In 1980 there was no internet as we know it today.
The PC was introduced in 1981 and in that same year, we listened to our music on turntables and tape decks. Vinyl, tape and the inherent limitations of their mediums came to be known as analog and were all we had to reproduce our music.
The best analog recording mediums were never capable of reproducing the full dynamic range of an orchestra or a live band. Analog was flawed, restricted and limited. And we knew it.
But analog also had an advantage. It sounded like music. We tolerated its limitations, its wows, its flutters, its ticks, its pops, its warps, because it sounded right.
No, it wasn't perfect. In fact, far from it. But we could close our eyes and be transported to another place through the music. A cello sounded like a cello. A violin like it's namesake.
No wonder that in 1982, when Sony and Philips announced they had achieved audio perfection they called "Perfect Sound Forever", music lovers the world over rejoiced in anticipation of great things to come. No longer would we have to tolerate all of analog's limitations. It would be a new world. It would be contained on a compact silvery disc. A miracle.
Imagine our disappointment when we were so filled with expectations and high hopes of getting even closer to the music.
Just imagine.
