Do you have to be “in the mood?”

@rvpiano, unfortunately it sounds as if you're still held in the throes of audiophilia. I'd like to think I'm out of that bag now, the message has become far more important than the medium for me in recent years. Certain songs never fail to evoke emotions. Eg Another Girl, Another Planet makes me feel 18 again, Yesterday When I Was Young reminds me that I'm not. Ben (Marti Webb) never fails to move me, nor does Lili Marlene ( Lale Andersen). The Lighthouse Family's Lost in Space gets my attention whatever it's played on.

Perhaps you could try taking a musical trip down memory lane to help get your sense of focus back. Music matters, but only if it moves us. Best of luck.

Of course mood also matters, how could it not? With the right kind of company, the right weather, the right food inside me, and no discernible pain or worry of any kind, everything is better.

Everything. 

Yes indeed! For background sound I have an excellent FM station that broadcasts a quality signal: WUSF 89.7 Tampa. NPR during the day, All Night Jazz starting at 9 PM. Am listening right now to it on a vintage Diatone/Mitsubishi DA-F10 tuner - NPR' s All Things Considered.

Music is the closest art form to S*X! And like S*X one must be "in the mood" for it! Otherwise ...

... the experience is wasted!

Frogman and cd318,

You are both right.

I compose these posts because I have inconsistency in my listening experiences.   I over analyze as a means of trying to to obtain a better perspective.
 I also think others may have similar reactions and I wonder how they deal with them.

I do wish it were simpler for me.