Too much to hear

I have about five CDs to listen to before the weekend. I have about 28 singles to screen for work. All that’s for work; for pleasure, there’s about three or four different groups I want to do some research on the Hype Machine for, to get more of a flavor of their sound.

I’m lucky that I have a neat job that demands I listen to music, but in order to do that I also have to get other stuff done. I’ve been multi-tasking since high school, when I used to study with my Kiss albums on, or the soundtrack to “South Pacific” or some Beethoven or Mozart. (I didn’t really get into jazz until after Sting’s 1985 debut, “Dream of the Blue Turtles,” and I credit Sting and Branford for introducing me to the greats.) I’m used to listening to music and doing something else, but there’s a few CDs where I really need (or want) to listen critically. I rarely get that kind of experience.

The other day, as my Sweetie and I were talking after supper, our thoughts turned to George Carlin (hey, if MSNBC can do seven days on the death of Tim Russert, I can talk about George for a few posts – suck it up, people) and I stood up, got a CD of his from the shelf, put it in the player and cranked up the stereo, and listened to “FM & AM,” and we started laughing. Later, I tried to remember the last time I put a CD on and cranked the stereo... it was Talking Heads “Fear of Music,” back in the spring, because it came with a 5.1 (or 7.1) mix on a DVD. Before that, maybe last year sometime with Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon?”

Sitting down and listening to music is fading as an activity. It’s something we don’t even do at a concert or show – we’re texting or chatting or holding up the camera-phone to get a pic of the show or grab some video for YouTube. It’s only when I go to see jazz when I find an attentive, into-it crowd – mostly. And it’s everyone, not just folks younger than I am (although they do have more experience with the multi-tasking, since it’s their life). When did that go away, with the Walkman? The iPod? Or can we trace the erosion all the way back to the transistor radio?

So when’s the last time you sat down and just listened to an album? Which album was it? Let me know in the comments section, I’m interested in your response.