Second Hand Tunes

"Second Hand Tunes" is the name of the local independent record (CD) store in my neighborhood. When I am feeling at loose ends and in need of a deep dive into an old school music retailing environment, I step into this corner shop. Almost all of the CD's are used, and therefore sell at a significant discount to the price of new CD's. This is a classic hunting and gathering exercise - you really don't know what you might find in Second Hand Tunes. I bought 10 discs for about $70. Here is the list:

1. Eddie Harris - "Eddie Who?"
2. Muddy Waters - "Hard Again"
3 Billy Boy Arnold - "Back Where I Belong"
4. Miles Davis - "The Best of Miles Davis: the Capitol/Blue Note Years"
5. J.J. Johnson - "Jazz Quintets"
6. Steve Miller Band - "Young Hearts/Complete Greatest Hits"
7. Robert Bonfiglio - "Through the Raindrops"
8. Bonnie Raitt - "The Bonnie Raitt Collection"
9. Bobby Blue Bland - "Midnight Run"
10. Solomon Burke - "Don't Give Up on Me"

Yes, I am heavily tilted towards old blues and R&B. And jazz. These musical forms pull on me - grab my head and my heart. They feel timeless and passionate to me. I have some rap and hip hop in my iTunes library, and I appreciate the talent it takes to perform in these genres. As Miles Davis allegedly said, "There are only two types of music - good and bad." But I get tired listening to all the spoken word stuff - I need melody, musical skill. Music is part of all cultures and throughout history it has served as a humanizing force that is common to all. Music connects the past to the present. Muddy Waters, Mozart and Dexter Gordon still speak to us today.