--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I'm reviewing a record, man, I play…" description: "\"If I'm reviewing a record, man, I play that record to death, which is ironic in a way because if I review a concert I feel very confident in myself, ce..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/gary-giddins-25694_death_if-i-m-reviewing-a-record-man-i-play-tha_2759018.jpg" --- # If I'm reviewing a record, man, I play that record to… ![“If I'm reviewing a record, man, I play that record to death, which is ironic in a way because if I review a concert I feel very confident in myself, certainly at this point, and have for most of my career. You're only hearing it once and then you go to your typewriter and you write the review.” quote by Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/gary-giddins-25694_death_if-i-m-reviewing-a-record-man-i-play-tha_2759018.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/gary-giddins-25694_death_if-i-m-reviewing-a-record-man-i-play-tha_2759018.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/gary-giddins-25694_death_if-i-m-reviewing-a-record-man-i-play-tha_2759018.jpg) > “If I'm reviewing a record, man, I play that record to death, which is ironic in a way because if I review a concert I feel very confident in myself, certainly at this point, and have for most of my career. You're only hearing it once and then you go to your typewriter and you write the review.” [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He immerses himself in a record repeatedly before reviewing, unlike live concerts. **In simple terms:** Repeated listening informs reviews. Key Takeaway Listen deeply before judging. Themes music critique process attention craftsmanship Mood thoughtful analytical Type critical inspirational When to use this quote - album reviews - concert reviews - personal projects Key Concepts aesthetic theory critical listening creative process Questions to Reflect On - How does repetition shape perception? - Can you capture live energy in writing? A Different Perspective Time constraints may limit depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Concert Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concert-feel-680485/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Ironic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ironic/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Play Record](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play-record-561699/) [Review Concert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/review-concert-3155975/) [Reviewing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reviewing/) [Reviewing Record](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reviewing-record-3155974/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [When you fly to New York, sometimes they put you on hold and you just go round and around in a holding pattern. Sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-santana/when-you-fly-to-new-york-sometimes-they-put-you-on-hold-and-you-just/) [Carlos Santana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-santana/) > [I just want to be worthy. I just want to be able to make people understand that okay, Eddie is still good at what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-levert/i-just-want-to-be-worthy-i-just-want-to-be-able-to-make-people/) [Eddie Levert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-levert/) > [Just be comfortable. Sometimes, when open up for a bigger artist at a conventional concert, you can feel unwelcome. But when you're playing a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-staples/just-be-comfortable-sometimes-when-open-up-for-a-bigger-artist-at-a/) [Vince Staples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-staples/) > [When you go to a great concert, you feel this arc, almost like the music of a well-chosen set takes you on this trip…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-you-go-to-a-great-concert-you-feel-this-arc-almost-like-the/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [For 'Rock On,' we not only acted as rock musicians; we also went into the studio to record songs and jammed live to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farhan-akhtar/for-rock-on-we-not-only-acted-as-rock-musicians-we-also-went-into-the/) [Farhan Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/farhan-akhtar/) > [And they kind of left to find a guitar player at the very end, so you know, I don't really take it as any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-iha/and-they-kind-of-left-to-find-a-guitar-player-at-the-very-end-so-you/) [James Iha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-iha/) > [I don't think I could ever be in a band if we just had to go out there and play the record note for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-frampton/i-don-t-think-i-could-ever-be-in-a-band-if-we-just-had-to-go-out/) [Peter Frampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-frampton/) > [I like to present something that the people haven't seen or haven't heard before. Otherwise they might as well just stay home and play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbie-hancock/i-like-to-present-something-that-the-people-haven-t-seen-or-haven-t/) [Herbie Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbie-hancock/) > [“As you play this record, I hope you'll think of the good, not the bad. Of what was, not what wasn't meant to be.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-ford/as-you-play-this-record-i-hope-you-ll-think-of-the-good-not-the-bad/) [Jamie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-ford/) > [One of my great frustrations for 35 years at the paper was the fact I couldn't play a record for the reader when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hilburn/one-of-my-great-frustrations-for-35-years-at-the-paper-was-the-fact-i/) [Robert Hilburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hilburn/) > [Still being ambitious to want to play on the record, I was a mediocre keyboard player. And uh, I seized the opportunity and played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-kooper/still-being-ambitious-to-want-to-play-on-the-record-i-was-a-mediocre/) [Al Kooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-kooper/) > [I'll have the music, and then I'll just turn the microphone on, press Play and Record and sing. And whatever comes out ends up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-collins/i-ll-have-the-music-and-then-i-ll-just-turn-the-microphone-on-press/) [Phil Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-collins/) > [Disco was brand new then and there were a few jocks that had monstrous sound systems but they wouldn't dare play this kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grandmaster-flash/disco-was-brand-new-then-and-there-were-a-few-jocks-that-had/) [Grandmaster Flash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grandmaster-flash/) > [You know, I don't only play for the record books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-federer/you-know-i-don-t-only-play-for-the-record-books/) [Roger Federer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-federer/) > [Even the disc jockeys are saying, if I play your record, I made you. You got to play for me free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-guy/even-the-disc-jockeys-are-saying-if-i-play-your-record-i-made-you-you/) [Buddy Guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-guy/) ## More by Gary Giddins > [Even my colleagues don't read classic criticism. And my feeling is that if you don't do that then you're not really practicing your craft.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/even-my-colleagues-don-t-read-classic-criticism-and-my-feeling-is/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [I'm a critic. That means you are a writer. So, yes, you have to make yourself an authority on whatever subject it's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/i-m-a-critic-that-means-you-are-a-writer-so-yes-you-have-to-make/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [You're writing for some version of yourself. You're writing the kinds of things that you like to read or wanted to read at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/you-re-writing-for-some-version-of-yourself-you-re-writing-the-kinds/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [One of the things I always underscore when I teach criticism is that young critics, or would be critics, frequently have this illusion that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/one-of-the-things-i-always-underscore-when-i-teach-criticism-is-that/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [Writing style is something is a consequence of who you are. I think that I had a certain propensity for a style that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/writing-style-is-something-is-a-consequence-of-who-you-are-i-think/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [I think all of us begin as writers. I wanted to be a writer from the time I as eight, long before I heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/i-think-all-of-us-begin-as-writers-i-wanted-to-be-a-writer-from-the/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [Humility is a very important trait in a critic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/humility-is-a-very-important-trait-in-a-critic/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [People should not feel intimidated by received wisdom. You have to discover it yourself. If I tell you that Armstrong is great, it's meaningless;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/people-should-not-feel-intimidated-by-received-wisdom-you-have-to/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [I hate the idea of turning jazz into homework assignments. I would never have a quiz saying, "Who's the clarinetist on the Hot Five?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/i-hate-the-idea-of-turning-jazz-into-homework-assignments-i-would/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [Jazz is for joy. It's for euphoria, it's for emotion, and anguish, and excitement, and all of the joys that great art can produce,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/jazz-is-for-joy-it-s-for-euphoria-it-s-for-emotion-and-anguish-and/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [Bing Crosby said that Armstrong is "the beginning and the end of music in America," and he wasn't far wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/bing-crosby-said-that-armstrong-is-the-beginning-and-the-end-of-music/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [Nobody knows where jazz is going, because nobody has ever known where jazz was going. I mean, you couldn't possibly predict the Swing Era…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/nobody-knows-where-jazz-is-going-because-nobody-has-ever-known-where/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [When I teach criticism, the first thing I say, and this sometimes pisses off younger - I mean, students, is that, opinions are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/when-i-teach-criticism-the-first-thing-i-say-and-this-sometimes/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [If you're genuinely candid and expressive then you're never wrong, even when you are wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/if-you-re-genuinely-candid-and-expressive-then-you-re-never-wrong/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) > [You've got to have a gimmick if your band sucks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-giddins/you-ve-got-to-have-a-gimmick-if-your-band-sucks/) [Gary Giddins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) [Explore all 22 Gary Giddins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-giddins/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. 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He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) [J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/) > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-powers/) > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I'm reviewing a record, man, I play that record to death, which is ironic in a way because if I review a concert I feel very confident in myself, certainly at this point, and have for most of my career. 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