It’s Tuesday, May the 10th and it’s 4:44 in the morning. I’m driving to the train station and turn on my radio which is tuned into my local NPR station. As I’m listening they are doing some quick promo for a story about an openly gay southern baptist being welcomed into a church. That is not the point of where I’m going, but rather the musical interlude that is played just after it. I’m a big fan of instrumental music and this piece really catches my attention. So as soon as I pull into the parking lot alongside the train station, which is kind of sparse at this time of day, and whip out my phone.
I open the web browser and after a quick Google search see that after typing in ‘NPR music’ that it pulls up a link that reads something like ‘Want to find out more about the music that plays during the interludes.’ Well golly-gee-willikers, it looks like this is not an uncommon occurrence. So a few clicks later I find myself looking at the song in question. It is ‘Heart of Nowhere’ by ‘Noah and the Whale.’
I then switch to my Amazon music app on my phone and type that in. Mere seconds later I find what seems to be the song. I click ‘hear the sample’ and immediately recognize the melody, only there is one problem. I can also hear the vocalist. DAMN FRIGGIN GOSH JEEPERS! I don’t want to hear the vocalist. I wanted to hear the pure melody and not, at least this is how is sounds to me, coffee shop voice. I’m sure he has a perfectly good voice but you have to understand that I really love instrumental music and I felt as if I was getting blue-balled here. You know the old bait-and-switch-a-roo.
The logical part of me knows the band probably had no part in getting their song selected by NPR and I shouldn’t blame them. Of course, I still harbor a bit of resentment but that’s because I am small minded. Most of my blame should be directed towards NPR and how they tease us with one version and not deliver on the other.
Hey NPR, how about giving us a link to purchase the version you played? Talk about giving us a way to help pay for the programming and not having to endure those stupid pledge drives?
Hello….?