I'm probably one of those rare people who likes to listen to "filler" songs on CDs. In fact, filler songs are the only drawback for me now that I'm using my MP3 player more than ever. I've started to purchase new songs that I like in MP3 format rather than buying the whole CD, and while it is a lot cheaper, I sort of feel like I'm not getting the complete picture the artist intended.
When Amy Grant's released her "Behind the Eyes" CD in 1997, I bought it because I loved the first hit song from it called "Takes a Little Time." As I listened to the rest of the CD, I discovered so many other great songs that never got played on the radio.
One such song was "Cry a River"—a haunting song played on acoustic guitar about lost love. Toward the end of the song, Amy sings, "Some things you live with / And you never let it show / Like the pain I felt / The day I watched you leave." Who can't identify with such private pain? Couple such lyrics with music that reeks of reminiscence and you've got a song I'm going to listen to over and over again.
On the same album, she had a song called "Missing You" that she also played on acoustic guitar and it has a similar musical and lyrical vibe to "Cry a River." The part in the song that gets me is: "Missing you is just a part of living / Missing you feels like a way of life / I'm living out the life that I've been given / But baby I still wish you were mine." Maybe I'm attracted to this song as well because of the private pain aspect. I don't know. But, I love the raw honesty in these lyrics. Indeed, missing a former love is a just a part of living.
CDs are often a snapshot of an artist's current trials, triumphs, understandings, and misunderstandings. And not all such observations will lead to hit songs, so purchasing just the hit song is almost like saying that context doesn't exist—that every song stands alone. To some degree they do. But in reality, nothing ever stands alone. Every word, every action, and every thought is a byproduct of a previous word, a previous action, and a previous thought.
This is why I always listen to CDs from beginning to end—including the songs I don't really like. It helps me to feel more connected to the artist and I somehow feel like I have a better understanding of the songs I do like. So, I'm thinking that I may have to start purchasing full albums in MP3 format in the future so I don't feel cheated.
