I played and composed/improvised as a teen, and having a half-assed stereo cobbled together from instrument equipment, I wanted more. So, the initial quest was getting more, better quality sonics from records. Eventually I got into the gear in the process--all ARC tubes and Quad Stats by the age of 20, and just kept moving, adding ribbons, woofer(s), changing gear.
I was also very interested in music history, at first the delta blues, which took me to Chicago blues, the Allman Bros at the time of the Fillmore East. Over the years, as LPs started to phase out, I got more serious about buying everything I could find, but really didn't "curate" it in a quality/historical progression sense until the early aughts.
I enjoy all aspects of this hobby/pursuit, from the music and sonics to the gear and history. That I worked as a consigliere in the industry (outside counsel as a copyright lawyer based in NYC, but the practice was really multinational) didn't hurt, but there was very little overlap between the many projects I worked on and my personal interest, with a small handful of exceptions.
Now, in my dotage, I listen to obscure jazz, favor Cecil McBee whenever I can find him on a recording and don't worry about the good/better/best thing. I run two systems- one that is my effort at state of the art and another which replicates what I ran in 1975. I enjoy both, and added digital to the mix for access to more content.
I also like to write and research many subjects relating to the field and some of my essays are in the National Recording Registry. But the biggest gratification I get is to talk to the music makers and people behind the scenes, many of whom have left the mortal coil.
I've been an expert witness in some notable proceedings and taught in media rights field at UT Law. So all of this is part of a big circle for me. As I age, I appreciate how ambitious I was as a youngster, and am thankful for the breaks I caught at being in the right place at the right time.
