CASSINGLE NOUN (MUSIC)

The trade mark of an audio cassette carrying a single piece of (usually popular) music, especially one which needs no rewinding; the cassette version of a single disc. Etymology: Formed by combining the first syllable of cassette with single to make a blend. History and Usage: The Cassingle was introduced in the UK in the late seventies and in the US at the beginning of the eighties, when the popularity of the single disc in the popular music world was waning and much popular music was listened to on tape. In the UK it started purely as a promotional device, given away to radio stations and disc jockeys to encourage them to give airtime to singles; by the end of the eighties, though, Cassingles were commercially available. Singles...recently introduced by CBS (which introduced the two-sided disc back in 1908); the cassingle, which lists for $2.98 and goes totally against the idea of convenience. Washington Post 31 Oct. 1982, section L, p. 1 All the figures tell the same story. Single and LP records are on the way out. Within 10 years, we will all be buying 'cassingles', cassettes and compact discs. Independent 20 Feb. 1987, p. 14