Someone once told me that the only writing that will bring me money is a ransom note. Now I just need to compose one with three-part harmony and my music obsession might finally see some serious returns...

Yes, I've occassionally been concerned with what I've spent on my music habit. I've slowed down a bit but its not anything I'm getting away from. The actual music depreciates very quickly because so much of it will never be that collectible. But, it's part of my big jukebox that I get to enjoy.

The other part of the music habit for me is playing it. I've not come close to breaking even but that's not really the point. However, I've got a handful of guitars that are appreciating in value. We're quite disciplined with the rest of our lives so I'm confident that she'll still need me and feed me when I'm 64 (or 94...).

I bought my first 45 (Aerosmith's Walk this Way) in 1975 at the ripe old age of eight. A week later, I followed it up with my first lp (Steppenwolf's For Ladies Only). It has been a steady habit ever since. I do regret getting rid of my vinyl in the early 90s because it was too cumbersome to keep moving. Milk crates just weren't meant to be dragged across international borders!

I began buying CDs in 1987 and have amassed an immense collection. I have about a thousand readily accessible and literally have a couple dozen bankers boxes full of cds in storage - about a third are in my family's London flat and the rest in my utility room of my current house. It's not accurate to try to apply a dollar value to what I've spent because a great many of them are promos. I still pick up a handful a month. I've started to consume quite a bit from iTunes because of the convenience and the fact that I've pretty much always got an iPod near me. Helpful hint: harddrive space has never been cheaper!

Going through the stack from 2005 to prepare my "Best of", I counted 112 new releases. I think I paid for about half of them. The rest were promos / review copies, or gifts. This was down from 2004 and I expect 2006 to be about the same. I'm one of those people that actually buy CDs in airports...

I'm convinced my ears will give out before my wallet does so I look forward to several more decades of music accumulation...