12 Tops - cassette and 8-track cartridge editions
There are not many tape editions known from the "12 Tops" series, but they are of particular interest nonetheless, for several reasons.
The few we know of were issued on the Damont Records label - the vinyl series was of course on Stereo Gold Award. Damont was an operation run by Stereo Gold Award's DL Miller and Monty Presky, so these releases constitute the establishment of a new sub-label. Of course they also had their own catalogue numbers, in the "Y8 DAM" sequence (8-tracks) or "ZC DAM" sequence (cassettes).
Further points of interest include the fact that all of the cartridges we know of were issued in both green and white plastic shells. They also came housed in card slip-cases as pictured below, which essentially reproduced the cartridge labels on the front.
And most impressively of all, there is a cartridge here which has no vinyl equivalent at all - a compilation album rounding up the best of 1973! Stereo Gold Award never issued annual collections of this kind, so this release adds a considerable attraction to the format. Known releases are shown below, with sample images further down, illustrating the full packaging on the cartridges. |
Volume 1 (ZC DAM 357)
Top 20 1973 (Y8 DAM 400)
Volume 18 (Y8 DAM 900 / ZC DAM 900)
Volume 19 (Y8 DAM 901 / ZC DAM 901)