Phil Collins Still Sucks

Let me preface this by saying that I am not a big music guy. All the tunes that I listen to are on my radio when I am driving around town. I have not bought a new CD in two years and the only current "music" that I pay attention to is on American Idol.

I have old man's disease. Most of the new stuff I hear all sounds the same to me. I do not have the time or the energy to figure out what is cool and listen to it. I used to watch MTV to stay current, but they stopped playing videos a while ago. I guess that is when I stopped paying attention.

The music that I do listen to is old and familiar. The radio stations that I listen to play music from 1964 to 1995 in a variety of formats. There is the 80's station, the top hits station, the ROCK station, and Jack (or Howard or Phil or whatever). Even if you do not live in Sacramento I'm sure you have these stations where you live. Radio is the same all over the country.

These stations like to play music that is nostalgic, I can dig it. After all, that is why I listen. Hearing songs from my past can connect me to college, high school or different times of my life. Sometimes I hear songs that I have not heard in years and I appreciate them for what they are. Good solid tunes that I enjoyed when it was out. Hearing songs like, "Joey" by Concrete Blonde or "Mexican Radio" by Wall of Voodoo

I have a message for all of you younglings that did not grow up with the music of the 70's and 80's. Much of it really sucked. It was bad when it was first released and it is still terrible today. Now, I understand that there is a certain campiness to some songs from that era. They are so bad that they are good. Songs like "YMCA" or "Ice, Ice Baby" that were reviled when they came out are kinda fun to hear again when you least expect it.

The price we pay for hearing the music that we like or that we can make fun of is dear. For the life of me, I cannot fathom why anyone would want to hear Phil Collins or Genesis again. Or Mike and the Mechanics. Or Styx. Why oh why do radio programmers feel the need to play anything from Peter Gabriel's "So" album. Why on earth did I hear "We Built This City (on rock and roll)" by Starship when I was driving downtown yesterday?

This music was shoved down my throat when I was young. I survived hearing "Teacher, Teacher" by .38 Special three times a day for six months when I was delivering newspapers in High School. Yes I survived this music, but as you can see it has permanently scarred me.

Why am I forced to relive the trauma? Are people really clamoring to hear Ace of Base or Pat Benatar

I know what you are saying, "If you don't like it why don't you just turn the channel?" To you I say, "What the hell else am I going to listen to while my favorite AM talk shows are playing commercials?"