POWER PLAY: FORGET TECHNOLOGY, I WANT MY TURNTABLE

A few weeks back in this space I poked fun at local radio with the premise that if you expect fine and varied listening choices on the Cape Girardeau airwaves, forget it.

One area station, which I dubbed Sorta Rock Radio, invited me to their studio and put me on the air for while to discuss the subject and music in general. I must say they were a pretty gracious bunch.

In that column I specifically lambasted the Rod Stewart song "Leave Virginia Alone," a tune which they have the poor judgment of playing frequently. After reading about my undying affection for it, they were kind enough to give me my very own compact disc featuring that song. Thanks fellas. It now holds a very special place in the bottom drawer of my desk.

I don't wish to appear ungrateful, but I have tried to give that CD away to at least 50 people. No takers. But in the course of trying to pass on that wonderful gift I have discovered two things.

First, people really hate that song. When you try to give something away -- no fine print, no more CDs to purchase later at regular club prices -- and no one wants it, it should be clear, to invoke micro economics, that supply is exceeding demand.

To be precise, the supply of Rod Stewart in this market exceeds demand in the same way that the supply of venereal disease exceeds demand.

Of course, price is very influential on this economic rule. When something has the price of free and demand is still nonexistent, the providers of that good or service should immediately think about altering their business practices. That or get penicillin shots. (I hope the fine people at Sorta Rock Radio learn something from this little exercise.)

The other thing I learned is a surprising number of folks still do not own compact disc players. Almost half of those I tried to dump Rod's tune on said they do not have them. Of course, nearly all quickly responded, lest I get the wrong impression, that even if they had a CD player they would not want that particular disc.

I don't know why I was surprised to find this out. I myself only got one last year and then only because it was free. To return to our economic discussion, that was a case where even though there was low demand -- I really didn't want one -- the price was right.

I have been dragged kicking and screaming into the digital era. Despite claims since their introduction that CDs provide a much cleaner, crisper and supposedly superior sound, I am and shall always remain an analog man.

For electronically impaired readers, digital recording entails sampling music. That is, it is recorded in tiny little bits. Now, thousands of samples a second are taken, but something is lost in the translation. Analog recording on the other hand leaves the complete sound wave intact.

I admit my old vinyl records (yes, I still use a turntable) sometimes sound scratched and worn. That, for the most part, is not a problem with CDs. But when I, for example, listen to "Little Wing" by Jimi Hendrix on CD, something is definitely missing. The best word to describe the sound is bland. Kind of like potato chips without salt.

Many say that is simply a purist's argument, that I, like those still complaining about artificial turf and the designated hitter in baseball, am simply nit-picking and that the benefits of CDs far outweigh the drawbacks. But in music, as in baseball, a good bit of the enjoyment comes from the subtle nuances. CDs in many cases sterilize those aspects.

But one thing is irrefutable: No amount of technical tinkering in the world can improve Rod Stewart.

Marc Powers is a member of the Southeast Missourian staff.