Capitol "Touch-Me" Tape Packaging (and Capitol "Browser Boxes")*

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by colinu, Sep 3, 2013.

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  1. colinu

    colinu I'm not lazy, I'm energy saving! Thread Starter

    I recently came across an ebay posting for an ad sheet extracted from a Billboard Magazine. Does anyone recall these, or have any samples?
    !CCdf+e!EGk~$(KGrHqR,!l4Ez+39Tr4OBNLMgwJcT!~~_12.JPG
     
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  2. Chris DeVoe

    Chris DeVoe RIP Vickie Mapes Williams (aka Equipoise)

    Never saw that. A cassette long-box. Huh.
     
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  3. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
    Looks like they had both 8-track and cassette long box packaging.

    I am guessing the Beatles or Beach Boys or McCartney or Pink Floyd in sealed packaging they would go for a very pretty penny.

    I can't recall EVER seeing those at retail...

    Would love to see some detailed photos.

    A search of the Web for "Capitol" and "Touch-Me" yields nothing...
     
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  4. MLutthans

    MLutthans That's my spaghetti, Chewbacca! Staff

    Well, Capitol's LP browser boxes revolutionized self-serve record shopping. Guess they thought they could do it with cassettes??
     
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  5. Chris DeVoe

    Chris DeVoe RIP Vickie Mapes Williams (aka Equipoise)

    I think the reason it never caught on is right there in the ad - "exclusive". Long-boxes for CDs weren't "exclusive" and retailers didn't need two different types of racks for Columbia product and everyone else.

    Yep, same bunch of geniuses at the record labels.
     
  6. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
    Well, the idea was that the tapes could be dumped in the same browser bins as vinyl LPs. Same idea, exactly, behind the long boxes on the original CDs. You didn't need new racks.

    But your point is good: It was pointless to commingle formats if you could only do it for a few hit titles from one label.
     
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  7. Agent57

    Agent57 Marshall will buoy, but Fender control

    Location:
    PA
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  8. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
  9. colinu

    colinu I'm not lazy, I'm energy saving! Thread Starter

    The Helen Reddy title (Ear Candy) was released in 1977, so I am pretty sure this is when the packaging would have been introduced.

    BTW, Capitol-EMI in Canada tried packaging cassettes in boxes that were about the same dimensions as those for a 7 inch open reel tape. There were full color graphics on the front(of course) and back, as well as on the cassette holder that slid in he bottom of the box. This was around 1980.
     
  10. JamieC

    JamieC Senior Member

    Location:
    Detroit Mi USA
    These had a hook at the top to hang on pegs. That was the deal.
     
  11. Steve Douglas

    Steve Douglas Forum Resident

    Location:
    London, England
    What I wouldn't give for that Capitol wooden box in the ad, looks lovely! Sure would be nice to keep all my Sinatra LPs in (well, I'd probably need more than one)...
     
  12. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    As found with the CD later on, it was wasted space and wasted paper.
     
  13. colinu

    colinu I'm not lazy, I'm energy saving! Thread Starter

    The goal of the extra packaging was "loss reduction". I agree it was a waste of paper. I would still like to see it up close.
     
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  14. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
    Loss reduction while allow the customer to hand browse the items. The whole concept of "touch me" was that at that time, most stores kept cassettes in locked cabinets and/or behind the shelf and the customer had to ask to buy them. Packaging that put them in the browser bins actually made some sense.

    Remember that this was before the metal sensor strips that were used later when CDs longboxes went away.
     
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  15. MLutthans

    MLutthans That's my spaghetti, Chewbacca! Staff

    (Yet another pointlessly closed thread reopened.)

    !CCdf+e!EGk~$(KGrHqR,!l4Ez+39Tr4OBNLMgwJcT!~~_12.JPG
    See that box on the left, with the Capitol logo on the front? That appears to be a later-vintage "Capitol Browser Box." These were the very first self-serve displays for record stores, dating back to, I think, the 1950s, and they revolutionized the LP retailing biz, moving records from behind the counter to in front of the counter.
    For Steve Douglas and for my Sinatra e-pal @paulmock, a quick story, with photos:

    When I was 15 years old, I began working at Carousel Music, 2926 Colby Ave., Everett, WA. I had already taken private trumpet lessons there for years, and was on very good terms with the owner and manager. Right around the same time, one of my best friends from back in 6th grade, Erica (we played 1st and 2nd chair trumpet in school band for years) also began working there, and we continued working there off-and-on well into adulthood, until the owners finally closed up shop in, I think, about 1994.

    Behind the counter, we had this weird wooden box with a Capitol Records logo on the front, and it was used as a place to stash special-order sheet music awaiting customer pickup. I always thought it was a very cool box (loved the logo), but when the store closed, for some reason, I never thought to ask if I could have it.

    Well, zoom ahead 23 years. About two months ago, I had lunch with Erica, and somehow we wound up on the topic of that old Capitol Records box, and I said something like, "You know, that's the one thing that I wish I could have snagged from Carousel Music when it closed up," and much to my surprise, Erica said, "Oh, I've got that at my house -- you can have it!"

    :faint:

    Tonight, my wife and I went to Erica's daughter's graduation party, had a great time, and even though the party was for Lydia, I got to walk out with a very cool gift -- a Capitol Browser Box!

    Here it is:
    CapitolBroswerBoxSHTV1.jpg CapitolBrowserBoxSHTV2.jpg CapitolBrowserBoxSHTV3.jpg CapitolBrowserBoxSHTV4.jpg
    ....and here's a video:
     
    Last edited: Jun 27, 2017
  16. jimac51

    jimac51 A mythical beast.

    Location:
    Allentown,pa.
    Those peggable cards to hold cassettes were used extensively by Disney and others for kiddie product. Tapes could be displayed alongside records,letting the customer decide at point of sale. Toy stores and toy sections inside mass merchandise stores could display product bursting with graphics,like a board game or a puzzle,right in the toy section. When a kid got their hands on something like this and walked around the store,chances were that it rung up at the register. Theft? Smart merchants found out years ago that stuff locked up or under glass kills sales. Also,once displayed,no need for the paid help to get involved. Let the customer hold it alone, on their own time proved much better even with the possibility of theft. Tapes had the same markup as vinyl,which,at the time,was pretty good(Later on, CDs would not have such a good deal for the merchant.)
     
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  17. JohnO

    JohnO Senior Member

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    I do remember the long box for cassettes in stores briefly. I never bought one full price, but I bought a few at a thrift shop (25 cents each sealed, what the heck, and I never bought recorded cassettes except at thrift shops or as cutouts), and promptly threw away those cassette long boxes [​IMG]

    For a brief time c.1998, CBS did a run of kiddie market CDs on peggable blister pack cards.
    I know this only because of this release, Gene Autry - Always Your Pal, released (it says here) March 4, 1998.
    Gene Autry - Always Your Pal, Gene Autry
    It was also released as a standard CD. Two versions, two label names, two bar codes on the actual CD package, same catalog number, but the "Sony Wonder" version was a peggable card blister pack, and there were several other kiddie CDs in that series. Of course I had to buy both. The opened blister pack version, but I kept that blister pack, is not easily accessible to me at the moment (or year).
     
  18. paulmock

    paulmock Forum Resident

    Location:
    Hollywood, CA
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  19. JamieC

    JamieC Senior Member

    Location:
    Detroit Mi USA
    You don't really like Only The Lonely do you? I can't tell........
     
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  20. paulmock

    paulmock Forum Resident

    Location:
    Hollywood, CA
    ...and those are just his LP's!!!!
     
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  21. MLutthans

    MLutthans That's my spaghetti, Chewbacca! Staff

    Yeah, I thought about putting my CDs in there, too, but that would be "period inappropriate," so......

    I also forgot to put in the 1983 MFSL LP from the big silver boxed set. Ah, well!

    :)

    For the record (no pun intended): It's not my favorite Sinatra album, but it's right up there. In the Wee Small Hours will always be #1 in my book.
     
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  22. dprokopy

    dprokopy Senior Member

    Location:
    Near Seattle, WA
    My fuzzy memory is telling me that some CD blister packs (which predated/overlapped with cardboard longboxes) had these, as well.
     
  23. Vinylfindco

    Vinylfindco The Pressing Matters

    Location:
    Miami
    Ikea should design these to fit on a horizontal 2x4 Kallax, four across the top. I know I'd buy some. Perfect height for browsing and so nice to flip through and see the artwork.
     
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  24. MLutthans

    MLutthans That's my spaghetti, Chewbacca! Staff

    Bump for a cool old thread.
     
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  25. paulmock

    paulmock Forum Resident

    Location:
    Hollywood, CA
    When you filled that classic Capitol record bin with all of your OTL copies I laughed and laughed and laughed!!!!! Great memories there. Thanks for the laugh again today!!!!! :agree:
     
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