More Eclectic Than I Thought

In this absence of new television, I'm turning to music for background entertainment while I do stuff.  So I cranked up one of my regular playlists on my computer, and left it alon--

What the hell?

I happened to notice the "Genre" column for each song.  And let me tell you, this thing thinks I listen to way more genres of music than I think I listen to.

OK, yeah, some of it is solidly correct.  The selections from "Wicked" find themselves labelled "Musicals/Broadway."  John Cougar and Melissa Etheridge are in "Folk Rock."  The Moody Blues are "Psychedelic Rock."  All legitimate category calls.

After that, it gets a little wonky.  A few other showtunes (from "A New Brain") are identified as coming from a "film soundtrack."  Which is wrong, but at least the right section of Tower Records.  It's better than tunes from the musical "Assassins," which find themselves in the "Latin" section for no apparent reason.

Selections from the Broadway "Lion King" are "Alternative."  While Spin Doctors, which is the only band I listen to that could conceivably take the Alternative label, are instead called "Funk Rock."

And although Eileen Ivers is properly labelled as "Celtic," selections from the "Lord of the Dance" recording -- which strikes me as equally Celtic -- have been declared to be only "Mood Music."  (Don't say that in front of Michael Flatley -- he'll come over and step dance all over your butt.)

I've got a lot of Rock, Rock & Roll, Classic Rock, Pop, and even a small venture into "Pop/Hair Metal."  All of which I can accept.  The unfortunate labelling of "Son of a Preacher Man" as "Easy Listening" took a little longer to get over.  Easy Listening?  I'm still in my 30s.  Don't send for the oxygen tanks yet.

But the worst thing ... the thing my grew-up-in-the-80s self will never get over ... is what happened when I uploaded a track or two from Duran Duran's Greatest Hits.  (You know, for the nostalgia value.)  And my music software promptly called it "Teen Pop."  Sob.