Do you remember the original Sony Walkman TPS-L2? Perhaps you or your older brother or sister owned one. Introduced to the world in 1979 by the Sony Corporation, the Walkman ushered in a new age of music appreciation. Music lovers could carry their music with them, anywhere, without the footprint of more social forms of portable music like the ‘Ghetto Blaster’, as the ‘Boom Boxes’ were known back then. Music had gone public and was literally in the ‘Ear’, –> insert giggles here <–.

The concept of the Sony Walkman was simple, ‘Shrink the size of a tape player, add headphones and sell it at an obscene price to maximize profits’. Publicly, music was on its way to becoming the domain of the individual and not the group. Walkman owners could now go anywhere and tune the world out while tuning the music in.

The Walkman was also a great medium to meeting new people. Public singing, usually the domain of the clinically insane, was now a common scene. Walkman owners often led the battle for public vocal or lip syncing expression, and were usually completely oblivious to the blank eyed stares from the older, less hip generation.

I can’t help wondering what would have happened if Sony used 8-Track instead, would the world be a different place today?