Website Back Up!!!!!!

It looks like Road Runner has finished with the migration (at least for our website) and we're back up again!!!!!!

Sorry for the inconvenience!!!!!!!!

Web Site Down

Hi!

Thanks to everyone who has notified us about our website being down. What a bummer! I've talked with our service provider and it seems that our website is being migrated from our old provider to the new one. They say that it shouldn't be down more than a day or two. I'm doing all I can to get it back up again as quickly as possible.

Thanks for your understanding!

Kathy

Updated List 3-19-07

Just put up a new list tonight! Be sure to check out our newest page at www.katestrackshack.com! It's Beatles & related tapes. We get lots of requests for these tapes so we decided to put up a special page for them. These tapes will be a little more than some of our other tapes, but they will be tuned-up with new pads/splices. Tapes that are sealed, you decided if you want them tuned-up or not.

If you were lucky enough to be off last week for Spring Break, hope you had a good time! We had some fun and got a lot of things done around the house the needed doing. The kids begged us to put up our pool, so Dan did that this weekend. They were brave enought to get into it tonight and go under water (water about 60 degrees maybe!). Still a little to cold for me!!!!!

We also have some auctions on Ebay right now. Dan and I have some under seller name - dkgibson and our oldest daughter has some under seller name - katestrackshack. She is selling some quads to help put some money in her college fund and to pay for gas for her '76 Pacer!

Take care and have a good week!

Kathy

Updated List 03-06-07!

Just letting you know that a new list was put up last night! I think you'll find some good stuff this time around. Check it out at www.katestrackshack.com.

I hate to make reminders like this, but sometimes it has to be done. If you place an order for tapes/supplies, etc. you need to pay for that order before placing another order. That's how most businesses work. We're not trying to be buttheads! Thanks for your understanding!!!!!

Another heads up! Most of you have probably already heard that there is going to be another rate increase in postage! The lady at the post office said they weren't given an exact date, but probably would be sometime in May or June. We'll let you know how it will effect shipping costs once we know what the rate increases will be. I think 1st class on one oz will be raised to .41 cents. The Post Office would love to get rid of media mail, but I think there are too many of us out there that still use it quite a bit!

Next week is Spring Break for me and the kids. Not sure if we'll go anywhere, but in case you email and we don't get back to you right away, that will be why.

Have a great week!

Kathy

Updated List! 2-17-07

It's been a little while, but the list has been updated - www.katestrackshack.com.

Take a look and let us know if you see anything you'd like to buy. You can email us at dkgibson3@tx.rr.com.

If you're lucky enough to have President's Day off on Monday, enjoy!!!!!!!!!

Kathy/Dan

8-Track Review - "Sandman" by Harry Nilsson in Quadraphonic!

Program 1 - I'll Take A Tango, Something True, J*** C**** You're Tall, The Ivy Covered Walls, Thursday Or, Here's Why I Did Not Go To Work Today
Program 2 - The Flying Saucer Song, How To Write A Song, Pretty Soon There'll Be Nothing Left For Everybody, Will She Miss Me

1976. Even though his voice was recovering from blowing it out (literally) recording the drunken disaster "Pussy Cats" with John Lennon, this year was just about rock bottom for pop wunderkind Harry Nilsson. His (very expensively produced) albums and singles were not charting, and RCA was running out of patience. And what does Harry come out with.."Sandman"! Oops.

I am a very big fan of Nilsson, and have all his albums on more formats than I care to think about. But lets face it, albums like this are not the way to stay in the good graces of your record company, especially when you recently signed a contract where they eat all the production costs. However, 30+ years on, I sure am glad that Harry was not too worried about staying in their good graces.

"I'll Take A Tango" starts the album off in fine style, with Harry proclaiming that "Deep down in my soul I hate rock and roll", continuing with him hanging out with Valentino and Marlin Brando, and wrapping up with on of the most throat tearing screams ever. "Something True" is a nice love song, and is what he should have released as a single. " J*** C**** You're Tall", a very blasphemous, but very funny song cracks me up every time I hear it. Side note..this is the song he introduced the rough cut of on his previous album "Duit On Mon Dei". "The Ivy Covered Walls" and "Thursday Or, Here's Why I Did Not Go To Work Today", are two very forgettable album fillers.

Program 2 opens with "The Flying Saucer Song", which may be the only song ever recorded about two drunks singing and talking about a UFO sighting. The best part about this track is that it gets better every time you listen to it. The same can be said for "How To Write A Song", in which Harry tells you how to do just what the title says. "If you write it on guitar then put the guitar on your knee. If you write it on piano, don't do that!" Maybe the best song on the album. Check for the rhyme for the word "talent". "Pretty Soon There'll Be Nothing Left For Everybody" is Harry singing about overpopulation, ecology, etc. Pretty forgettable. "Will She Miss Me" is the album closer. I have never really warmed to this song.

There are probably five tracks on this album that are keepers. Most people did not think so, and Sandman did not sell. I see sealed copied of the cart often, and based on the sealed copies of the LP that appear on eBay, there was a whole lotta stock left over.

And now the quadraphonic part. RCA spared no expense on their quad releases. Sandman has fantastic separation. And the cool part is that if played on a stereo deck, you can isolate Nilsson's backing vocals on certain tracks. Definitely a quad worth getting.

Keeper? Of course! It's Nilsson! Besides, I have two copies in quad, so let me know if you have a hankering for one. Make it worth my time though!
Number of ka-chunks: Three of four. It's Nilsson! Five out of nine ain't bad!

Updated List 1-31-07

Just letting you know that we've just updated the list again! There were some good tapes on that last list and they went fast!!!!!!

There is some pretty good stuff on this list too!

Take a look at our list - www.katestrackshack.com and let us know if you see anything you want to buy. Also, if you want to be added to our "subscriber" list to be notified when the list is update, just send us an email with "subscribe" in the subject line.

It's sleeting and cold outside! I'm going to go start a fire and finish reading a good book before I start on the dreded homework!

Kathy

8-Track Review - "Spirit In The Sky" by Norman Greenbaum

Program 1 - Jubilee, Tars Of India
Program 2 - Spirit In The Sky, Good Lookin' Woman
Program 3 - Alice Bodine, Milk Cow, Skyline (part 1)
Program 4 - Skyline (part 2), Marcy, Junior Cadillac

"When I die and I lay me to rest, gonna go to the place thats the best". Who has not heard that immortal lyric at least 100 times? It was with great excitement when I came across this admittedly ratty look cart.

Let me start by saying that this is a rare cart. I have seen literally tens of thousands of 8-tracks, and this is the first copy of this I have ever come across. Except for Sinatra and Martin, Reprise 8-tracks are not all that common in the first place, so that may play a part in the scarcity of this cart. Another player may be that it is not very good. Of course, the title track is a AM/FM classic, and it deserves to be. Nothing else on the cart comes even close to "SITS", either for musicanship, or songwriting. The low point is "Milk Cow". This album smells like it was thrown together around a hit single. The biggest bummer about this cart was that it was one that I had been looking for for some time. Oh well.

Norman Greenbaum has a website, and I emailed him to let him know that I had just finished listening to him on 8-track. His response was basically "I am on 8-track. Wow". I thought that was a cool response. Maybe some day I will be on 8-track too! Wow!

Keeper?: Nah. If you want it, trade me something cool for it.
Number of ka-chunks: Only one, and that is due to "SITS" itself.

8-Track Review - The Very Best Of Deep Purple

This is Dan. This is the first in a series of reviews I plan on doing on different carts as I listen to them. Lets start off with "The Very Best Of Deep Purple"
Cart: GRT Module 8
Track List:
Program 1 - Hush, Hey Joe, We Can Work It Out
Program 2 - River Deep - Mountain High
Program 3 - April, Exposition
Track 4 - Kentucky Woman, Bird Has Flown, Lalena

I found myself enjoying only about half of the songs on this cart. "River Deep - Mountain High" and "Kentucky Woman" are the highlights. "Hush" and "hey Joe" are OK, but not in the same class. Overall the cart sounds great, and there is no track splitting.

Keeper?: - for now. I think there is a later Deep Purple greatest hits around here somewhere that includes their "Smoke On The Water" stuff. Still...I really like their version on a Neil Diamond song on this album.
Number of Ka-chunks?: Only two out of four.

Updated List 1-15-2007

Hi!

Just letting you know that a new updated list has been put up at our website - www.katestrackshack.com. Check it out and let us know if you see anything you want to buy. Remember, we also do repair work and transfer 8-tracks to cd.

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!!!

Hey everyone!

It's been so busy around here!!!

Sales of tapes have been really good and the repairs have been even better!

The list has just been updated! Check it out at www.katestrackshack.com

I just purchased 400+ tapes a few days ago from a nice gentlemen in Oklahoma. He has a bunch of 45's if anyone is intresested. Just let us know and we'll get you his contact info.

We'll also be going to Houston this weekend to pick up about 2500 more tapes and players!

I'll start my last semester tomorrow night! Wish it wasn't quite so late, but you gotta do what you gotta do! The worst thing about it starting tomorrow is that is our 20th Anniversary!

I'm going to try better at keeping this blog up-to-date!!

Hope to hear from you soon!

Kathy

Welcome

Hi!

Welcome to our blog!

We'll try to make this a fun site for you to visit.

Since this site is mainly devoted to 8-tracks, let us hear from you about what you like or don't like in this media or if you have any questions about 8-tracks.

Dan/Kathy