Fantastic music at a rock-bottom price

Amazon is currently offering 100 digital albums for $5 each, and there’s great stuff to be had, either stuff you may have always wanted or things you wanted to check out but didn't want to pay full price.

A sampling of 100 albums on sale at Amazon this monthThe offerings cover all wide range of genres, and there are dozens on this list that I’d like to buy, but here are just a few that caught my eye in particular:

• Mazzy Star, “So Tonight That I Might See”
• Blind Boys of Alabama, “I Brought Him With Me”
• Small Faces, “Ogdens Nut Gone Flake” -- I did buy this one. I’ve, of course, heard of the Small Faces -- their lineup was loaded with stars -- but never really gave them the time of day. This is a fantastic journey (5 stars from All Music Guide) through bluesy pop, soul, psychedelia and spoken word. 26 songs for $5 -- hard to beat that, even these days.
• The Hold Steady, “Separation Sunday” (4 stars from AMG). I also bought this one, and am looking forward to diving into it.
• Joe Henry, “Blood From Stars,” (4.5 stars from AMG). Bought this one too. After one listen it didn’t hit me like Henry’s 2007 “Civilians” did, but I suspect it’ll grow quickly.
• Beach Boys, “Pet Sounds 40th Anniversary Stereo Digital”.
• ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, “The Century of Self.”

Prices are good through December. Lemme know if you find anything worth exploring.

"The Social History of the mp3"

Pitchfork has a long take on the 10-year history of the mp3 and raises a thought-provoking question: Will music over the last decade be remembered more for the technology or the music?

I tend to agree with author Erik Harvey in that the technology was the story. Just think past a few short years and marvel at what the mp3 spawned:

• Streaming radio
• Podcasts
• The spread of free music through file-sharing networks like Napster (remember them) and BitTorrent.
• iTunes and the iPod
• Emphasis on singles rather than albums
• Immediate release of music, including tons of live shows, what would have been B-sides and rarities, etc.
• The deterioration of the record labels and the birth of self-sustaining bands.

And that's just music. We're not even touching the side effects that include YouTube, Flickr, etc.

Set aside the debate over the poor quality of mp3s (here's my take), and it's clear that we'll look back on these days at the technology, not Black Eyed Peas