Music Stats: How Do You Listen To Your iTunes?

My iTunes library and iPod have a couple of thousand songs. There’s also a few dozen playlists. They’re mostly mix and match.

What do I listen to the most? How do I find out? What about you?

iTunes Statistician to the rescue. This excellent Mac application does exactly what you expect. No less, no more.

iTunes Statistician shows you what you’ve been listening to the most on iTunes. Pure slice and dice. DId I mention that it’s free?

Simply put, iTunes Stats pulls all the data from your iTunes library and shows you what you listen to, good or bad.

I’m certain you’ve been dying to know what’s in my iTunes library.

Pregnant women develop certain eccentric tastes in food, why not music?

Out of the just over 2,000 songs in my/our library, iTunes Stats says we’ve played more than 6,000 of them, the average song length is 3:48, and played just over 14 songs per day.

That’s about an hour a day and seems about right.

OK, these are stats that don’t mean much and they’re more of a curiosity than anything, right?

Let’s get to the really fun stats. iTunes Stats will list the Top 100 Songs, the Top 100 Artists, the Top Albums, and the Top Genres.

Since my husband and I manage the Mac together and keep our own playlists in iTunes, there’s a distinct mixture of music.

For example, played 58 times is Michael McDonald and Patty Labelle’s “On My Own.” I’m sure a psychiatrist would have fun with that, but it’s just a favorite.

On the other hand, coming in at #2 of the Top 100 Songs is my husband’s favorite, George Strait’s ”All My Ex’s Live in Texas.”

Is this indicative of a trend within our marriage. Subtle subterfuge, perhaps?

Rounding out the Top 5 is Kim Carnes great ”Bette Davis Eyes” (obviously about me), then Bonnie Raitt’s ”Something to Talk About” and, finally, James Galway’s ”Hamabe No Uta (Song of the Seashore).”

I don’t know how that got in there but statistics don’t lie.

iTunes Stats also shows that our favorite Genres are Rock, Country, Pop, Vocal, and Jazz. That sounds about right.

The Top Albums include 10,000 Maniacs ”MTV Unplugged” (mine), and ”George Strait’s Greatest Hits Volume Two” (his).

The statistics showing the blend of our favorite artists is even more revealing for what’s not revealed. Taste.

Bonnie Rait comes in at #1, followed by Steely Dan, George Strait, Sheryl Crow, and 10,000 Maniacs. See? Eclectic, but no surprise.

The rest of the Top 10 bounces over the music and artistic spectrum. Dave Koz, Dixie Chicks (I love “Goodbye Earl"), Norah Jones, Bela Fleck, Barbra Streisand, Randy Travis, Celine Dion, Garth Brooks, and Sarah McLachlan.

See? Opposites attract.

iTunes Statistician has only two flaws. The first is a nominal issue, the second is a must have.

The first is simple. Record stats on who’s listening to what song. Easier said than done, though it’s obvious from our playlist who’s a little bit country and who’s a little bit sophisticated, and thoughtful.

The second is also natural, though I’m not sure how the data would be or could be captured. iPod listening stats. Easily two thirds or our listening to iTunes music is on the iPod.

His iPod for his playlists. My iPod for my playlists. Getting those stats individually, instead of together would be cool.

Otherwise, iTunes Statistician is nifty, though it won’t get used often. Click Here for the details and download link.

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