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The tape with no label, and the song on it
A blank cassette from a crate, and the three minutes that made my week.
A taxi driver’s stack of tapes
Twenty cassettes on a dashboard, and the stories he told about each.
Cleaning a cassette before you press play
A cotton swab, a steady hand and ten slow minutes.
Reading a liner note when the print has faded
How I piece together names and years from what is left.
Three crates, one morning
A market alley, a lot of dust and one tape worth the trip.
Digitising on a kitchen table
My whole set-up, and how little of it you need.
Why I keep two players
One cheap, one good, and what each is for.
A wedding cassette from 1987
Forty minutes of songs, speeches and one very loud aunt.
The song everyone remembered differently
Three people, three versions, one tape that settled it.
Fixing a tape that wound itself in knots
A tiny screwdriver and the patience of a saint.
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Side B
One letter every Friday about an old cassette, how I found it and what is on it.
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