Progressive rock and metal
Many metal sub genres, excluding the most extreme stuff like grind core
Classic rock. 70’s was king
Old school hip hop and rap
Roots reggae
Classical/orchestrated music
Some blues

Dislike:
Modern pop (borderline hate)
Country

Acoustic. Americana.

I played classic rock when it was new and for decades after that in clubs and I'm simply tired of most of it.

I wish Sara Watkins would sing every song ever written with her brother playing his old Gibson. That would be a nice collection.

Gillian and Dave. Kristin Andreassen.

Radio Heartland stays on a lot.

With the exceptions of speed metal and opera I'm in on just about every kind of music.

I was exposed to everything growing up from classical to 70s New York Street rap. I thank my parents for that.

Result: today I listen to everything (not all of it is good) but I try not to discriminate - having children in their early 20s provides opportunity to sample plenty of new music I wouldn't have sought out. I also have no problem listening to Bruno Mars, Johnny Cash and The Rolling Stones back to back to back.

Reminds me of a discussion at work about music the other day. I pitted this piece [“Summer” from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons] up against any guitar solo, any vocal performance, any jazz improvisation from any genre in any era. It has as much ferocity as Eddie Van Halen’s Eruption IMO and it was composed in 1723.

The cream rises to the top regardless of genre. If it's good, I'm listening to it.

Most all my current listening falls into the categories of “Americana” singer-songwriter stuff and contemporary “Newgrass” type acoustic material.

I also have a “Jazz guitar” channel set up on Pandora, which is pretty broad-ranging, everything from Django and “jazz manouche” to Lenny Breau and Alan Holdsworth.

I'll listen to almost anything; but I can't get into jazz or lounge music.

This is pretty much where I am, but I'd add "cookie-monster metal"!!! Not my thing.

I struggle to find enjoyment if the vocals aren't pleasing to my ear and that is certainly subjective for the listener. But I like to think I'm open minded enough to get past that if the music still somehow moves me. An example is Tom Petty. For years, I wasn't really a fan, but eventually after playing his music in bands, grew to really appreciate how good the songs and the sound of his band was. I'm now a fan!

Alternatively, there are vocalists who have voices I enjoy so much that they could sing about anything and I'd find joy listening.

As I think about it, another style that just doesn't resonate with me is what I consider intentionally complex music that seems complicated for the sake of being complicated. That could be hard core jazz, some prog rock, etc that to me, is just not enjoyable to try to digest. I'm mainly referring to odd time signatures that to my ear, just don't flow or groove. I like to be able to tap my foot and relax and enjoy. When some venture into a place where I'm struggling to find a beat it sometimes just isn't pleasing to me. A lot of Rush and Yes falls into that category. I appreciate the skill, but it doesn't move me. Both of those groups have put out music I enjoy. But some just goes into territory I don't enjoy.

I definitely like the music I like and don't care for the rest of it . Sounds trite perhaps, but genre or type really has very little to with it

As part of this, what kind of music and or artists can you appreciate even if you don't listen to them or like them?

As an example... I am not a huge Rush fan. I like a few of their songs, sometimes. That said, I appreciate their musicianship a great deal.
I especially think Neal Peart is a phenominal musician, drummer. Perhaps, the best rock drummer out there.

I always thought Steely Dan were some of the most outstanding studio musicians who's lyrics were predominantly not personally interesting .

I like music mostly. It that a genre? :)

There are pieces and players and styles that I won't be in the mood for sometimes, and other times where I want exactly what they do and nothing else. But over time there's no pattern of limit I can discern with my music likes.

60's and 70's rock and roll
Outlaw Country
Beethoven & Dvorak
Folk music from various countries
Big Band from the 40's
Blues
And whatever you call Gov't Mule, Neko Case, Shawn Mullins, Cage the Elephant, etc. Indie Rock?

I agree re: Rush. I admire them but don't really care to listen to them much.

Another band I admire and respect but don't really get into listening to much is the Grateful Dead. I WANT to like their music more (and do like some of it) but it largely leaves me flat and bores me.

They seem like really cool guys, great musicians and I appreciate their blend of so many genres. I also get the superfan Deadhead movement and the band's place in history. Most of their recordings just don't grab me much.

It's been a long journey....


Grew up listening to Nat King Cole, Dean Martin, Johnny Cash, The Monkees, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Cowsills, 1910 Fruitgum Co., Guess Who, Neil Diamond, Carpenters, etc.

At 16 I started playing in a classic rock band - we covered all the obvious: Aerosmith, Kansas, Rush, Zepellin, AC/DC, Foriegner, Rainbow etc.

A year later I started working in a record store and my horizons expanded very quickly. It was the late 70's and contemporary jazz caught my ear - Metheny, Jean Luc Ponty, John Klemmer, Grover Washington and all the great CTI stuff, Sanborn. Then I started going backward and listening to more traditional jazz from the 50's and 60's.

In '82 (worked at the store until '87) I quit playing in bands and started doing solo work.....and a very large portion of my music turned to the great singer songwriters - I'd already been a huge fan of the Chapin/Croce/Denver/Taylor stuff, but I dug deeper into the more obscure artists. Also started digging into contemporary bluegrass/newgrass and acoustic jazz (HUGE Stephane Grappelli fan).

Just before I left the record store, I started being quite interested in high quality audio, and my listening habits morphed into pretty much acoustic only instrumentation. My goal was to reproduce the sound of an acoustic band on a stage in my listening room. I became more and more critical of recording quality, sound stage, vocal height etc and searched for recordings that accurately reproduced that.

I don't spend nearly as much time listening as I used to, but still have all the music collection that I will take to my grave. In about '91 I reduced my vinyl collection from about 3200 to about 500, and then did another cut down to about 350 10 years ago or so. Most of what left was collectible rock and roll stuff, keeping the acoustic/jazz/singer songwriter artists I knew would still be relevant in my rocking chair days.

I listen to various fingerstyle artists, but I like music from country and bluegrass right through classical. It has to be pretty bad for me not to like it.