Christmas at Tower

When I was a teenage kid, there was no greater thing to do on Christmas day than gather all your friends and go to....Tower Records. Yep, Tower Records. It was a tradition. A bizarre, consumer-ish, music-freak's tradition. But it was mine.

Just as a side-note, how bizarre is it that Tower Records made their employees work on Christmas? But that's beside the point.

We'd all have gift certificates to spend(see our parents were in on the tradition). And we'd all get that one album we were hoping for, but knew our parents would never know to buy. To this day, all I realy want for Christmas is music, or music making devices. Serious.

Now, our kids will probably never experience this tradition. Not just because it's a bizarre tradition, but because most record stores will be gone.

This occured to me yesterday when I saw a sign up at my local record shop, Streetlight Records, proclaiming the end of it's 32-year run on the street. Luckily, we still have some great record stores in this City, Amoeba and Aquarius being just two. But how long can they hold on?

Sure, Tower went out of business a few years ago (yes, I shed a nostalgic tear), but the local shops seemed to be doing okay for the time being. I know because I would ask, and cared (and not just because our record was selling in many of them).

It's sad to admit, but I know I'm one of the last crusty old fools who still buys music that you have to physically unwrap and place into some sort of music making device. Why do I still do it when I could search the web and find it for free? Because it feels good to have to work a little before listening. Because it feels good to hold something in your hand with the name of the band on the cover, and maybe some cool art or liner notes to keep my attention on the band a little longer. Because pushing a button on my iPhone just doesn't feel as satisfying (or sound 1/100th as good).

And because some traditions, no matter how goofy, are worth holding on to.