When was the last time you got together with friends to listen to an album or even a CD? For that matter, when was the last time you listened to an entire album from start to finish by yourself?
For many of us, it was probably David Bowie’s “Blackstar.” People everywhere have been listening to it looking for lyrics dealing with his illness and impending death, which he’d kept secret from even close friends.
Technically, I guess a good many of you could claim to have listened to an entire record at any of the recent Communicators or Black Jacket Symphony shows, where they play a classic album live from start to finish. Black Jacket Symphony is doing Journey’s “Escape,” Saturday at the Tivoli, by the way.
Most of us just want the hits today, and because we have so many ways to listen to music, putting together a playlist – the new mixtape – of nothing but singles is easy. You can make your own, of course, or you can let the algorithms at Pandora, iTunes Radio or Spotify do it for you. You pick the first song or artist, and the software finds similar material.
Traditional radio has done this for years, but now we have some control over it. Even so, I know no one who gets with friends in a bedroom or den, cranks up the stereo and says, “Let’s listen to this Kinks station I created on iTunes Radio.” It’s great as background music for cleaning the house or even at a party, but it’s hardly the source for good conversation or communal bonding.