Tower Records/Hollywood had š§ available to listen to new CDs. The curiosity of a large, upper-case "E" on the front of one led me to the sublime melodies of a man inexplicably called "E."
Brilliant piece, as always. Ahh... the days when we could discover music by listening to records in the manner you described so well: inside the record store, with headphones on, and only an album cover as guidance (or lack thereof!). I used to do the same in Buenos Aires as a kid growing up in the nineties. I remember in some stores the headphones were too high for my height... so I had to stand on my tiptoes!
Back to your excellent piece, it's crazy how sometimes the universe puts you in front of a record without a lot of (or any) additional clues. You start listening, one verse, sometimes even one or two lines, or bars if instrumental, and you immediately feel a connection. The beautiful, magical, inexplicable power of music. Thank you for sharing this beautiful memory!
My distinct pleasure sharing the memory, Andy! You're too kind, as the DJ at The Vinyl Room, to mention the obvious irony in discovering E on CD! But, sometimes we're slaves to the format! Cute kid story, too....I thought you'd say the headphones, instead of being too high, were too huge to fit on your tiny noggin!
As for your recognizing the universal thrill of the unexpected discovery....that was my life from the late '60s thru early '80s, from Dad's weekly delivery of a pile of new promo LPs to me getting into radio....every new promo was a new, unheard artist! Even the ones that became "hits"--whether AM or FM--were, at one point, unheard artists and unheard "product"!
I was blessed to discover hundreds of artists "the world" never heard/heard of...many of whom grace the pages, now, of FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE (he said, subtly)! Hence, "Audio Autopsy," born solely out of the need to expose that music radio didn't/wouldn't/couldn't play!!
What's sad is the demise of the record store where we COULD discover music that way....now, hopefully, the kids are dropping the virtual needle on whatever's streaming...and, their mode of listening isn't out of their reach!š
Thank you, Brad! Yes, indeed, sometimes we are slaves to the format. I also think there is something special about records in the exact format that was most popular at the time. While I prefer vinyl (and I know you too), I must admit I am fond of certain nineties CDs, precisely for that reason: they are, if you will, small pieces of history.
I agree the demise of the type of record store you describe is devastating. Will it ever, perhaps, come back? We can only hope!
Hey, we just witnessed the comeback of vinyl itself! Can stores be THAT far behind?!š¤Great point about CDs....their existence allowed record companies (likely more so the artists' generosity) to share rare outtakes, unreleased mixes, re-mixes, etc, in essence....empty out their respective vaults! As a Genesis lover, the sheer volume of fab-ness they released was glorious!
That would be a great thread for one of us to start---readers' favoritešæCD box sets/re-releases! Hmmmm......BTW, don't think such a thread/topic WOULDN'T be at home in The Vinyl Room!š
I like your optimism that stores canāt be that far behind! I just wish people (and I mean the general public) bought more records (in physical format). Itās great that itās happening progressively, year after year, but the numbers (in unit terms) still have some catching up to do to get back to the figures from the 80s/90s/early 2000s... hopefully some day!
And yes, why not: CD box sets have given a lot of people, even us vinyl lovers, a lot of joy throughout the years!
I dig your work in Front Row & Backstage in general, Brad, but I think is one of my favorite pieces yet. I can't say I struck gold a lot, but I loved the rush of discovering an entirely new album/artist at a record store listening station. You not only highlight the album in question, but your piece really recreates that experience, which is not really something you can do anymore. Anyway, I loved the approach and thought the article was outstanding.
Thanks so much, Patrick! Great to find another living human who likes TWO major slices of life: Music and baseball!! I KNEW I wasn't the only one! Look elsewhere (if you haven't already) on this comment thread for my call-back to my many years of experiencing that rare record-store discovery experience at home on a weekly basis!
Can you imagine getting the debut albums by Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull and Alice Cooper, all while being in jr. high, AND when all those artists were completely unknown, and each wondering (in that very first week of release) if they'd ever have a hit, and be allowed to record a second album, much less being eventual multi-year successes/legends/Hall of Famers?!?
A true embarrassment of riches I'm well aware I was fortunate enough to have, and it was clearly a "marriage" of musical riches and someone (me) who loved all that info and music, and am entirely thrilled to use all of that acquired music and knowledge, and lay it all out on "paper" right here (while I'm still drawing breath and still have my long-term memory)!
Good thing I love writing!!! Thanks again, Patrick....your heartfelt appreciation is encouraging and inspiring!šš¼šµš
Thanks for your kind words! Thanks, also, for dropping your E-related article....I missed it first time around. FR&B-ers, I hope, will drop their respective needles on your 'Stack and that piece! As for your last statement, how true that is for so many of our songwriters....the birth of the blues is so often the genesis of our greatest inspirations!š¢=š¶!
Brilliant piece, as always. Ahh... the days when we could discover music by listening to records in the manner you described so well: inside the record store, with headphones on, and only an album cover as guidance (or lack thereof!). I used to do the same in Buenos Aires as a kid growing up in the nineties. I remember in some stores the headphones were too high for my height... so I had to stand on my tiptoes!
Back to your excellent piece, it's crazy how sometimes the universe puts you in front of a record without a lot of (or any) additional clues. You start listening, one verse, sometimes even one or two lines, or bars if instrumental, and you immediately feel a connection. The beautiful, magical, inexplicable power of music. Thank you for sharing this beautiful memory!
My distinct pleasure sharing the memory, Andy! You're too kind, as the DJ at The Vinyl Room, to mention the obvious irony in discovering E on CD! But, sometimes we're slaves to the format! Cute kid story, too....I thought you'd say the headphones, instead of being too high, were too huge to fit on your tiny noggin!
As for your recognizing the universal thrill of the unexpected discovery....that was my life from the late '60s thru early '80s, from Dad's weekly delivery of a pile of new promo LPs to me getting into radio....every new promo was a new, unheard artist! Even the ones that became "hits"--whether AM or FM--were, at one point, unheard artists and unheard "product"!
I was blessed to discover hundreds of artists "the world" never heard/heard of...many of whom grace the pages, now, of FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE (he said, subtly)! Hence, "Audio Autopsy," born solely out of the need to expose that music radio didn't/wouldn't/couldn't play!!
What's sad is the demise of the record store where we COULD discover music that way....now, hopefully, the kids are dropping the virtual needle on whatever's streaming...and, their mode of listening isn't out of their reach!š
Thank you, Brad! Yes, indeed, sometimes we are slaves to the format. I also think there is something special about records in the exact format that was most popular at the time. While I prefer vinyl (and I know you too), I must admit I am fond of certain nineties CDs, precisely for that reason: they are, if you will, small pieces of history.
I agree the demise of the type of record store you describe is devastating. Will it ever, perhaps, come back? We can only hope!
Hey, we just witnessed the comeback of vinyl itself! Can stores be THAT far behind?!š¤Great point about CDs....their existence allowed record companies (likely more so the artists' generosity) to share rare outtakes, unreleased mixes, re-mixes, etc, in essence....empty out their respective vaults! As a Genesis lover, the sheer volume of fab-ness they released was glorious!
That would be a great thread for one of us to start---readers' favoritešæCD box sets/re-releases! Hmmmm......BTW, don't think such a thread/topic WOULDN'T be at home in The Vinyl Room!š
I like your optimism that stores canāt be that far behind! I just wish people (and I mean the general public) bought more records (in physical format). Itās great that itās happening progressively, year after year, but the numbers (in unit terms) still have some catching up to do to get back to the figures from the 80s/90s/early 2000s... hopefully some day!
And yes, why not: CD box sets have given a lot of people, even us vinyl lovers, a lot of joy throughout the years!
I dig your work in Front Row & Backstage in general, Brad, but I think is one of my favorite pieces yet. I can't say I struck gold a lot, but I loved the rush of discovering an entirely new album/artist at a record store listening station. You not only highlight the album in question, but your piece really recreates that experience, which is not really something you can do anymore. Anyway, I loved the approach and thought the article was outstanding.
Thanks so much, Patrick! Great to find another living human who likes TWO major slices of life: Music and baseball!! I KNEW I wasn't the only one! Look elsewhere (if you haven't already) on this comment thread for my call-back to my many years of experiencing that rare record-store discovery experience at home on a weekly basis!
Can you imagine getting the debut albums by Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull and Alice Cooper, all while being in jr. high, AND when all those artists were completely unknown, and each wondering (in that very first week of release) if they'd ever have a hit, and be allowed to record a second album, much less being eventual multi-year successes/legends/Hall of Famers?!?
A true embarrassment of riches I'm well aware I was fortunate enough to have, and it was clearly a "marriage" of musical riches and someone (me) who loved all that info and music, and am entirely thrilled to use all of that acquired music and knowledge, and lay it all out on "paper" right here (while I'm still drawing breath and still have my long-term memory)!
Good thing I love writing!!! Thanks again, Patrick....your heartfelt appreciation is encouraging and inspiring!šš¼šµš
Thanks for this piece Brad, I love all things E/Eels.
He's the featured 'maverick' in the attached chapter of my music themed novel.
https://challenge69.substack.com/p/track-4
As I say in this, through all of E's many mood-swings somehow, "I just prefer it when he's miserable!"
Thanks for your kind words! Thanks, also, for dropping your E-related article....I missed it first time around. FR&B-ers, I hope, will drop their respective needles on your 'Stack and that piece! As for your last statement, how true that is for so many of our songwriters....the birth of the blues is so often the genesis of our greatest inspirations!š¢=š¶!