Last Cartridges
In the U.S., eight-track cartridges were phased out of retail stores by late 1982. Some titles were still available as eight-track tapes through Columbia House and RCA (BMG) Music Service Record Clubs until late 1988. Many of these late-period releases are highly collectible because of the low numbers that were produced and the few customers who ever purchased them. Among the most rare is Stevie Ray Vaughan's Texas Flood. Another is Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's Live/1975-85, which was one of the very few boxed sets to be released on vinyl, cassette, compact disc, and eight-track tape.
There is a debate among collectors about the last commercial eight-track released by a major label, but many agree it was Fleetwood Mac's Greatest Hits in November 1988.
There are reports of bootleg eight-track tapes being made in Mexico as late as 1995. Some independent artists still release eight-track tapes. Also, bands sometimes release eight-tracks as special releases; for example, The Melvins released a limited-time, live eight-track album and Cheap Trick issued a limited edition version of their album The Latest on the format on June 23, 2009. In the book Journals, Kurt Cobain wrote about wanting to release Nirvana's last studio album, In Utero, as an 8-track tape, but this never happened. Apart from a selected group of highly collectible artists, the record club issues, and the quadraphonic releases, many eight-track tapes seem to have limited value to most collectors, especially if the tapes have been misused or appear to be worn.
Read more about this topic: 8-track Tape