Ron, I think you and Jim have both hit on an important aspect of the digital revolution. It does have the effect of causing one to give a lot of thought to the whole collection. Having had a lot of exposure to Jed, I can tell you that he always approaches the whole CD/album as a collection. The arrangement of the songs is a portrait he is putting together. These days, with individual downloads, one does not have the filler option as much as one did before. Gives the buyer a lot more latitude and causes the artist to approach the promotion a different way.

It also puts the actual CD in a different weight class. What used to be the prime way of selling ones music now becomes a product one sells by using individual tracks and live performances. My guess is that it also will be the second most popular way to sell one's music.

Jim, I always pay the artist when I record their music. Should I record your song, I will send the money. I believe one's work should be compensated. Comes from organizing workers, and being a union guy my whole life. Perhaps it is a cultural difference. One idea, should someone record one of your songs, might be to donate the proceeds to a charity you admire. I listened to that song and could just see, with the right setup (as I am sure you use), it could be a very funny song presentation.

Mick