The Bongo Beat Newsletter – Spring 2020

The World Has Changed but We Still Have Music

In just a few short weeks, the world has changed due to the pandemic, but we still have music. When we left Tampa in February after the Florida Audio Expo, we didn’t know that it was very likely the only audio show we will attend this year. I know some folks think shows may not happen again until 2022. We sure hope that isn’t the case!

We fall into the high-risk group for catching Covid-19 due to our age and other health complications. And, since we live in the San Francisco Bay area, we are at an even higher risk because of population density. So, we have been staying home and letting our family members run errands for us. We hope you and your family are well and are making sensible choices.

We turn to music when we are going through a challenging time. At our house, we are currently transitioning to digital more and more and are enjoying the streaming services. There’s never been a time before when so much great music is available to listen to at home.

So, kick back and relax. This pandemic will pass. We look forward to getting back to a more normal life one day where we can see you at the shows!

Thanks for your support,
Jack, The Audio Beatnik (jack@theaudiobeatnik.com)
Becky (becky@theaudiobeatnik.com)

What We’re Listening To These Days

This is a typical picture of Jack listening to his home system with Duke, our Cairn Terrier. Duke’s taste leans to bluegrass and DAWG music. Jack’s taste is much more varied.

Jack recently wrote a post titled, “Experiencing Music at Home or Why I Own a Hi-fi System”. If you missed it, you can read it here. This prompted us to ask how listening habits may have changed with the pandemic. Here’s how our reviewers answered this question.

Adam LaBarge: “I have more time to listen to music, most days, but what I listen to hasn’t really changed, except that I’ve started to listen to KMHD (Portland Jazz Radio Station) on Saturday mornings. It is an amazing mix of “get your day ready” soul, jazz, and downtempo music. I found this station only after getting sick of NPR’s pandemic news. I suppose I listen to less metal as well since I tended to listen to that in my headphones or car while commuting to work.”

Drew Gagliano: “My listening habits haven’t changed dramatically during the pandemic, but since I’ve been working from home I’ve been able to log more time on gear in order to break it in. This allows me to listen to it in the background throughout the day, and then it’s ready to go when I sit down for a close listen.”

Ken Redmond: “Definitely listening to more vinyl. It takes time to listen to vinyl as you have to find the album, clean it and then get it on the turntable. It has been very rewarding as I find I am taking more time with my music and enjoying it more. I am also taking some of this extra time to catalog my 6,000 + Vinyl library as I literally don’t know what I have. These albums have been in rotation for the past couple of weeks:

A Little Touch of Schmilson in the Night – Harry Nilsson
Strange Trails – Lord Huron
Dreams and Daggers – Cecil McLorin Salvant
Mambo Sinuendo – Ry Cooder“