Yeah alright I spend a lot of time in Starbucks because they have one in my town that occupies an old nail factory with stuffed chairs and lots of space to get lost in and winter drives you to find people to convince yourself the whole world didn't run away while the sun shines on the Southern half of the United States. But one of the hazards or causalities if you will of working in a public place is you are fair game for marketeers who carefully figure out who is scribbling away in the corners of the coffee house and would they be so inclined to buy something other than coffee?
So I am working along listening to this very interesting music and of course I bite the hook and ask the girl behind the counter, pardon me, who is this? Oh that's Josh Grobin. Hmm. Back to work but I continue listening and sure enough when I go up for the refill there is old Josh himself staring at me with a scarf wrapped around his neck looking very European and New York if that is possible. While I stare at him he continues crooning in a sort of updated Bocelli way for the hip crowd and I pick up the CD and note the price and feeling very adventurous I buy it. Sixteen buckos.
History. I haven't bought a CD for ten years. I download like everyone else into my metal plate in my pocket and carry around twelve hundred songs in my IPOD classic. So, it is not like I don't have new music, so why in the hell did I just plunk down sixteen bucks for a guy I have heard all of three songs? Same reason I should go ahead and buy the memoir staring at me in the face about the kid in Afghanistan. Confluence of moments. I have been caught in the Starbucks snare. Drinking their coffee, buzzing on their caffeine, listening to their kind of hip cool music I become the Starbucks man and must have communion with the coffee gods by owning Josh Grobin!
So I go home that night still smelling of freshly roasted coffee and spin up Josh and sit back and listen to the songs I recognize and then all the songs I don't recognize and with a sinking feeling I realize I'm not so crazy about old Josh Grobin and did I momentarily lose my mind in plunking down the seventeen bucks with tax for this guy who I could have just picked a couple of songs up for a few bucks?
With heavy heart I burned Josh Grobin into my IPOD to take his place among the thousand plus songs. Next time I go to Starbucks I will not be so taken in...although that memoir did look kind of interesting. Maybe I'll just read a couple of pages tomorrow when I order another cup.
http://www.billhazelgrove.com/
Rocket Man will be out in January
