT

Random music news for Saturday, February 5, 2022

February 5, 2022February 5, 2022 Alan Cross 0 Comments Bored Ape, CDs, Compact Disc, Dave Grohl, Elton John, INXS, Joni Mitchell, Kenny G, Mumford & Sons, Snapchat, Spotify, Super Bowl, Tim Farris, Winston Marshall

Ad time for the Super Bowl is sold out. NBC got US$7 million per spot. And now, some free music

Ongoing History of New Music

Ongoing History Daily: The REAL inventor of the CD

October 28, 2021October 28, 2021 Alan Cross 0 Comments CD, Compact Disc, Inventors, Jim Russell, Philips, Sony

Have you ever heard the name Jim Russell? He’s an American scientist. The name doesn’t ring a bell? Russell is

Weekly survey: When was the last time you bought an actual compact disc?

June 28, 2021June 28, 2021 Alan Cross 6 Comments CDs, Compact Disc, Survey

The future of the company disc became a little more wobbly last week when it was announced that Lorde’s Solar

Lorde is doing her best to kill the compact disc

June 28, 2021June 28, 2021 Alan Cross 0 Comments CD, Compact Disc, Lorde, Solar Power

[This was my column for GlobalNews.ca. -AC] When the skews appeared for Lorde’s Solar Power album, her first record in

Ongoing History of New Music

The Ongoing History of New Music, episode 856: The rise and fall of the compact disc

May 10, 2019June 25, 2020 Alan Cross 0 Comments Alan Cross, Compact Disc, Ongoing History

On the afternoon of October 1, 1982, Sony introduced a new home stereo gizmo: the world’s first compact disc player.

Here’s an analysis of the future of the CD

September 27, 2018 Alan Cross 2 Comments CDs, Compact Disc

CD sales are down over 20% from this time year. Yes, it looks like a death spiral, but at some

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