So, why record what you've heard on the radio? Even someone with an extraordinary memory won't remember every nuance of every pleasant moment, so it's good to jump-start your memory with recordings. Even if some of your memories are just reminders of everyday activities, it's still enjoyable to look back.
An example: Unearthing a jazz program recording from KOPN in Columbia, Missouri one night in October 1990 brought back a flood of memories. I remember it was a cool night, and I was doing some reading for my 20th century American history college class. The DJ played both of my requests, "Quiet Storm" by Ramsey Lewis and Cannonball Adderley's "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy," which I appreciated.
I'm not sure I would have justified my recording in this way back then, but I especially appreciate how such recordings freeze time. As I wrote in a commercial about sports yearbooks that aired on KMOX, "You can't relive the past, but you can preserve it." Hearing a radio show from the past triggers so many memories and takes me right back to the time it was recorded. Hearing KOPN's jazz show from that Autumn night 26 years ago put me right back in my dorm room, hearing one compelling tune after another while I studied for an interesting class. That, in turn, triggered other memories of how I went on the air at KCOU the following year, played those Lewis and Adderley songs and many other enjoyable ones on the air, and met so many interesting people there.
None of us will remember everything, nor can we step into a time machine and go back to 1990. It's comforting to know that we can remember at least some of the pleasant times, however, thanks to our recordings.
