Today’s Song of the Day

I’ve Got a Rock ‘N’ Roll Heart, Eric Clapton, 1983

In less than a week, the day of my birth will come and go as I notch a half century of being on this planet. I’m not a terribly sentimental person but it feels good to reflect on the role music has played in my life.

I’m guessing I was about 10 years old when my parents let me move our house stereo into my bedroom.

From that moment until I moved out of my parents’ house eight years later, that stereo was always on. Sometimes, the music was front and center. Other times, the radio was simply my faithful companion – I even slept to my favorite radio station. In retrospect, this seemingly insignificant change in my environment made a huge impact on the person I became.

I like thinking about how access to and the consumption of music has changed over the course of my life. I recall the joy of hearing a great/special song on the radio for the first time and the accompanying agony that came if the deejay didn't announce the song title or artist. Today’s Song of the Day, I’ve Got a Rock ‘N’ Roll Heart by Eric Clapton, was once a first-listen “unknown” song that drove me crazy for what must have been days. Sure, there were discovery options back then … we could: A) Call the radio station B) Wait for the song to play again and hope for an intro or outro from the deejay or C) Get our parents to take us to the local record store and sing/hum a few bars.

Whereas I’m so thankful for the days of buying an entire album just to get that one special song (Lord knows this act alone was key to me becoming a true fan of so many artists/bands), I am also thankful to live in this day and age where “unknowns” can become “known” and downloaded/purchased within seconds.  

For better and worse, here’s to the evolution of the access and consumption of music.

https://youtu.be/VpqFoYwFcEE