Cassette single
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A cassette single (also known as a "cassingle") is a music single in the form of a Compact Cassette. The format was introduced in the 1980s, when vinyl record album sales were declining in favor of cassette recordings; the cassette single was introduced to replace the 45 record in a similar way.
Originally, most cassette singles were released in a cardboard sleeve that slipped over the outside of the release. This was then shrink wrapped in plastic. As the cassette maxi-single was released, more intricate packaging was incorporated that looked similar to the packaging of a regular cassette release. These were placed in regular plastic cassette cases with a paper/cardstock insert. Unlike a full-length cassette album, these were generally only one two-sided inlay instead of a fold-out.
Cassette singles never eclipsed vinyl to the same extent as cassette albums had. They were popular during the 1990s, as record companies promoted their use to the detriment of the more expensive to produce vinyl singles.[citation needed] The cassette reached a high level of popularity, due to the ubiquity of mobile devices such as the Sony Walkman, the boombox and car audio cassette players.
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[edit] Cassingles around the world
[edit] Australia
In Australia, cassette singles were popular until the late 1990s. Australian cassette singles suffered from a lack of packaging and design when compared to their UK or European counterparts. Record companies such as Virgin and EMI would use a standard design for all releases, which featured a square copy of the vinyl artwork on the cover and standard typography and record company logos on the inlay card. Rear cover artwork was not used.
[edit] United Kingdom
In the UK, after the introduction of compact disc singles, cassette singles were retained as a low-cost alternative, sold alongside the compact disc version, but at a somewhat lower price (often £2.29 compared to £3.99 for the CD), and often with fewer "bonus" tracks. By the end of the 1990s, many forms of prerecorded audio cassettes were being phased out, although cassingles were still stocked by most retailers until 2003.
[edit] United States
Bryan Adams' "Heat of the Night" was released as a "cassingle" on March 13, 1987, making it the first commercially released cassette single in the U.S.
