Happy Birthday, 33 1/3
This post is just for Mark Saleski.
On this day in 1948, Columbia Records introduced its 33 1/3 LP format. That format proved more successful than Mini Disc, Betamax, or SACD, but it eventually gave way to cassettes tapes and CDs.
Audiophiles swear by the superiority of vinyl, and they probably have a point. To my knowledge, we’ve yet to perfect a medium capable of delivering the warmth of vinyl and the precision of digital. Warmth and precision both have their place in the sonic spectrum, but it seems impossible to present one without sacrificing the other at this point in technology.
It’s hard to overstate how important the 33 1/3 format was to popular music. The limitations imposed by and the new frontiers created by the LP have had a profound impact on our concept of popular music. This format played a huge role in the emergence of the album as an art form, and so much of what is heard today is possible because of that quantum leap forward. The word “record” continues to be a part of the musical lexicon and records have lived on as a niche product.
Happy Birthday, 33 1/3!
Filed under: Tags: Musical Musings and Random Ramblings
woo woo!!!