Simple Pleasures: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

An audio cassette of Bobby McFerrin "Simple Pleasures" (1988).

2015.263.8a: An audio cassette tape. The cassette is clear plastic with white type on each side. Both sides have headers reading: [BOBBY McFERRIN SIMPLE PLEASURES / DON'T WORRY, BE HAPPY • ALL I WANT • DRIVE MY CAR • / SIMPLE PLEASURES • GOOD LOVIN •] on Side 1, and [BOBBY McFERRIN SIMPLE PLEASURES / COME TO ME • SUZIE Q • DRIVE • THEM CHANGES • SUNSHINE / OF YOUR LOVE•] on Side 2. The EMI Record logo, copyright information, and the cassette number [E4-48059] are featured on both sides.

2015.263.8b: An audio cassette paper jacket. The jacket is portrait orientation, is a color image of Bobby McFerrin in a black shirt posing behind something red. Vertical gray text down the side of the front of the jacket reads: [BOBBY McFERRIN] and red text along the bottom reads: [SIMPLE PLEASURES]. The back of the jacket has a white background with black text that lists the tracks, along with additional production and manufacturing information and a barcode.

2015.263.8c: An audio cassette tape case made of clear plastic on the front and white plastic on the back. The case has interior holders to insert an audio cassette jacket.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1988
• Recorded by: Bobby McFerrin, American, born 1950
• Published by: EMI Records Ltd, British, 1972 - 2013
• Produced by: Linda Goldstein, American
• Type: audio cassettes
• Medium: plastic , magnetic tape , ink on paper
• Dimensions: H x W x D (cassette): 2 1/2 × 4 × 1/2 in. (6.4 × 10.2 × 1.3 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (jacket): 4 × 5 1/2 in. (10.2 × 14 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W x D (case): 2 3/4 × 4 5/16 × 11/16 in. (7 × 11 × 1.7 cm)
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Object number: 2015.263.8abc
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Timothy Anne Burnside
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © 1988 EMI-Manhattan Records, a division of Capitol Records, Inc Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.