Anatomy of a Mixtape - Olive Juice '87 Part V "Hit Pause"

"Hit Pause"

Part 5 of 12

First off, let’s look at the title, “Olive Juice ‘87”. 

I was not aware at the time of purchase, but apparently the term “Olive Juice” has a largely accepted meaning. What I originally thought might be just an inside joke for two teenage lovers or perhaps someone’s nickname, is actually code for, “I Love You”. 

If you say it fast enough, “Olive Juice” sounds slightly (although if you ask me, hardly) like “I Love You”.

And according to the Urban Dictionary, mouthing “Olive Juice” across the room to another person looks as though you’re saying the actual words “I love you”. 

Now, if you’re mouthing something to another person, especially across a crowded room where your words would not be audibly identified, why you wouldn’t just mouth “I love you” instead of “Olive Juice” is beyond me. Especially if the intent is to actually make it look like you’re saying “I love you”. Because, if busted, it’s going to look like “I love you” to every other person in the room that catches you. I mean, at that point, what are you being sly about?

But my difficulty understanding the purpose of this — as well as just being completely blind to the universally accepted code meaning of “Olive Juice” up until my mid-40s — if nothing else, at least answers a few questions about my failed courtships from the previous 30 years and why they either never got off the ground or completely crash landed.

My naivete aside, by uncovering a major clue right here in the title, I feel safe in establishing a starting point that this was an “I love you” mix curated in the year one thousand nine hundred and eighty-seven, when the average price for a gallon of gas was 89 cents, a postage stamp was 24 cents, and a dozen eggs could be had for just 65 cents.

As I mentioned before, the tunes were laid down on a 90-minute Maxell XLII cassette. That is a serious high-quality tape choice and not a detail to be overlooked. 

Outside of the XLII-S, the XLII is a top of the line Maxell and springing for the extra 15 minutes per side compared to the inferior 60-minute tape tells me that Olive Juice had a lot to say and wanted to ensure that he got his songs in. 

People, if you ever receive a mix on a 60-minute tape from a significant other or a person you feel might be angling for that position, he or she is not worth your time.

Also, you may have noticed that I’ve pegged Olive Juice as a male, I’ll get to that reasoning in a minute.

But on the front of the cassette J Card, the track list for the A side and B side are both neatly printed out, in blue ink. Printed — not written in cursive. 

Additionally, while we know this tape is from 1987 based on the inclusion of the abbreviated “year” in the title written on the top spine, I notice on the back of the label, above the track list, the date section is filled in accurately for both side A and side B: 3/4/87. Hmmm...that was a Wednesday.

Even with all of this detail, an interesting omission on the labeling aspect is that the producer of the tape chose not to include the artists and give credit for each song. And I think we may learn why later.

So yes, at this point, I’m going on the assumption that the curator of “Olive Juice ‘87” is a male. I’ve come to this conclusion based on a few things: the handwriting being printed as opposed to written in cursive, the date written-in accurately on the label, and the continuity of the labeling, meaning, while this mix may not have been started and completed in one sitting, the lettering was done all at once, and definitely upon completion of the recording. 

There are no signs of a break in production. For example, no sudden change in handwriting style, no difference in the color of pen used from one group of songs to the next, and no signs of a firmer or looser grip of the pen.

Like any great tape compiler, the Juice was keeping track of the song order, most likely on a notepad or notebook, for one final transcription onto the cassette jacket at the end. This careful step leaves little room for error or the potential to call in the glaring use of Wite-Out that, while effectively does the job of correcting a labeling mistake, will forever leave the stain of “I fucked this up”, which you don’t want, especially if this is a musical love letter.

Ultimately, I think Olive Juice is male because the making of a mixtape is, historically, the preferred choice of expression of a man in love. While females are great at and enjoy expressing feelings verbally, most guys wallow in that department which is why, when the most important times call for it, they come out with something akin to “Olive Juice ‘87”.

And the care, detail, and professionalism of the mixtape, right down to the labeling, is part of that expression.

Continue to Part VI

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