Music Sound

Cassette single

A cassette single (also known as a "cassingle") is a music single in the form of a compact audio cassette. The format was introduced in the 1980s, when vinyl record album sales were declining in favour of cassette recordings; the cassette single was introduced to replace the 45 record in a similar way.

Bryan Adams' "Heat of the Night" was released as a "cassingle" on March 13, 1987, making it the first commercially released cassette single in the U.S.

Originally, cassette singles were released in a cardboard sleeve that slipped over the outside of the release. This was then shrink wrapped in plastic. As the cassette maxi-single was released, more intricate packaging was incorporated that looked similar to the packaging of a regular cassette release. These were placed in regular plastic cassette cases with a paper/cardstock insert. Unlike a full-length cassette album, these were generally only one two-sided flap instead of a fold-out.

Cassette singles never eclipsed vinyl to the same extent as cassette albums had. They were popular mainly in the 1980s, owing to the popularity of mobile devices such as the Walkman or car audio cassette players; likewise they were outmoded by the advent of the compact disc. Along with Cassette albums and Vinyl records, they have since become a staple merchandise of car boot and garage sales.

In the UK, cassette singles were at their commercial peak during the 1990s. They were typically sold alongside the compact disc version, but at a somewhat lower price, and often with fewer "bonus" tracks. Their decline there broadly corresponded with the downturn of the pre-recorded cassette market in general.

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Music Sound, v. 2.0, by MultiMedia

This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.