Bob Schwartz

Everything old is new again?

Not everything. Mostly we don’t keep horses and carriages in our garages. Though many are still using car(riage) engines, a technology more than a century old.

As someone who grew up on vinyl records but has long embraced the evolution of digital audio, it was interesting to watch vinyl become a popular format again, along with the record players for it. Now I hear that audio CDs are also regaining popularity.

Above is an ad from 1977 for the Columbia House record club. Record club subscriptions from major companies like Columbia and RCA were popular, especially with young people. The inducement was an initial bunch of records for a ridiculously low price—maybe 99 cents—followed by regular monthly shipments that would keep coming at higher prices, whether you wanted them or not.

The ad above educated me about something I didn’t realize. I knew you could choose from vinyl, eight-track or cassettes. But I never knew that as late as 1977, or ever, you could order a reel-to-reel tape of an album. In one way I shouldn’t be surprised, because in the 1960s and even in the 1970s, some audio aficionados considered reel-to-reel the ultimate audio experience. Interestingly, some audio experts continue to consider vinyl truer audio than digital.

This all makes me wonder if any of the other formats will enjoy a renaissance. Will we see eight-track and cassette players popular again, installed in our still gas-guzzling cars? If everything old is new again, just maybe.

© 2026 Bob Schwartz