These days, technology can become obsolete between the time your head hits the pillow at night and your feet hit the floor in the morning. That makes what seemed like a relatively short reign that 8 track tapes had as cutting edge seem like a dynasty compared with mediums like the laser disc and Sony's over almost before it even began mini-discs. Whether the comparative staying power of 8 tracks will give a shrine to the bygone hulking plastic sheathed cases enough drawing power to keep its doors open remains to be seen, but we love the fact someone is willing to make a go of it. Bucks Burnett has been collecting the discs since finding a copy of the Beatles White Album at a garage sale in 1988. About 1/2 of the 3,000 8 tracks he has collected forms the core of the on-site archive of 8 tracks in the museum he has opened in Dallas. Whatever happens, Burnett seems to have a relaistic outlook on things. He says, 'I am a collector. I buy things. I don't use things. That's what collectors do. I'm not saying it's healthy.' We think his prognosis might improve if he drops the admission fee a couple of bucks south of the $10 he wants people to pay.
NPR.org