Digital music, we gained but we lost

When digital music came along and first we had CDs, then mp3s and now streaming, it all seemed so good, so much music and mostly free.

We lost a lot too though. I often think of the opening lines to Wings "Hi Hi Hi" -

Well, When I Met You At The Station

You Were Standing With A Bootleg In Your Hand.

It was things like that, that actually happened, at least to me. I'd be waiting at a bus stop or on a train or having a drink etc and I'd see someone with an album (sometimes bootleg) and before you knew it a conversation would start and you'd part having had a great talk about music.

I'd spend hours in our local record store talking about and listening to music with the owner. Doesn't work like that now though for most of us, most stores have long gone.

Similarly, I'd go visit some of my friends and take a few albums with me. How did we just sit there listening and chatting for hours, we just did, no digital distractions. You'd talk about music, pass the album sleeves around and discuss the artist, the lyics etc. Of course now we have forums like this but what we gained with that, we lost something greater.

Your record collection was sacred, your treasured asset and you only lent to your trusted friends, them likewise. A newcomer to your circle would have to prove they took care of their albums before they got those privileges. You really got to know your albums in these days because your immediate choices were limited to what you could afford, what your friends had and of course the radio.

Now we have large digital collections or just stream everything and that's fine but I can't help thinking we lost more than we gained.