A Sony CDP-101 CD player from 1982.
Compact discs, or CDs, are digital sound carriers. They were developed in the late 1970s in order to overcome deficiencies with LPs, which had been the primary product of record companies since the early 1950s. In 1978, Philips launched the Video Disc, which took advantage of laser technology by reading information from a disc without any physical contact: since vinyl degrades with each play from a stylus, this immediately offered a way to extend the life of the product. However, this was a failure, but the technology was reused and the first demonstration of the compact disc took place in March 1979.
In addition to the advantage of contactless play, CDs also offered constant pitch (as opposed to warped and off-centre vinyl pressings frequently encountered in mass-produced titles); an extended playing time (80 minutes, long enough to contain Beethoven's Choral Symphony); and a silent background instead of the hiss and rumble of many LPs. Gramophone magazine, normally a champion of improved technology, cautiously welcomed this development in sound as "somewhat Elysian: however, the full commercial availability of CDs in April 1982 following a joint production deal between Philips and Sony led to a boom in sales, despite their initial high prices. The first popular music CD to be pressed was ABBA's The Visitors, and Brothers In Arms by Dire Straits became the first CD to sell over a million copies.
The technical director of the audio division at Philips, Lou Otten, claimed, "From now on, the conventional record player is obsolete." Certainly, sales fell of vinyl albums and many predicted the format's demise: conversely, many are now making the same assertion for CDs, due to the success and ease of digital downloads.
Links to Peel[]
"Somebody was trying to tell me that CDs are better than vinyl because they don't have any surface noise. I said, 'Listen, mate, life has surface noise.'" [1]
It is well-known that Peel distrusted the 'magical' qualities of CDs and constantly strove to seek out vinyl pressings of albums for his collection in their stead. He made no bones about his prejudices in this area:
"During the week I wrote a fierce piece, a hysterical piece you might even say, an attack on the compact disc: you know, the usual prejudiced, unreasonable Luddite stuff. It was printed in a London paper, and I never got to see a copy of it, but there is a copy in the Radio 1 lift, so when this programme is over, I shall have to spend five minutes or so riding down in the lift, reading it to make sure they've got it all down right. I mention this because this is only the second compact disc to get into tonight's programme...compact discs tend to get heard last in the scheme of things at Peel Acres." [2]
One of his bugbears was that it was very easy to encounter playing problems if fingermarks appeared on the playing surface.
"I've just noticed a little sticker here which says, "Fingerprints on shiny side make naughty CD glide." Well, that's one of the reasons why we don't use CDs on this programme unless we've absolutely got to. I know it's a Luddite attitude, but I might as well stick with it." [3]
He even claimed that he had a patent cleaning device for "recalcitrant CDs...65% polyester, 35% cotton, that's what me trousers are made of." [4] John bought a CD player in 1984 but took two years to get it to work and did not go to great lengths to extend his personal collection:
"I've only got three compact discs: New Order, Joy Division and, rather surprisingly, the soundtrack for 'Amadeus', but there you are."[5]
Moreover, it took him six years from the invention of the format to get round to playing a CD on BFBS, and that only because the tracks he wanted to play were exclusive. [6] Rants against the new breed of music carrier were fairly commonplace:
"You know how compact discs can never go wrong: I mean, the technology is perfect, you know, everything is absolutely marvellous...well, this particular one turns out ot be an exception to the rule 'cos it kind of hops along rather than playing in the conventional manner. Also, you remember when compact discs first came out and everybody said, they're indestructible, you can do anything you like, smear them with mud, marmalade, doesn't matter, they'll still play. And of course there are now signs up in the BFBS studio saying, CDs can only be handled by a qualified doctor wearing fully protective clothing and that kind of stuff, and instructions on how to put them into the machinery: I think they're rubbish meself. I know this is not the prevailing thought, but it's what I feel." [7]
This intransigence was not shared by his colleagues Tommy Vance and Bob Harris, who took advantage of the digital sound to promote their respective shows as being "mainly on compact disc", a claim Peel was uncomfortable with. [8] Additionally, the major selling point of the product gave rise to one of John's most famous soundbites:
"I remain unconvinced by compact discs, I must admit. People say to me, "Ah, but you don't get any surface noise." But I quite like surface noise: I think that life has surface noise, y'know, and something about compact discs, life is somehow drained from them, and I'm always astonished by the fact that the programmes that Bob Harris does for BBC Radio One are always billed as, "With music mainly on compact disc," as though that somehow was a recommendation. I mean, if the music is muck, it doesn't matter whether it's on compact disc or whether it's pressed on tarmac, y'know, it's still muck. But anyway, there you are, I know I'm obviously in a minority on this." [9]
He was so opposed to them that when the Legendary Stardust Cowboy recorded a track titled 'I Hate CDs', Peel inevitably concurred. [10] During John's appearance on Desert Island Discs, he asserted:
"I shall never come to terms with compact discs, because they're not - people say 'sexy', which is a ludicrous term to use in this context - but they're unpleasant objects."
In the end, he was forced to come to terms with the technology, since new bands were increasingly sending him demos this way, and one advantage he grudgingly admitted was that otherwise unavailable bonus material was frequently included. The unheard pile of CDs at Peel Acres nearly outgrew that of vinyl by the end of his life.
References[]
- Wikipedia
- How the CD was developed (BBC)
- History of the CD (Philips)