If you're like me, you love some music the first time you hear it. Other albums require repeated listening to grow on you. If you're old enough, there's music that has sounded great to you for decades. The appeal of other songs fades with time, sometimes even quickly.

Earlier this year, Eilen Jewell was featured at a UtahFM fundraising concert. In the weeks before the show, I revisited her album, Letters From Sinners and Strangers, which came out in 2007. I had listened to it when it was released and didn't really like it, even though it theoretically was right up my musical alley. When I listened to it again, I couldn't believe my previous reaction because I enjoyed it so much this time around.

I guess I got to thinking about this topic after my last blog on Tom Waits. As I promised there, I did revisit some of the more recent Tom Waits albums that I had dismissed pretty quickly. While I remain partial to the folk/jazz of his records from the 70s, I am happy to admit there are some songs on the recent albums that are sounding better to me.

I have to keep reminding myself that my response to music varies and may depend on the mood I'm in when I listen to it. As I get older I'm better at following my musical heart. Life's too short to listen to music just because some "expert" tells you it's good. But I've also become more patient and willing to put in a little extra effort with a new album from a favorite artist even if it isn't immediately appealing. There's no need to be embarrassed about your musical taste, even if the critics disagree with your choices. I'm reminded that Richard Thompson did a darn good Britney Spears cover a few years ago.

One of the great things about UtahFM is that you get to listen to DJs who are passionate about music and play what they love. There's no playlist coordinator (or computer algorithm) creating playlists. That doesn't mean you'll like every song you hear but at least you know the DJ is sharing it with you because they like it. That's the personal touch of community radio.