CD turns 30: the first albums cafebabel.com bought (9 images)
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1 October 1982 is the date that the first CD (Billy Joel) was available to buy. Three decades later, we are slaves to the digital world of downloads and piracy. Only 19% of consumers in the EU buy music anymore, and that would most likely be from the apple itunes store, the only service available in all 27 EU member states. Whilst online listening services such as 'grooveshark' (US), 'spotify' (Sweden) and 'deezer' (France) have entered the cross-border music consciousness, staff at cafebabel.com HQ take you back into the world of HMV or Virgin, where they spent their first coins
'Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells. My older brother had an influence on me, he would listen to Led Zeppelin and all that'
'Cesaria Evora's Miss Perfumado. I bought it because I loved her so much, but I did not even have a CD player'
Greatest Hits by Articolo 31 - this was the group who introduced rap to nineties era Italy, at least in my eyes at the time
'The Offspring's Americana...I know...'
'I remember I asked my mum for money to buy her Actually by the Pet Shop Boys; she said they were her favourite group. I'd play it when it was my turn to do a household chore, and I remember always dropping the hoover to run back and replay track number three'
Przedmieścia by Wilki - rock was huge in nineties-era Poland
'Doc Gyneco: Première consultation defines France's nineties hip hop era'
'I clearly remember how proud I was to buy this one, it's the first one I chose and bought myself'
'It's hard, I can only remember my first cassette - but this cheesy German compilation Kuschelrock rings a bell' (Read more here)