Well, we live in a time when music is something that’s downloaded on a whim, and has as much long-lasting impact as that would imply. I’m reluctant to get into the habit of lecturing young people with “in my day..” rants though, it feels to me like music is somehow returning to its natural, pre-1950s state: just light entertainment. There was a glorious period of 40-plus years where rock music was enormously important culturally and socially – it’s hard to imagine anything today having any more cultural relevance than the latest 78rpm by the Mantovani Orchestra would have had in 1948 – but it was a wonderful thing to experience first-hand. Perhaps the internet itself has taken over that role to an extent?
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