I recall spending a lot of time in record shops as a teenager

Searching for the albums of my favorite artists and even standing in line for hours to buy the latest new releases

All my friends had access to two distinct collections of vinyl records at home

There were the golden oldies classics that our parents had collected but we totally shunned them

We regarded our modern music, which our parents refused to listen to, as a monumental symbol of our teenage rebellion

Listening to music at home required access to record player and the occasion was often an excuse for teenage social gatherings

You could always tell how cool somebody was walking down the street or into a room by the album cover tucked under their arm

Cassette tapes allowed us to make incredibly poor quality recordings for playing over our cheap car stereo systems

We endured the poor sound quality because we knew of nothing better back then

CD’s came along and it was instant death for vinyl and tapes, suddenly the sound quality of music both at home and on the go improved dramatically

Fast forward to today’s era of music streaming and we not only have excellent sound quality but instant access to an infinite range of artists, genres and playlists

Today I can wake up to morning jazz, workout to a fast paced pop song, blast the house with heavy rock while vacuuming, chill outside with W Hotel Miami sounds and host a dinner party with a backdrop of super cool Japanese LoFi music

If I get really nostalgic I listen to early 70s classic rock, it conjures up memories of smoke filled dimly lit rooms, crackly vinyl record players, cheap booze, acne and teenage fumblings