iTunes Introduces Digital 45’s

digital45It may be hard for some of you to remember, but back in the day (or in your parents day for some of our younger readers) we didn’t buy our music on iTunes.  We didn’t order a CD on Amazon, and we didn’t mark it for purchase on our satellite radios.  We used to tie up our sneakers, head downtown, and visit the local record shop.

There was something magical about it.  The small of the vinyl and cardboard.  Grabbing a record by the edges so as not to scratch it.  Dropping the needle.  And of course, picking up a 45 in anticipation of an albums release.  Now Apple wants to recreate this experience with Digital 45’s, virtual reproductions of classic singles on the iTunes Store.

At a glance, this whole thing might sound like a marketing ploy to simply bundle songs together at a discounted price, and should they begin to clutter the Digital 45 Store with new albums together it would be an easy argument to make.  As it stands now though, the Digital 45 Store is offering up reproductions of actual 45’s, complete with the original sleeve art and matching B-side.

45-1 45-2

In the cases where sleeve art isn’t available, they’ve opted to show the label art from the center of the disc on a vinyl background.  It’s a great look, one that some will actually prefer to the sleeve art.  For those who missed the heydey of 45’s and later, CD singles, the real highlight to these releases always lay in the B-side, which usually featured a song not available on the album.  Adding B-sides to the iTunes catalogue should seriously satisfy the needs of music fans who think they’ve heard everything from their favorite artists.

Click here to check out everything that is currently offered on the Digital 45 Store.

Comments

6 Responses to “iTunes Introduces Digital 45’s”

  1. Matthew McCullough on July 16th, 2009 9:28 am

    Dear Author:

    When correct grammar and the Apple logo for Digital 45s that you show above do not contain an inappropriate apostrophe, why do you feel the need to place ones in your title and throughout the article? It is not a possessive. 45s do not own anything. http://u2019.blogspot.com/

  2. slonkak on July 16th, 2009 10:48 am

    Dear Matthew McCullough,

    When pluralizing a proper noun that is comprised of numeric characters, an apostrophe is used to provide clarity. Apostrophes do not always imply possession. Both ways are correct.

  3. CS on July 18th, 2009 7:40 am

    So has the actual sound of these 45s been preserved? All the wonderful idiosyncracies ?

  4. Rufus Driscoll on July 21st, 2009 7:34 pm

    To be honest Matthew’s just being touchy but Slonkak… you’re annoyingly wrong. Don’t correct someone if they’re right and don’t correct someone’s grammar if you’re on a website for mac applications!!!

    But yeah… I miss the day where you’d look in a shop for music to actually buy then and not to go home and download them =]

  5. Val Camarena on July 28th, 2009 1:37 pm

    sorry to be mr. picky but you guys put in there “the small of the vinyl” instead of smell. i know you think this is stupid but just keep an eye out for mistakes. this is a great website, try not to make little errors like that.

  6. Google Sniper bonus on November 16th, 2009 12:12 pm

    Hey nice, I didn’t know Apple was into vinyl! I have quite a few oldies and gosh I’d love to have the MJ one you put up!

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