Unique Among Genres.

On looking down the YouTube recommendations tonight, I was reminded of a time when I listened to blues music quite a lot. I’ve also known a few other people who were blues fans. I remembered what kind of personal mindset prevailed at the time, and what kind of people those others were, and a speculative thought presented itself:

It seems to me that the people who listen to blues aren’t blue themselves. Rather they’re voyeurs who derive pleasure from vicariously experiencing the woes of others. And I don’t mean that harshly – it’s no different from reading a sad story or watching a sad film. The point at issue is that I can’t think of any other musical genre which performs such a singular role.