Welcome to Hell, here's your 8-Track

I thought 8-Track was OK for what it was at the time.  I had a player in my 69’ Malibu and remember enjoying Creedence Clearwater Revival’s ”Proud Mary”.  I also purchased a boom box which was dubbed “a triple threat” - 8-Track, cassette (before Dolby) and AM/FM radio. Of course, the tape broke often or got wound around the spindle but I wasn’t into Hi-Fi then and didn’t know better. After my first “mid-fi” system in 1972, I went into cassette with a purchase of a Nakamichi 1000 cassette deck with Dolby B, C and chrome. Now it’s CD’s with “perfect sound forever”.

The fact that they would switch tracks in the middle of a tune, made them a big no for me!

I remember installing an under dash slide mount Pioneer 8track in my mom's 73 mercury cougar. Put the huge pioneer speakers on the rear window deck. Cut my teeth with Black Sabbath and LZ. good times ☺️. Greg 

In the 70's I had quadraphonic system; 4 channel Harman Kardon receiver, four Sansui speakers, a BIC turntable, and four channel Akai 8 track player/ recorder. There were a number of four channel prerecorded albums available in 8 track. I had a number of them. One was a Blue Oyster Cult; can't remember which it was. 
Audiophile system and sound quality? Heck, I don't think I ever heard the term audiophile back then, let alone able to define it. But when I cranked up that quad BOC tape after smoking an illegal substance I was immersed in a very enjoyable musical experience.
 

And you could pick used 8 track cartridges that drivers threw out their car windows on the shoulder of just about any street. A quick tape splice or a rewind with a pencil and you were good to go.