Comments on: Are CDs Going The Way Of The 8-Track?

The Closing Of A Major CD Chain Store Shows The Shift Towards Online Music Downloads

[spiritwalk]

What was that Tommy Lee Jones line from Men in Black?

Everytime they come out with a new technology I have to buy the White Album again (?)

[azure13]

You know, I grew up listening to vynil (Thank God!) and on every album I bought there were plenty of songs I didn't care for.
At first.
But having the opportunity to re-listen to many of the songs I dismissed gave me the chance to reconsider and and learn to appreciate them.
Again, thank God!
Nowadays, you listen to an "album", dismiss a whole bunch of songs in them, buy the one or two you like, move on and forget about the entire body of work.
I really don't see the value in that.
I think this new way to purchase music is a slap in the face of the artists people claim to appreciate.
So now musicians not only have to put up with the doubts and put-downs of the businessmen running the music industry but also from their own "fans".
I'm afraid this will discourage many musicians to persist in making music. Truly a shame.
Posted by PhilistineTheArtLover at 3:51 PM : Jun 14, 2009
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Well said. And this is another reason why I still buy the CDs. How often have you gotten an album, because there are a couple of popular songs on it, only to find later that a few of the other tracks grow on you? Even to the point where those other tracks become your favorites?

I would hate it if CDs went away. I'm sure there will always be a market for them or vinyl.

[rwsmith29456]

No, the Cd is going the way of the vinyl record. Records and Cds were both top technology at the time but 8-track were so awful they never should have been marketed.

[bombadil4]

Actually, cassette technology wasn't too bad IF-- and a big IF--the tape (and shell) were high quality and it was played on a good stereo system or headphones, and of course assuming the music had been well recorded. It was really the advent of the cheap boom boxes that tended to degrade cassette sound. And then later, as CDs began to "take over" but most albums still needed to be offered on cassette too, the usual greed of the music industry led to a horrible decline in the quality of the cassette albums as well as often total abandoment of the original art work, liner notes, etc. I still greatly prefer cassettes in my car as I can accidently kick one under the seat, find it two years later, clean off the accumulated sludge, and it will still play great. Try that with a CD :>)

[truthforhumanity]

Interesting. The piece mentions how online sales have usurped the purchase of CDs, with the quality factor of CDs vs. online sales (mp3s) lightly mentioned. Audiophiles are still into vinyl records, as well as a niche market of SACDs(Super Audio CDs) and DVD Audio, which offer a high level listening experience. Seems the trend is much like that of cuisine, or should I say, fast food, a palatable product (mp3s) offering value for money over quality. It's still nice to have a tangible product that you can pull out of your collection from time to time and reminisce about.

[mrs_trepidatious]

I still have my 8-tracks. I enjoy listening to the Partridge Family and the Carpenters. They rock!

[sly_64]

I download everything from Limewire, I've never had any virus.
Since I originally bought this music on LP, casette and CD, I will not purchase it again in an MP3 format. They've gotten my money 3 times for the same product, that's enough.

[rf35]

I have to echo the comments about not wanting to buy a CD with only one or two good songs on it. This was not the case in the past. Most discs I bought only had one or two songs, if any, that I DIDN'T like. That said, I like the security and the quality of the CD. I have most of my music backed up multiple times. I have the CD, the MP3 and/or iTunes format on the main and back-up drives, and the music on the iPod itself. I've been through a catastrophic HD failure with no back-up. I learned my lesson, but it would have been even more painful if I didn't have the CDs to replace all the music my drive had on it. As it was, I only lost a few songs that I had purchased from iTunes.

As far as quality, I like the CD's when I play them on the full home system. When I'm listening on the go through headphones, the compression isn't really noticeable. I use discs with mp3-format songs in the car...again, I'm paying attention to driving and the music is for background purposes so the loss in quality is not noticed. I've never cared much for the vinyl record. The hiss and pop really detracted from the music. The purity of the rich, full sound that comes from the CD is why I still prefer them for home use, but I find myself more attracted to buying online. It's a matter of getting what I pay for. Release albums full of good songs and not just the hit single surrounded by crap and I'll be more likely to buy the disc. Otherwise, I'll just download the single in the least lossy format I can find and accept that it is still better than tape or vinyl.

[contraryjim]

Brianbwb said, "... no Jazz clubs in Los Angeles at all, according to my musician friends there, and very few in LA county as a whole.

This does not bode well for the concept of intellectual progress.

Intellectual - a good word hi-jacked by the left and scorned by the right. Good music today has no audience - listen if you can to the"stuff" that popularizes the concerts and fairs. Perhaps Jazz and other Classical Music will be ancient art forms - known only to researchers.

[ibsteve2u]

I still buy CDs - IF I buy any music at all.

What with the intrusive nature of the RIAA and their reams of lawyers, I just don't think it is worth having music stored in an electronic format.

Why be bait for people who know that they can make ever more money by playing ever nastier?

lollll...besides, I am willing to wager that someday somebody will say that they have software that can estimate the future behavior of an individual based upon their e-music purchasing record.

And, right or wrong, America's corporations will buy into it....and Apple et al will sell access to those purchasing records.

I don't like the idea of being judged someday because I purchased and downloaded a Rob Zombie album.