My iPod says 'Huh? How many people own this thing?"  I have everything from broadway to metal, country to classical on that thing.  I put the poor thing on shuffle and it's playing Brooks & Dunn one minute and the Beastie Boys the next.

My iPod DEFINITELY says I am stuck in the '90s.  I keep telling my husband that I need to find music that isn't at least 10 years old to put on my iPod.  But, it never fails, when I go online to buy more iTunes, I end up hitting the 80's and 90's collections to add more songs that I realized I couldn't live without..Recent additions: "Wannabe" (yes, I know it's the Spice Girls, but I have fond memories of MALE college friends dressing up as them for Halloween), "3AM Eternal", "The Sign" (Ace of Base), "Rhythm Is a Dancer", "Hold On" (yes, by Wilson Phillips), "Jump Around", the Tom Cochrane version of "Life is a Highway."

I just can't seem to find a lot of newer music that holds my attention like my old faves...I still find myself listening to Live and Dave Matthews and Weezer (Green Album and earlier) a lot of the time...Of course, my iPod has a lot of their stuff to choose from since I have so much of their music...

Wow, that's depressing... a 29 year old feeling 'old' because her iPod music is from the 90's? Sheeesh.....

I've got 3500+ tunes on my iPod, and I'd bet that fully 1/3rd of them are from the late 60's to the early 70's... and I probably don't have anything at all from the last 10 years, save for a few big hits.

The simple truth is that for most people, the music they listened to in their teens and 20's is probably the stuff they'll listen to for the rest of their lives, and think was the era of the best music.

Thankfully, a few acts survive. I was listening to Led Zep back in my college days (69-74), and they're still alive and kickin'.

I have to tell you that I am also stuck in my younger years. I am 25 years old, and all of my cd's are from the 90s. I have 90s compilation CD's. I even have CD's of classic rock that was out before my time - i.e. Led Zepplin, Aerosmith, Rolling Stones, Rush, etc. I am a HUGE hair band fan.  I love me some Bon Jovi, Nelson, Mr. Big, Poison, GNR, Ratt, Twisted Sister, Motley Crue, etc. Even pop from the late 80s to 90s, NKOTB (which I am going to see for there reuion tour), Tiffany, Debbie Gibson, New Edition, Janet Jackson, etc.  

I do have very few in my collection from 2000 and beyond, anything by Britney, some N'Sync, and Kelly Clarkson. That's about it. When I turn on the radio to the "pop" channel, I cannot stand what I hear. Nothing sounds amazing anymore. It seems like most bands/artists, are one hit wonders.  Not bands that will stand out in 20+ years.  Take for example GNR. Put on one of their tracks and tell me it does not get you excited, because it does for me. I used to have satellite radio and only listened to the 80s and 90s channel. Now that I only have "regular radio" I listen to the Classic Rock channel (which on sunday nights plays Dee Snider's House of Hair!!).

I mean, my 10 yr old step daughter ROCKS out to the Hair Bands with me, and she's actually going to NKOTB with me as well.  I want Hair Bands back, not the emo-rock that comes on today.

I'm 41 and have "younger" taste than you.  Sure, plenty of NIN and RATM, but also Silversun Pickups, Vampire Weekend, She Wants Revenge, Kate Nash, Raconteurs, etc.

Yes, older stuff like The Smiths, Cure, and, yes, Rush.

Still not quite as cutting edge as some, but still: catch up!

As a fellow 29 year old, don't feel old because your music has been around for half your life. Look at that music as a time warp back to your youth, and consider these songs old friends. No matter who comes through your life whether it be a spouse or children, you'll always have this extended family...even if that family includes "the downward spiral"

The play count in my iTunes would tell you I listen to way too much Pearl Jam.  

Hopefully that'll cover up the Mariah Carey tracks...

I'm in my mid 40's and most of my music selections are from "my" era, Pink Floyd, Metallica, Kix, etc. But I do have songs of numerous artists from the past decade or so that I really like such as My Chemical Romance, Skindred, 30 Seconds to Mars, Black Eyed Peas, Cop Shoot Cop, Disturbed, Franz Ferdinand, Kasabian, Marcy's Playground etc...

I'm 28 and I do feel old at times looking at my Ipod. It holds everything from The Beatles, Led Zeppelin and The Doors to Metallica, Guns N Roses, to George Strait and Garth Brooks, to Rhianna, Beyonce, and Christina Aguilera. Toss in a few of my favorites at the moment Buckcherry, Daughtry, and Breaking Benjamin and I think it's pretty spread out the way anyone should have their collection

I've got over 8,000 songs on my iPod (which resides 99.9% of the time in glovebox), ranging from classical to heavy metal to blue grass.  It can be a humorous moment when the it shuffles from Frank Sinatra to AC/DC then to Bill Monroe.  I'd like to think I have a nice balance of genres on it.

I tend to like music from the 70s and 80s the most, but I do load it with current Country and Alternative as well.

Currently, it's set to play from the entire library so I do get the occasional Christmas song thrown in, which gets skipped at this time of year.

WOW!!  Then I will be considered ancient history.  Most of my music is from the 60's & 70's.  I have a few 80's and 90's.  Most of the music today does not move me.  It's more noise than lyrics.  Oh well, what can one do.  LOL!

My iPods would say they are stuck in the 80's and early 90's. Like you, I find it hard to get excited about some of todays music. Some of its great, but the oldies (and its hard for me to think of the 80's as oldies) is what does it for me. I also have everything from country to funk on mine. Depends on my mood I guess. Thats the great thing about players like the iPod.....diversity.

Seems to be the same for me...my wife always knows when a song from my high school/college years comes on the radio - she just has to look over and see if I'm singing along to it!

I have complete collections of Rush, Yes, Steely Dan, Guns and Roses, The Tubes and Tower of Power on there among a million songs from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and even 00s, even a small selection of songs from before the 60s and a whole lot of Jazz and Classical music.  I like Soul/Funk/Motown, Rock and Roll, Jazz, Classical and all fusions thereof.

It's interesting: it wasn't until I got an iPod two years ago that I really became aware of the music scene.  I'm 27 now, and more than half of my collection is just from within the past decade.  I've really fallen in love with indie rock/pop/alternative music, and bands like Death Cab for Cutie and Stars take up a lot of space.  But I'm also expanding and exploring and getting back into music from my childhood/teens, like The Cure, Depeche Mode, and The Bangles.

I'm 27 and depending on what's playing on my MP3 player I either feel old or like I need to grow up.  I've got the complete Pink Floyd catalog and lots of classical stuff.  And my guilty pleasure...loads of Robbie Williams.  And from the "I need to grow up" department, I've got My Chemical Romance and AFI and lots of J-Pop stuff.  My husband can't figure out my whole Japanese rock fixation but what can I say. :-P

I doubt that anyone would guess my age based on the contents of my iPod. Hit shuffle and you might hear:
- Artic Monkeys
- Ennio Morricone
- Gnarls Barkley
- Thelonious Monk
- Interpol
- Jethro Tull
- Henry Mancini
- U2
- Phillip Glass
- Boards of Canada
- Pink Floyd
- Vampire Weekend
- Can
- Nick Drake
- Jerry Goldsmith
- The Pixies
- Charles Mingus
- Pere Ubu
- Glenn Gould
- Patsy Cline
... and on

People who limit themselves to one genre of music (such as Top 40) are like people who never travel outside of their state. They're depriving themselves of cultural enrichment.

OMG - you're 29 and you're using the term albums?!  I'm 51 and even I've shifted my brain to the term CDs.  Although the other night we did just convert a bunch of albums into CDs.  

I'm with Sarah Marie - my iPod looks like a family of 8 uses it.  I've got everything from Latin Jazz to pole dancing music to NIN.

Im 20 and most of my music is much older. Im talking Otis Redding, Sam Cooke old. good music is good music.

So is the question that you really prefer to listen to the same old songs, excellent as they may be, or that you don't enjoy the timbre and quality of "whats-hot" in pop music right now?  Perhaps you just need to find contemporary music that appeals to your established music tastes?

Visit PANDORA.COM  No, this is not a shameless plug.  You tell the site what songs or artists you like, and it plays stuff similar to it or what it thinks you might like based on your input.  It'll probably give you all the songs you like, but every now and then it tosses in something completely new that fits with the "oldies" and you'll be dying to go and buy it.  It has really broadened my musical library!

As a semi-pro musician, I've noticed over the years that many people's fave music comes from their teens and twenties, they seem to get their musical tastes stuck. 20-30 years may have passed since then, and they still listen, almost exclusively, to music from their youth (not everyone is like this).
I do try to keep up with current music and trends, but I'm rather selective - what's on MY iPod isn't any current pop singles - the music has to be good, and the lyrics must speak to me (which pretty much eliminates rap and hip-hop).
Don't worry - I'm NOT gonna be a retiree wandering around singing 'Ice, Ice, Baby' ....

I'm 45 and never got rid of my vinyl records from my high school days, even though it has been over 25 years since I owned a turntable to play them on.  This year I bought a USB turntable that connects to my computer and was able to "rip" my old music down to MP3s.  That was the day I bought an Ipod.  My play list is vintage 70's and 80's album rock, from Cheap Trick to Boston to Styx to Meat Loaf to Gary Numan.  I also have 3 KTel compilation albums from the 70s on my Ipod Classic.  Now, I've framed some of the best album art from my collection and it decorates my office.

At 38, I guess I truly am old. 90's are old? 60's? I've got stuff from the eighteenth century. Yeah I got some classical. I've also got a healthy selection of 50's through today. Eclectic? I mentioned the classical, I've also got the Sisters of Mercy, Johnny Cash, Prince, Iron and Wine, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Devatchka, Po Girl, the Clash, the Pines, Michael Franti and Speerhead, and dozens and dozens more in there. What I don't have a lot of, is mainstream pop from today. Boring, for the most part, I'm afraid. There's some good stuff coming out now days, just not a lot of it making it to the radio. That's why I have an Ipod in the first place.

It's good to know that I'm not the only one who thinks music from this decade is boring.  Mine is mostly 60s, 70s, and 80s.  The only music from the 90s is from classic rockers like Springsteen, AC/DC, etc.  I consider most of the rest of 90s music to be a yawn, too.

Kris Spencer,

My guess is you're late 30's to early 40's. That's my guess because I'm seeing titles that are also in my collection.

Gen-X tends to listen to a broad range. Am I close?

I felt the same way. My music definately shows my music is mostly from 60s - 90's.  My genres are all over the place, but basically limited to current music. I'm 38 and I just got an iPod in January and was feeling older and out of place not having one.  I absolutely love it.  I actually  listen to podcasts, more than music.

It's still an "album" - a collection, like your photo album is a collection of pictures. Even if it's on a CD, it's still an album of music. Now if they had said "record" or "LP", then you would pretty much have to give them a hard time! I'm with you; my iPod collection is eclectic, eclectic..Bluegrass, Opera, Folk, Country, Pop...that's what's so great about being able to download one song at a time.

my pod is full of everything i think im the only person who will be listenign to rob zombie and britney on the same playlist.  i love some old stuff but i love listenign to new songs even if they are one hit wonders i find i like the songs more than i have loyalty to the bands.  but im totally into the new emo/pop/punk bands.  love em

There seems to be this notion that music HAS to be new or recent to be acceptable.  As a result, people fall into the trap of only listening to 'trendy' music or the top 40, if you like.  Compare most people's iPods and you'll find the same songs and artists.  Sad part is those same artists and songs are only a tiny percentage of the music out there.  Majority of people don't get outside the box of what they hear on radio, TV, or see in magazines.  Try going to a second hand tunes store and pick something completely at random and force yourself to listen to it.  Don't give up if the first thing you try doesn't sound so good.  Experimental listening is the best way to expand your music collection in a healthy way as it takes you out of your comfort zone and opens you up to other ideas.  One trap to stay away from is to pick an artist at random because he sounds like another artist you're already familiar with - don't do that, it'll just frustrate you because he won't sound as good as the artist you're already familiar with.  With today's digital download services, picking music at random should be simpler than ever (and cheaper too).  Sample music online before you buy - the caveat being only the more popular artists will be online.  for a true obscure random pick, you'll have to visit a second hand music store, or scour the web for blogs on the subject.


I still have stuff from the 90's, but I also have expanded my tastes to many other eras including big band jazz of the 30's thru 50's, lounge, exotica, surf, psychedelic rock, trance, classical, and so on.  The point being that different eras have different structures of music.  Older music tends to be more complex with 8 beat structures compared to today's 3-chord rock.  Now when I look on my 90's collection, I find it not very original or sophisticated after all the special effects have been stripped out.  Looking across my entire music collection, I can see a very definite trend line of music structure getting simpler and simpler with each decade.  the difference today is how much re-processing and special effects are added.  Pop music is becoming less music and more marketting for money making.  While yesteryear's recording technology was rather lacking, the quality of musical composition, in my opinion, was stronger.  But like mentioned above, the trick is to venture outside your comfort zone to try new things.

Long story short, if your iPod has the same songs on it today as your teen years, chances are you need to try something else and/or expand your horizons.

My MP3 has only 4 migs to it so I keep changing the titles around.  Like many of you, I have mostly stuff from the 70's and 80' with Barenaked Ladies the most "current" band.  Like many of you,  I like throwing the thing on shuffle and go from Frank Sinatra to Vivaldi to Jimmy Buffet to John Coltrane to the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.  What keeps me going these days in my so-called "twilight years", (I'm 50) is that in 20 years +, the stuff that is popular today will be on the "classis rock" stations and those people will wonder what the heck their kids are listening to.

At 39, my iPod would say I'm in my 50's.  I have great jazz, Coltrane, Davis, Holiday, etc.  I have some newer music, but when you have classics... who cares.  What music today will stand the test of time like Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue".  

My musical tastes are all over the place, so while I'm in my 40's, I have plenty of today's music on there.  Since I can't transfer my old albums (yet), I find myself purchasing or downloading my favorite songs from my youth.  So I have a wide array of songs on my iPod.

My husband, on the other hand, his iPod is stuck in "80's hairband hell!"

I am just glad to hear I am not the only one musically stuck in the 90's!  The only band I buy an album from the day it comes out is The Offspring.  They have been my favorite band since Jr. High, and no matter how old I get they always will be!  I'll probably be an 80 year old grandma still screaming the lyrics to "Bad Habit"!

I've set up my iPod with playlists from each decade.  They range from "60's Songwriters and Superstars" to "Y2K".  Then I set up playlists with annual increments since I purchased my iPod ( i.e.  "2006" through this year's "2008 is gonna be great" playlist ) with the idea that I'll combine them at the decade's end.  I'm surprised to see that you are still buying full CD's.  I haven't bought a new CD since "NOW that's what I call Music - 10".

Oh, our brains definitely get programmed with the music from our childhood and teen years. Even today, when I hear certain songs that I used to listen to on 8-track (!), my brain expects to hear that *click* of changing tracks at certain spots. I still have my old LPs AND a turntable. Can't say I use it much, though, except for the Beatles albums. My iPod has mostly 70s and 80s stuff. I do like some current things. Relient K and Vampire Weekend, for example.

I am in my 40's; have a lot of stuff, mostly older but half the songs are from the greatest group ever:
The Beatles. No one comes close to them. We still hear
about them today, i.e. a 1964 interview that just surfaced.

I'm 43 and my iPhone has mostly 80s and 90s music as does my 15 year old daughter.  Ozzy is playing now!

62, and 15,000 songs on my pod. On this morning's commute, a random shuffle included tracks by Tinariwen, Sophie Tucker, Joseph Spence, Blind Boys of Alabama, The Goodies, Ali Farka Toure, Slaid Cleaves, The Chambers Brothers, Los Lobos, Charley Patton, Miles Davis, Lucinda Williams, Chuck Prophet, Emmylou Harris, The Clash, and Sam Gaillard & His Flat Foot Floogie Band.

Go figure. :)

Radio?  Internet radio is where its at.  They play garbage on commercial radio (esp American and British Radio).

If you like "Indie" try dr.dk  the "Barometer" station.  Yes, it is Danish Radio.  YES, It is FRIGGIN GOOD.

I'm 32 so I am halfway to my deathbed apparently so take it for what it's worth! ;)

RATM more talented than Kid Rock?  Yeah, okay...

I think I have a good combination of present and past (though my present is mostly electronic music).  There is nothing wrong with filling an IPOD w/ Nine in Nails & Prodigy.  It does not get much better than that!

mp3's are souless. all the real music afficianados have gone back to vinyl anyways ;)

My IPOD says that I'm a raver (I'm not) because I only use it while I'm exercising.  I was big into the techno scene in the 90's and that kind of music is the only thing that seems to get my body moving.

I do listen to other things on the radio, that's just what's on my IPOD (LOVE Depeche Mode)

I agree though, I am 33 and most of what comes out today seems boring to my ears.

I'm 47 and have over 35,000 songs on my IPod,  that's right, 35 Thousand.... and it covers everything,  classical, rock, religous, jazz, you name the genre, I've got it.  and from the years of 1931 to 2008.  and the songs I keep going back to?  the 70's and 80's.  My teen years to the years I was going out dancing.  So yeah.. I agree... I'm stuck in the past.  but if I want to catch up, it's available at the click of the wheel

I'm in my forties and have quite a mix of things from religious, classical, rock, easy listening, country, blues, and pop. I agree with Matt, you should seek music beyond your music from your teens. If I hadn't done this, I would have never listened to Etta James,or my Native American music.    

Hmmm, if 29 is the new 60 as you imply, I hate to think where I am. Most of my music on the Ipod came out of the late 1700's to mid 1800's but I do have some swing and even some classic rock to give the 20th century its due. We won't discuss the 21st century. Not to mention, lots of Star Trek episodes (with characters named Kirk, Spock and Scotty) which this old dinosaur remembers from the shows initial run.

Its sounds like your ipod is telling you that if you don't watch out you're going to be some cranky old person that all the kids in the neighborhood despise.

When you close yourself off to new things you might as well crawl up and die.  Life is about experiencing as many things as possible whether its the first time you hear Mozart, the Clash or Salvador Santana.

My ipod says I'm older than you, but younger than you and and my musical soup is constantly getting new spices added to it.  

Quality music is just that: quality music.  As a soon-to-be 25 year old, I can proudly say that the majority of the music on my mp3 player is from the 60s and 70s, followed by tracks from the 90's.  I guess I have an old soul, huh?  

I am totally the same way! I am 30 and everything I listen to is from the 70's and 80's. I love classic rock , classic metal and hair bands. Most might think this music is outdated, but I don't agree. I think a lot of people are preferring music of the past over the present. Music today also sounds boring to me, and I just can't relate. It just sounds so young and juvenile.

If my iPod says I'm old, I don't care!

I'm with the people whose Ipod on shuffle makes one wonder if a family ranging in age from 16-82 shares one Ipod. In the last hour, my shuffle has gone from Ella Fitzgerald to Guns and Roses to The Beatles to My Chemical Romance to Dion to Beethoven to Johnny Cash to Meatloaf and now, Weezer.
I thought the music of my teens and twenties was getting the heaviest play but surprisingly it's Ella Fitzgerald, Death Cab for Cutie and Pearl Jam. I don't think that playlist gives any clue to my true age.

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