These are All albums

Click on any album above to see a similar, closer up, slightly less fuzzy image (approx. 28-56k each)

Each of the items pictured above is a recording album. The concept of an “album” is not unique to recorded audio, having predated it. Neither is any one format within recorded music solely qualified to hold the moniker of “album”.

Unfortunately, some folks (often amongst the preoccupied-with-self Baby Boomer generation) continue to perpetuate the myth that the word “album” is synonymous with the long-playing vinyl phonograph record (a.k.a. LP). Using the eminently more sensible definition of an “album” being a collection, it is clear that any recording format which collects together a reasonable number of selections can rightfully be called an “album”.

• 10" single-disc 78 RPM (personal compilation and commercial album)
• 7" single-disc (originals from the late 1940s to early 1950s were 45 RPM)
• 12" Vinyl LP
• Pre-recorded Reel-to-Reel 1/4" tape (several formats; 1/4-track pictured here)
• 4-track cartridge tape (the first popular automotive tape format)
• 8-track cartridge tape
• Compact Disc digital audio

In my collection, not pictured: the Philips compact cassette prerecorded album (i forgot). This enumeration is by no means exhaustive. For more history, consult your usual sources, online or otherwise.