The Gap Between The Generations.

[doghouseriley]

We were having problems with the old Tivo boxes, so a Virgin engineer came yesterday to install two Virgin 360 boxes. I guess he was in his late twenties. Whilst he was waiting for them to download the software, he noticed my two Rock-Ola wall boxes that select mp3s in our front room, as he'd no idea what they were. 

So I demonstrated one. It takes the old 10p and 50p coins. He noticed the jar of them I had next to the box. He said he'd never seen any before and asked where I got them.

I said I'd got some from a charity shop and friends and relatives occasionally found them in drawers at their homes and gave me them, so I have quite a few.

"But what do you do when you run out of them?"

"I unlock the box, take them out and use them again."

[marcel]

Same story here in Holland. People are amazed when I explain the working of al wallbox. They can’t believe they can be operated without bluetooth. Also the dimes.. were do they go to?

[doghouseriley]

Explaining that you don't have to have any rubbish "B" sides using iTunes playlists, means nothing to them either.

I also like to tell this story to those old enough when I demonstrate my vinyl jukeboxes.

"Remember the days when you walked into a crowed pub and saw a jukebox. Went up to it and put a coin in and selected a record?

You then went to the bar, ordered a drink and sat down with it. After a while, "your record" came on. Well, it didn't matter how many people had chosen the same record before, or after you, it would only play it once."

[richmyers]

When my kids were in high school and we hosted birthday parties....or whatever... I recall one young lady asking....regarding my W2800..."Where are the CD's." I explained these are not CDs...but 45rpm singles. About 15 minutes later I notice her still standing at the machine. I asked what was she looking to play. She replied she didn't know how to make it work. A little instruction...and they were off..rocking and rolling.

[phillg]

I moved recently and hired some help - turned out to be three "kids" probably in their early twenties. They were very good - careful with our stuff and worked very hard. When it came to my jukebox, they were fascinated by it. I had to explain that it played records (and, then, what records were). I said that it sounded really good too. Immediately I was asked "What, it actually works?!". They couldn't believe something that old actually still worked.

At the end of the day, I could hear (and see) them all whispering to one another and pointing then one eventually walked over and asked gingerly whether they could put a song on to see the juke working - it's a Wurlitzer 2400 so you can see the record lift and play. I told them how to use it, one picked a song and they all stood there and watched as it played out - clearly the highlight of their day!

[marcel]

Reading all the comments and replies above I realized things will get “worse” in the future. I am in my sixties now and even have little memoties of jukeboxes standing in cafés or dance halls. My two sons ( in their twenties) don’t even play CD’s to listen music. They tell me that even CD’s are products of the stone age…
Last week I bought a Seeburg 100A with the original 78 RPM. Records are comming in now and my sons are fascinated by them. The weight, the grooves…. And bakelite… they only know bakelite from the steeringwheels of old cars..For them, music is for free and come from space… ( internet).

[phillg]

I have a five year old son - he was asking me the other day why a song had "Single Mix" next to the title, so I explained about albums and singles and even as I said the words, I realized it's a world he'll never live in. Younger generations don't really buy albums any longer since everything is streamed - they just listen to the songs they like, so they don't experience "B sides" or even album tracks in some cases since many times they don't even listen to albums. It's a totally different way to experience music.

I'm in my early forties now and I know I'm an oddity for my age - I don't have any smart devices or use streaming music services. My kids are probably the only ones in their school who don't know you can talk to modern technology (since we don't have much), but they're also probably the only ones that know what vinyl records are.

[dhutton]

My daughter is 30 now, but when she was in elementary school, the teacher would sometimes play oldies (or what I consider oldies - 50's and early 60's pop). She would be sitting there singing along with the song and her classmates would ask her "How do you know this song?" She would answer "My Dad's jukebox."

Phill mentioned how the younger generation just listens to the songs they like - I remember buying an album for a song or two that was popular at the time, but would play the whole album straight through. I got to hear so many great songs that I never would have heard if I just downloaded the single.