THE QUEEN 8-TRACK PAGE IS NOW ONLINE!

I know everyone is absolutely thrilled :)

http://www.JamesAlanPatterson.com/8tracks.html

I'll probably try to make it prettier eventually but thought I'd go ahead and put it online. Let me know if you find typos or can donate additional info!

Wow! This rules!

I was wondering if there was a page with Queen 8 tracks :D

Great page! Excellent!

*sniff* It reminds me of my old 8 track player, and my Sesame Street Does Disco 8 track *sniff*

I love it! So cool to see these, and how they divided the tracks among the programs. Thanks for putting this up, and thanks to Bullwinkle for providing some of the info!

The picture of the unboxed Jazz US release is from my tape :-)
I brought it on eBay recently :)

Wow! I have the Night at the Opera 8 track in my attic somewhere......I haven't seen those in years!

very nice page! It was well time!

BTW - Roger´s Fun In Space was also released in this format in the USA (Elektra 5T-8522).

Now I'm gonna make a fool of myself.

Whatta hell is an 8-track?!?

An 8-track cartridge contains a length of 1/4 inch tape. The ends of the tape are connected by a metal foil splice, thus forming a loop. The tape itself is divided along its length into 8 channels, or tracks (hence the name). The playback head plays 2 of these tracks at a time - 4 programs in stereo. Inside the cartridge, the tape is wound around a central hub, or spool. Tape pulls out from the center of the spool. It moves to the top of the cartridge, where it connects with the playback head in the player through an opening at the top of the cartridge. A pressure pad in the cartridge presses the tape up against the playback head. The capstan (part of the player) is spun by the player's motor. As the capstan spins, it rolls the tape against the pinch roller in the cartridge. The capstan and the pinch roller move the tape along its path at 3 and 3/4 inches per second. The tape finally loops back to the central hub, where it rewraps around the outside of the spool. When the entire length of tape has gone through this loop, the metal foil splice in the tape passes by a solenoid sensing coil which is positioned right next to the playback head in the player. This moves the playback head along the width of the tape, and it starts to play a new program (remember, the tape contains 8 tracks, only 2 of which are supposed to be played at once).
http://www.8trackheaven.com/faq.html

http://www.8trackheaven.com

So, since each of the 4 stereo programs had to be of equal length and they didn't want a bunch of silence between programs, songs were often shifted around or divided into two, as you can see by examining the track lists.

Sometimes listeners were rewarded with longer, unique versions too. There's a Rolling Stones tape with a longer version of 'Missing You', and a Beatles tape with one of the songs slightly extended too.

Even now when I hear a song that I played on 8 track I feel wehre it should fade out and click to the next track. How far we've come! Oh, and don't feel bad, Whisperer, when cd's first came out I kept trying to figure out how to rewind!

LOL

I still hear the fade outs too ...

I remember cutting pasting together computer punch cards as a shim to force the cartridge to the right and slightly harder against against the capstan so the 8-track would play properly without warbling. The 8-tracks sure wore out in a hurry. I defected to vinyl before Flash Gordon came out.

Thanks for the acknowlegement on the two little informational tidbits I "contributed" to your site.

Hey thanks for the compliments everyone...glad to see I wasn't the only one interested in this :) I'll have to keep checking for an 8-track of "Fun In Space". Also has anyone ever seen an 8-track of "The Works" or "Mr. Bad Guy"? I haven't, but wouldn't be surprised if they exist.

Whisperer: The *really* annoying part about 8-tracks was that the track changes during songs weren't "seamless" like they are with CDs. Instead the song usually faded-out, then you heard the 8-track player make a loud "CLUNK!" as it changed tracks, then the song faded up again :) Cassettes hadn't been perfected yet, so 8-tracks were the best available format for portable/car use.

About the only way to change spots in a tape was to change between the four tracks (aka "programs"). If you were five minutes into track 1, for example, you could press a button to switch to track 2, 3, or 4, but you would also be five minutes into that track. You couldn't rewind, but some players allowed you to fast-forward at least.

If anyone has some extra time and could tell me where the fade-outs/fade-ups were in the songs, I'd be glad to add that info too.

Thanks for explaining!

Now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know, now I know.

:-)

(Taken from the most annoying song part ever)