Cassette boots

[motorsmell]

This week my little boy Charlie Clash has been away with his grandparents...and so I've used my free time wisely? I've been returning bootlegs back to cassette where they belong and apart from some absolute balls ups I've enjoyed the process and the results!

[motorsmell]

Still no idea why when posting photos the forum rotates them round!

[JohnS]

Ah, I remember the thrill of seeing this sort of thing on market stalls and at record fairs.... usually sold for about £3, while bootleg LPs (if you could find them) were £10-12. Happy days.
I admire the (ahem) reboots of these classic bootlegs - they look great.

[Marky Dread]

Ah, I remember the thrill of seeing this sort of thing on market stalls and at record fairs.... usually sold for about £3, while bootleg LPs (if you could find them) were £10-12. Happy days.
I admire the (ahem) reboots of these classic bootlegs - they look great.

Bought loads back in the day. Kensington Market had a stall I would regularly visit. Though I also did record fairs as a seller in the 90s and were friends with other sellers who gave me for free or very cheap. The trouble with tapes is what generation you got some were copied ad infinitum.

[JohnS]

The trouble with tapes is what generation you got some were copied ad infinitum.

...which often caused speed issues too. My beloved tape of the Clash Agora Ballroom Feb 1979 played too fast - which wasn't too bad apart from Joe's spoken word bits!

[Marky Dread]

The trouble with tapes is what generation you got some were copied ad infinitum.

...which often caused speed issues too. My beloved tape of the Clash Agora Ballroom Feb 1979 played too fast - which wasn't too bad apart from Joe's spoken word bits!

Yep loads of old tapes with Joe sounding like a chipmunk. The demos for GEER always ran too fast. The problem is a tape from either the mixing desk or a fan held cassette recorder then gets copied then years later the copy tape becomes the source for vinyl or a cd bootleg.

[Flex]

I love old bootleg cassette art and whatnot, there could be some real aesthetic creativity to some of that stuff.

[motorsmell]

Latest additions to the DIY boot tape collection

[motorsmell]

Ah, I remember the thrill of seeing this sort of thing on market stalls and at record fairs.... usually sold for about £3, while bootleg LPs (if you could find them) were £10-12. Happy days.
I admire the (ahem) reboots of these classic bootlegs - they look great.

Cheers, I've now perfected the recording technique and the j cards, I was piling on to paper and gluing them to the original j cards, now I've got some card and figured out how to print on both sides, black market clash has all the info and art work for me to put the relevant covers together using fliers and tickets etc. I am adicted to physical copies of stuff and this new hobby saves a fortune on seeking out yet more vinyl boots!

[motorsmell]

Did these 3 last night, sound great and look great, definitely a cheap alternative to seeking out vinyl boots!

[XRCF]

Did these 3 last night, sound great and look great, definitely a cheap alternative to seeking out vinyl boots!

Yeah but that's what makes vinyl stand out as a format. It isn't something you can easily burn or record to yourself. That being said those are really cool

[motorsmell]

Did these 3 last night, sound great and look great, definitely a cheap alternative to seeking out vinyl boots!

Yeah but that's what makes vinyl stand out as a format. It isn't something you can easily burn or record to yourself. That being said those are really cool

Vinyl I far better I agree, however my Mrs/bank account do not!

[Chairman Ralph]

JohnS wrote: ↑23 Mar 2024, 6:47am
Marky Dread wrote: ↑23 Mar 2024, 5:03am
The trouble with tapes is what generation you got some were copied ad infinitum.
...which often caused speed issues too. My beloved tape of the Clash Agora Ballroom Feb 1979 played too fast - which wasn't too bad apart from Joe's spoken word bits!
Yep loads of old tapes with Joe sounding like a chipmunk. The demos for GEER always ran too fast. The problem is a tape from either the mixing desk or a fan held cassette recorder then gets copied then years later the copy tape becomes the source for vinyl or a cd bootleg.

You're bringing back some of my fondest memories of my first time in London -- where I spent a lot of time at Camden Market, scouring the dealers for all sorts of items on my shortlist!

I remember how dodgy some of them sounded, too, notably a tape from the Clash's five-night stand in Brixton -- where Joe threatens to kill the gobbers -- and I remember going, "Hm, that sounds a trifle faster than the voice I'm used to hearing."

A few years later, I got a tape player with variable speeds, and only then did I actually get to hear what it really sounded like! Which was quite an eye-opener for me at the time, as I'd gotten used to hearing it at a slightly faster speed. The more conscientious dealers went to a bit of trouble, with color inserts, and using TDKs or Maxwells, versus those who dubbed as fast as humanly possible, on everything from AGFAs, to the standard issue off-brand, all-white or black blanks -- which I tended to steer clear of, unless there was no other way to get my hands on that particular gig, or set of outtakes, or rehearsal.

Eventually, I spent so much time there, it got to the point where I'd be drinking and hanging out with these guys after hours, even going to their houses or flats to go through the higher quality items they didn't always sell at the stall -- one of my favorite guys was Dave, who'd been a garbage man, until his job got privatized out of existence, and he ended up doing the Camden thing, instead.

He was the essence of a Fagin 101 character -- you could never be sure of what he was telling you, but somehow, it was so entertaining, it didn't really matter. I remember trying to trade or sell him a Damned tape -- I think it was the 7-7-77 one, from the Roundhouse -- so Dave sticks into his massive dual boombox/dubbing deck, gives it the old 30-second onceover, and abruptly shuts it off, and hands it back to me.

When I asked why, he screwed up his face into an exaggerated frown, saying, "I forgot how bad the Damned were!" Which made me laugh my ass off then, and still does now, every time I think about it. So he was always a good one for that, if nothing else.

I'm curious -- my time was the early '90s, and I don't remember seeing a lot of CDs there, so I'm assuming that became more prevalent later? I do remember a fair bit of vinyl boots, too, but for a lot of people at that time, the tapes were definitely the thing. I'll have to dig some out of my favorites, which I still have -- they take up a fair chunk of one cabinet, least!

[motorsmell]

Cheers Ralph, some fine memories there!
Dave does indeed sound like a proper character indeed, dodgy Dave the tape man!

Up until around 15 years ago there was a similar character who operated on the York market but this time selling cds...almost all of which were boots/pirate! I didn't mind as I knew what was what...however a few tines I remember being at the stall and some angry customer from the previous week returning to demand a refund on what they thought was a genuine live album etc!

I never encounter OG boot tapes these days, but to be honest I doubt any of them would beat what I'm doing for myself anyway, this site is a great resource for the source material and I've got a couple of nice tape decks to record with....would still have to take a punt for the right price if I ever came across one again though!

I still occasionally find cd boots and last year I even found a C/S boot that even professor Dread himself had not heard! So it's still worth a look through if you ever come across any.

Vinyl boots are being produced all the time, some better than others...theres loads of "semi official" stuff that ends up being sold by reputable online merchants,often duplicating the same LP with different covers and titles...can be a bit of a minefield,the Clash Bootlegged book is a decent guide to help navigate... record fairs hold the most gems though!