TDK - 1980s radio ad

Love this. A commercial advertising jingle which takes us back to the days when the Radio Times was printed on silly paper; Morecambe and Wise ruled; and Ed Stewart broadcast on Christmas mornings. Most importantly, it takes us back directly to the days of audio and video cassettes. Complicated plastic boxes laced with tape on which to deposit memories. One could buy the cheap ASDA versions, or these much better TDK ones.

The sight of an audio cassette excites a generation even now. Would it be a C60, C90 or C120? The latter could cram a whole Top 20 on it, but it was frail and could die without warning. The pause button allowed us to record the bits in between records at the flick of a switch; and we'd assemble hours of 'bits of radio'. A clip here, a favourite presenter there, spiced with a great jingle with the beginning cut off. Cassette boxes would be neatly designed and labelled with graphic enthusiasm.

One could just about edit on a tape cassette, if the operation was conducted with forensic care, but it was a risky business and the long term survival rate after the operation was tragically low.

We all have bags of old cassettes, which can still just about play, if a cassette player is still available, but as the tape disintegrates, our fond childhood recordings sound as if played through a sock. Nevertheless, we remember the exact order of the cassette contents effortlessly.