Most musicians sound much better in live performance than on CDs. It's because the technology has become so sharply focused on the nuance of every tone, that every note can be manipulated to its purest quality, that every voice can become crystal clear, that recordings are flat.

Back when technology was not as advanced, musicians experimented in the studio to create new sounds and moods. Voices and instruments faded from a left channel to the right. Effects were sparse and imprecise, causing something unique each time a musician turned on the tape to lay down a track.

Musicians and record producers could create a wall of sound not that long ago, layering and building until they had a full-frontal assault on the aural senses. Don't understand? Check out the early Stones recordings against the digital remakes. Listen to early Springsteen on vinyl, then pop in your CD. It's just not the same. Not now. Bits and pieces can be sewn together, thanks to the digital world we live in. The warmth of the old vinyl is gone. Those little pops and skittles were all a part of the process.

The arts are random; the arts are of the moment, then the moment's gone.

Dylan's right, as usual.

Everything today sounds too sterile.