Jetée

Okay, I honestly do not know what took me so long to reply to this thread.

I could say I overlooked the thread, but that's not true. I might be able to say I had forgotten about the thread, but even with my spasmodic memory, unless I totally found no merit about the topic, I would eventually have found my way back here. My world is small, I tread circles in due time; what this means is that I know I saw this thread earlier this year, maybe in February or March, yet put it off once again to tackle the particular issue of whatever day I was saving. I think the truth is that I was trying to find my way back here specifically, for I had been lost in my thoughts with this issue, and each and every thread I had run into never quite "felt right" to intrude upon with my individual commentary.

So, finally, I have found where I was initially supposed to give my take.

I have been a child of the radio ever since I was a wee tyke. I had grown up listening hours on end to the radio, whether in the car, while running around the house, or even when about to turn in for the night, I always found an opportunity to listen to one more song. I had a deep affinity to it, and as a result, I have a deep understanding and affection for classic rock, The Beach Boys, sportscasters, 90s music, whatever was on...

I had no concept of albums, singles, LPs, EPs, anything, I was just a kid who enjoyed the soothing sound of what emanated from the radio dial. I may have even liked the muzak on elevators and in shopping malls, who knows? But as I grew older and reached the of 10 or so, I discovered the sister station of Nickelodeon, the conundrum now known as MTv. It wasn't that I liked it as much as the radio that had preceded it, but as I watched more and more of the various music videos and countdowns of the time, I eventually found it had taken the place of my former pasttime. It was entertaining for a good while, and I even got my first computer and taste of the internet during this time, so whichever video single that interested at the time, I sought out. It didn't take too long after that to realize I could rip and download the content, so after a certain period of consuming the MTv lifestyle, I had a collection of 100 or so singles. By this time, iTunes was revolutionary, so I guess I was in the majority to the consensus of my peers.

But I grew weary of what MTv evolved into, and I was entering a new phase of life, so I abnegated the computer, completely forgot about the radio, traveled the world, and when I returned to school, I was nearly a blank state in terms of media awareness. When I begun my second foray into the vast plains of the internet, I moseyed around for more singles on-and-off because I had no real template for an influx of new music. That was until, one day a professor of mine told me to submit a report on any single topic I desired, and off the top of my head, I chose a music album. This was the impetus that eventually resulted in my passion for the true music artist's album, from its structured listing, to its artwork, to the interludes that either flow the current mood or shift the tempo, to even B-sides and hidden tracks. I fell in love completely by serendipitous happenstance, and it was beautiful.

Now, as a semi-well-adjusted-dilettante with music, television, & film, I am voracious in my efforts to find and receive meaningful recommedations that will further expand my experience. I have remembered my love of radio, and even though I am connected with talk radio more, I have made a habit of listening to songs played on the radio with a pad-and-paper in hand in order to jot down potential albums I might consider. It has gotten harder though to listen to Top-40 radio and anything that MTv advertises in this age of "dry innuendo-pop" and "ringtone rap", but I have found my particular niches in the scope of it all.

Although my music album collection is still miniscule, it is a replete compendium of artists' whose albums are near perfect in their stance that they can be replayed time upon time without becoming stagnant. It is a singular thing when you can listen to an entire album and be reminded of the exact moment in time in which you came to cherish it. It's an awesome that cannot remotely be rivaled by a music video single that will fade away in a few months' time. The art of compilating an album is no easy feat, as I am discovering on my own, but the outcome of a truly spectacularly-composed one is one that will live forever in the consciousness of its admirers.

__________________
As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world (that is the myth of the Atomic Age) as in being able to remake ourselves.

—Mohandas K. Gandhi