As I often do, I was playing around in Apple Music yesterday and choosing some songs that I hadn’t heard in a while. This then encouraged me to follow them into YouTube to have something to look at as well as listen to. You know how it goes, don’t you: they give you a recommendation based on what you’ve been watching and all of a sudden an hour has passed and you are way down a rabbit hole of music miles from where you set off. Of course, what they suggest is based on algorithms rather than personal knowledge, but it does sometimes feel like you are in one of those sessions from teenage days, when we used to meet up at each other’s houses and take albums to listen to together. Those formative years taught me a lot about what music I did and didn’t like, and I have continued growing my tastes since then. But why do I like some music that others don’t? And vice versa?

You often hear people saying that someone has bad taste in music – I’ve probably done it myself – but there is no such thing, really. It may be different from what you like, but that doesn’t mean it is bad. Or perhaps it is, in some cases, though a huge number do seem to like (c)rap for some reason! But I’m sure people might listen to music I enjoy and won’t like it, and may tell me I have bad taste: not a bit of it, it’s just that we like different things. Wouldn’t the world be a dull place if everyone liked the same music? I share a lot of music here, and recognise that people might not like all of the songs I play: but you can be certain that I keep to my own rule of not playing anything I don’t like, even if others disagree. And I follow quite a lot of other blogs which post music, not all of which I enjoy every time. There’s nothing wrong with that, as long as I keep my comments civil (well, most of the time, though a well chosen emoji can make a point!). And I would expect – and do receive – the same kind of response to what I play.

Sadly, in recent years, my perception is that we have become generally less tolerant of disagreement. The US is divided on partisan political lines, here the big schism has been over the referendum to leave the EU and its long drawn out aftermath, and a divide can be seen in many other countries too. It has become a daily occurrence that we hear people in public life making rude comments about those with whom they disagree: those people aren’t cretins just because they hold a different viewpoint (though some of them may be, for other reasons). But that seems to be the starting point for what passes for political discussion and debate these days. And I’ve seen many instances of that spilling over into other parts of life, including music. That is really sad – music is an entertainment to be enjoyed, and however much you dislike something doesn’t invalidate someone else’s pleasure in it.

You may have noticed that one of my favourite words in relation to music, either on my own blog or when I comment on yours, is ‘favourite.’ I have been listening to music for well over sixty years, and have acquired quite a few favourites in that time: both in terms of songs and albums, and of performers. You don’t have to like them just because I do, and there’s a chance that I might not like your favourites, either. So what? There is room for everything, and we can always reach for the blog equivalent of the ‘off’ button! About a year ago I posted a piece for Song Lyric Sunday which gave you what is still my all-time favourite song, and I thought that playing that tune again would illustrate today’s point for me, so here it is:

This is part of what I said about it then: “Alone Again Or was the opening track of what has since become a classic album, Forever Changes. This wasn’t particularly successful when it was first released in November 1967: it peaked at #154 in the US but did better in the UK, where it reached #24. This was the first of three tracks taken as a single from it, in January 1968, but it only made #123 in the US and didn’t chart in the UK as far as I can tell.”

I then went on to tell the story of how I bought my copy: “As this wasn’t a huge seller my favourite record shop in downtown Dover didn’t stock it, so I had to make a special order for it, having heard it played on the radio. Even at that early age – I was 14 – I was a regular customer in the shop and on first name terms with the staff there. When I went to collect this Julie, the assistant on that day, looked at it and said she hadn’t even heard of it, so would I mind if she played it in the shop? They had a fantastic sound system and when it had finished we just looked at each other: her reaction was along the lines of “wow, that was good” and the next time I was in there she told me that she had ordered a copy for herself.”

That reminiscence speaks volumes to me. There was something about the local record shop, being in there with your mates, becoming such regular visitors that you were on first name terms with the staff, that we have lost in the days of everything being streamed. The social aspect has gone, and that is, I think, reflected in much of life as a whole. Or maybe this is just me, getting a bit maudlin as I approach 70 and am largely confined to barracks by my health!

Tell me if you think I’m wrong – I won’t start a fight with you! And tell me if you disagree on the song – as I have said, we can’t all like the same music but that doesn’t mean we have to fall out over it! And remember, whatever music you like, as the saying goes “there’s no accounting for taste.” 😉🎶