Lou Ottens…Maybe helped you get lucky

Pour one out for the man who made your mix tape possible

Lou Ottens was a Dutch engineer that made the Boombox Serenade in “Say Anything” possible and maybe got you lucky when your girlfriend or boyfriend loved the mix tape that you made for them.

The man who invented the audio cassette tape has died at the age of 94.

Ottens was annoyed with the clunky design of reel-to-reel tapes, he introduced the cassette tape in 1960.

More than 100 million cassette tapes have been sold over the years – the format has even made a comeback in recent years with retro music fans.

Back in the early days of my radio career we would roll the “Midnight Tracker” on a station I worked on in the Upstate of South Carolina.

I’d always alert my copyright breaking friends that I was starting the Tracker in 5-4-3-2…(you go silent for 1) and start the music.