Streams are made of this: will digital platforms change our musical memories?

The second we get in the car, my son strikes up his familiar tune. "I want my playlist, Mum!" Put your belt on, young man. I get a second's sweet peace as I hear the clunk-click. I need my playlist right now!" The playlist of my nearly-nine-year-old's favourite pop songs, usually on shuffle, starts to shake through the car. I give in to his nagging often, but I know why I do. I remember the joy of becoming a music fan, discovering new sounds, worlds and ideas through verses and choruses, through the giddy rushes of rhythms and melodies. I also know that my experiences were very different to his. At his age, I had to hang around the radio for hours or wait until Top of the Pops every Thursday, hoping that a song I loved would appear. These days, my son just asks Alexa. By my early teens, if I wanted to own an album, the process was a little more convoluted: save £9.99 of pocket money, beg my mum to drive me to Woolworths five miles away, pray that they had it, and if they did, play it ...