Missing the charts

In pre-Internet times, local music charts were extremely important to me.  When I went to record stores, I always picked up KMJM surveys of the top R&B songs, top new jazz album lists from KWMU and WSIE, and top hits of the week charts from KHTK.  Looking back on them now, these thoughts come to mind:

• The oldest KMJM chart I have is from December 1981.  That was a strong month for pop and R&B, considering that Al Jarreau's "Breaking Away," "Just Once" by Quincy Jones & James Ingram, Prince's "Controversy," George Benson's "Turn Your Love Around," "Very Special" by Debra Laws, and "I Can't Go For That" by Hall & Oates made the station's top 20.
• June 1990 wasn't a great month for pop music, to judge from KHTK's top 30 charts.  I still listen to "Do You Remember?" by Phil Collins occasionally, I respect Mariah Carey's vocal acrobatics on "Vision Of Love," and I don't mind hearing Depeche Mode's "Enjoy The Silence" once in a while.  Otherwise, however...
• I'm still impressed by the degree of good taste in the KWMU and WSIE new album picks.  I'm glad to see Jimmy Smith, Cassandra Wilson, Art Blakey, Marian McPartland, and Marcus Roberts, among others, given their due.  
• It's a shame to see some songs and albums fade into obscurity.  A certain amount of that is inevitable with the passage of time.  Does anyone remember, for instance, the "Cracked Sidewalks" album by tenor saxophonist Rich Halley?  It was on KWMU's March/April 1988 chart, but if I've heard tracks from it, I don't remember them.
• In July 1986, KWMU welcomed Will Ackerman, Michael Hedges, and Shadowfax to the Fox Theatre.  Listeners could detach and mail a form from the bottom of June's best new jazz albums chart for a chance to win a CD player, a set of Windham Hill CDs, and two front row concert tickets.  Not a bad prize for just filling out and mailing in a form...

The most frequent recurring thought I'm having, though, in paging back through the charts is this: More power to any artist who was recording 30-plus years ago and is still going strong today.  For most musicians, artistic and commercial success isn't easy to achieve or sustain.  How, then, could I not applaud those who deserve and attain it?

My second most frequent thought: While I have much easier access to music charts online today, I appreciate the charts I have from the '80s and early '90s all the more.  Knowledge of music that sold and what aficionados appreciated was available then, but it wasn't as immediately accessible.  That makes me appreciate my tangible reminders of that music all the more.