The Whole Album
I was reading an article on LinkedIn which argued that some businesses went out of business because they were not client centred. For example, Netflix did not put Blockbuster out of business, exorbitant late fees did. Uber is not killing the taxi business, limited access and control is.
I was kind of agreeing with the author until… “Apple did not kill the music industry, being forced to buy full-length albums did.”
‘Forced’ to buy the whole album? Wait a sec. Buying the whole album is the experience of buying music. Yes, there have been many times in my life when I bought the ‘whole’ album based on one particular song. Sometimes, as I listened to the whole album, I would be disappointed. And then I listened to the album again. And again. And again. And then the entire album became a listening experience beyond the one hit single. Just as the artist intended.
Many artists say they write their albums intending for listeners to consume the music in its entirety, from Side A through to the end of Side B. Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon comes to mind. Now there’s a listening experience.
Years ago, I bought k.d. lang’s Hymns of the 49th Parallel because I loved her version of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah. First time through I have to admit I really didn’t care for the rest of the album. I am embarrassed to admit that now.
I do have some albums in my collection that are dust collectors, bought for one song and the rest disappointed. A benefit of technology is that we can listen to an album first before buying and we do have the choice of buying single tunes, or the full album. But… buying single tunes robs us of exploring what else the artist has to offer. Even if that album turns out to be a dud, the experience of listening to the full album provided an opportunity for both the artist and me.
I would love to hear your examples of buying an album for one song and realizing the rest of the album was pure gold. Or a dud.
I hope you enjoyed reading this blog. Your comments, questions, ideas and suggestions are always welcome. You can comment here, or choose between Facebook, Twitter, or the contact button.
Anne Milne is an every Sunday blogger. I keep it short and to the point. Topics are as wide ranging as a straight but not narrow path.
I could so relate to this blog. I like to buy complete albums, listen to never-heard-before songs over and over, and fall in love. I’m also a big fan of musical scores (Les Mis, Grease…even…talk about embarrassing…Mary Poppins) which don’t make much sense buying any other way but from beginning to end. Your blogs are such a treat!
I used to love Mary Poppins as well, knew it all off by heart, as well as The Sound of Music. I am a big fan of soundtracks.Generally, you get a well thought out mix of music. Recent faves for me are the Wolf of Wall Street (terrific mix chosen by Robbie Roberston) and American Hustle, which has a fabulous track of White Rabbit sung in Arabic.Thanks for your comments and support!