The other night,  I did an acoustic gig.   I don't mean I used my acoustic guitar as opposed to an electric.    I mean no amp,  no microphone, no gadgets.  I played for a group of people who had spent the day hiking in the woods.   The gig was at a small cabin in the woods playing for about a dozen people.   We sat around the wood stove with oil lamps and candles.   It was very intimate. 

I got to thinking about how important music must have been before TV and X-box and the internet,  or even the family radio.  A few generations ago,  before every teenager had his own SUV to drive,  and his own cell phone,  or his own wireless laptop,  the family sat in the parlor together while someone played guitar or piano or violin.  Not only was it a form of entertainment,  it was a way for families to bond and enjoy a common experience.   I think the average kid today would look at you like you had three heads if you suggested that some evening you turn off the TV, computer, cell phone, playstation, and ipod  while you all sit in the living room and listen to Uncle Ed play the accordion.