Farewell, for a little while

It’s come time to say goodbye, if for a little bit.

My first semester as a full-time graduate student at the University of Texas’s School of Information just lurched to a start. It’s a turn of events that came only with a characteristically protracted process of procrastination, and I do miss the security of the old computer programming job that sustained me for seven years. But this, this decision – it seems inevitable now that I’m actually here. On Office Naps, discussing 45 rpm records always superseded news of my personal life, but it will likely come as little surprise to many readers that I am pursuing coursework in archives and preservation – audio, specifically. It’s exciting.

Photo courtesy Ron Slattery’s bighappyfunhouse

Office Naps was something I that began as spare time activity, a trifle for my own amusement. I just knew I wanted to discuss music. Thinking about music’s place in the context of American post-War history is a big thing for me. I wanted to freely elaborate on music and, moreover, I wanted to do so online, where much discussion about records is either acutely anti-intellectual or mired in hopelessly cutesy collector talk. I half-heartedly thought that I might reach artists, writers, musicians, filmmakers, pop culture freaks, amateur historians, bloggers, etc. Anyone, really, who loves interesting music and enjoys reading about it. The generous encouragement and word-of-mouth support from readers and other bloggers was not expected, though, and it absolutely sustained me. Better care was taken with the writing, research leads were followed more assiduously. The site evolved, organically, into something bigger as well as something that assumed a bigger part of every weekend. But my efforts paid off. Readership increased with every month, and now surpasses over one thousand visitors on a daily basis. I’m proud of that.

With my initiate’s anxiety and enthusiasm, I’ll be concentrating my efforts on the new direction, much to the exclusion of recreational writing, recreational anything. One thing, though: more than radio, more than club DJing, an audio blog is a supremely satisfying activity. I ’m hooked. Office Naps isn’t going to go away, and I do hope everyone will drop by occasionally. Expect mixes, podcasts, various digitized flotsam as well as the familiar thematic 45 reviews to be floated your way, just on a less frequent basis. Got an idea for a guest post or three related 45s you’re dying to write about? I’d love to hear from you, too. And – it may be a year or two, it may be a mere semester – but weekly Office Naps will be back, as surely as the junkie’s quest for vinyl curios continues unabated.

much love,
DJ Little Danny

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59 Responses to Farewell, for a little while

  1. andras says:

    Good luck with the studies. This has to be one of the best audio blogs around for sheer interesting and quality of writing.

  2. Andrew says:

    I don’t really know what else to say, aside from thank you. My life is musically more rich because of your research and it inspires me to dig a little deeper.

  3. I feel you have really done a good job … nice job!

  4. b. brown says:

    Danny, thanks loads for all you’ve done. Don’t tell anyone (and nobody else look at what I’m about to type!), but Office Naps has been my favorite music resource for a long time. Way better than the “competition.”

    I know what you mean though. Boy is it tough to keep it up for so long–even if it is just once a week–amid the clutter of conducting regular business.

    Best of luck with school. Come back when you get some space. Keep in touch, friend.

    Ben

  5. Drew Miller says:

    Life will go on — thanks for lots of deeply dusty music. Next time I dig thru the 45s around here I’ll look for a set of three to offer up. Keeping you bookmarked…

  6. Anonymous says:

    Hi Danny,

    love your blog, one of the coolest around… thanks for a great labor of love, good luck with your studies and… don’t leave as alone for too long!

    cheers
    MichaelVee – Milano
    http://michaelvee.livejournal.com

  7. Roger says:

    Danny,

    Good luck with your studies. I’m sorry to see Office Naps put on hold but I’ll be sure to pop back regularly to see what’s going down. Thanks for all of the great music and once again, good luck, you’ll be missed.

    Cheers,
    Roger

  8. The Purist says:

    well this pace is legendary to me. and it always will be . thanks for all the great 45’s you have put me up on.

    good luck

  9. Evan says:

    Thanks very much for all the great, obscure music and well-researched background information! Good luck with your studies!

  10. Anonymous says:

    Man.. I work from home on Tuesdays and I *always* looked forward to surfing over to Office Naps and seeing what treats were in store for the week. Best of luck in your scholastic endeavors.

  11. valis says:

    Count me with the ‘pyrex scholar’ and sincere best in your new path!

  12. JohnatGist says:

    Oh man… what a major bummer!!! Although I’m happy for you, I have to say, from a purely selfish perspective that I will miss your outstanding blog. You have done a phenomenal job. Each week’s post was a genuine highlight for me. Thank you for the research and excellent writing… the consistent professionalism and quality of what you posted.

    Many, many kudos and best wishes for whatever’s next for you!

  13. Anonymous says:

    Hi — Sorry to hear this. I do a radio show on CKLN out of Toronto (here’s a link for playlists: http://phildellio.tripod.com/playlists.html), and I’ve used a lot of songs I found on your site. The 21st Century’s “Looking Down,” Westminst’r’s “Carnival,” and the Punjabs’ “Raga Riff” (just to name three) have become all-time favourites. Best of luck.

  14. Best blog ever man, and as someone else already mentioned, a terrific resource. Thanks for sharing all of the interesting, wonderful music and for the knowledge.

    Best of luck in your studies, LD!

    – Mr. Attention

  15. richardwired says:

    you really should create something more lasting in book form – your writing is of great quality and should be read by many more people, in print form as well as a blog. Looking forward to more!

  16. torch1971 says:

    best of luck, already missing your great posts, something I looked forward to every week

  17. J.T. says:

    This was a winner, Dan; I’ll miss it.

    Good luck back in university: from your description, your coursework fits in very well with your longstanding interests and proclivities.

    Especially the proclivities.

    Lemme know when you’re in SF next so we can kick it old skool with some flammable beverages.

  18. Anonymous says:

    Well, it’s been coming for a while, I guess. You’ve been coming in late a lot of the time, acting evasive.

    When I look at my favourite songs over the last couple of years, the ones I put on mixes for friends, a LOT of them come from here: collage, sad sad sunshine, red lady, the year of the sun, you should be from monterey, the price of love, etc. etc.

    Thanks a lot and looking forward to your occasional posts.

  19. Anonymous says:

    you rock danny!!!!!!

    now get those #2 pencils sharpened up and give em hell

    speedy “acres of grass” g

  20. Hey there! What a wonderful ride. The generous blessings you have brought to my attention by way of the 45 rpm has been nothing short of amazing, surprising, and any other superlative adjective you can think of…
    Good luck with everything, although I know you’ll do just great. I have you on the RSS so I’ll wait patiently for the next update.

    Peace and blessings.

  21. Kelly says:

    I’ll miss your posts-glad you’re not going away completely. Love this blog! Nice to see someone so groovy joining us in info-science land.

  22. Peter Birch says:

    Good luck and thanks for all your efforts for this great blog, one of the best.

  23. Anonymous says:

    This was always a really cool and interesting blog. Thanks, and best wishes.

  24. E-mile says:

    Hi DJ Little Danny,
    I just visited you for the first time YESTERDAY (!) when I was googling around for a fresh wah-wah post I was preparing…
    Great blog you’ve (got/had?) going and shame I didn’t discover it a little bit sooner (in a way).
    Last night I’ve been to bed VERY late, reading extensively through your musical journeys. I hope you’ll find the time to continue this fine body of work you put up here. I’m gonna mention your Wah-Wah post in mine and if it’s OK I will link you?
    I’m sure I will spend many more hours reading your excellent posts in the near future (your “personal natter” gives me the time to catch up, so in a way…)
    please vist my little baby-blog and let me know if it’s OK for the link.
    kind regards, E-mile

  25. Anonymous says:

    This blog has allowed me to make some AMAZING musical discoveries, so thank you Little Danny. That psych-pop mix with The Millennium intro is outstanding and damn near untouchable. Where would I be without J.K & Co’s ‘Fly’, or The Network’s ‘The Boys and the Girls’. So many of the best have been posted here.

  26. triman says:

    Fascinating field of study, back in the early 90’s I worked on the documentation system for disaster and operational recovery of nuclear power stations.

    To my knowledge, to this day the fairly ancient PC’s are still scattered around the country, are regularly tested to see if they still turn on, power up and have readable documents. Each machine has a spare hard drive and removable media backup that can be restored standalone.

    Have enjoyed Office Naps sometimes offbeat and often left-field selections. Also a couple of DJ sets I’ve seen you at. Hopefully you’ll find time to slot in one or both from time to time. Good luck!

  27. Anonymous says:

    Good luck in your studies and thanks very much for sharing your music and your knowledge about it.

  28. DJ Frederick says:

    Office Naps is the one music blog I read in depth every week. Thank you for bringing this incredible music to light (and sound) and sharing your knowlege of each record and artist. I wish you much success on your academic paths and look forward to whatever form & frequency your blog postings take in the future.

  29. illatolah says:

    Yours is the only blog on my browser bar and really I owe you a night out sometime. Cheers mate, good luck.

  30. jon says:

    Good luck and post when you can. This is one of the real ‘quality’ music blogs out there and always interesting and informative without being to anoraky ( for me anyway ) if that’s a word.
    good on yer,
    Jon

  31. dj.no.one says:

    When you said you were starting a grad program and moving, well, I figured we had only a few more brilliant posts before the 8am-11pm sched. started and you were out of our lives for a while.

    I wish you the best in studies, writing, and music while you’re fighting the good fight. Don’t forget to go see music when you can. It will recharge you.

  32. Dude, nooooooooo

    that’s shame but thanks for all the great tunes. Hopefully from time to time you’ll be back with us.

    have fun at college.

  33. Anonymous says:

    A big “merci” from France for the passionate sharing of all those forgotten gems & musical knowledge.

    Hope to read again from you.
    SB

  34. ROEB says:

    thanks for office naps, so far!
    i wish you a great time at uni and love & peace.
    roeb/the netherlands

  35. Anonymous says:

    Good luck with your studies, the day I found you is the day I discover you have kinda riden off into the sunset.
    Cheers
    Torontomush

  36. yeogi says:

    we love officenaps and visit your site on a regular basis. since relocating to shanghai, china your site has become one of our primary music sources online.

    last month during a trip to hong kong, i had the chance to see an exhibition on the history of cantonese pop. i saw and listened to a couple of interesting hongkongnese 1950s/60s records. i tried hard to track some of the songs down, but failed miserably. so i really admire your work in searching for, discussing and archiving vinyl curios.

    please keep the records spinning and good luck in your studies!!!

    fond regards,
    yeogi

  37. Sean says:

    Thanks man, your writing has been really informative.
    Gracias y buena suerte.

  38. Sarah says:

    Good luck with school. Your blog is fantastic. If I have one request it would be to drop a mix on us every now and again, those were always my favorite.

  39. Pete Gloria says:

    Dear Danny,
    I’d like to join music lovers in thanking you, really thanking you for dropping so many leftfield gems of music sunshine into our weekly grind. ‘Flamingo’ by The Charades is with me for good and fills me with gladness all over every time.
    If the sparky elegance of your writing, and the cool erudition, is anything to go by I can’t imagine you having anything other than a dandy time in any field of study. No need to wish you luck in that.

    That said I hardly ever read the posts, I just went straight for the download! But that’s only because I prefer to listen with my ears and not let my brain get in the way. It was great however to know that it was there! It’s great to know that there are cool, thoughtfull, hip when necessary, people out there who dig what’s good, and know why it’s good if and when there’s a need to know.
    Hope you come back now and then, but if you don’t – hey, plenty good work done already. And we got to feel it too.
    All the best,
    Pete
    London/Lisbon

  40. hebrewschool says:

    Danny– you’ve astounded me over the months and years with dependably amazing posts, not to mention superb writing. I can only begin to imagine what you’ll do with your studies and new line of work! Anyway, the blog has been such a breath of fresh air. Good luck!

  41. Jean-Pierre says:

    j’ai bien aimé écouter les pièces que tu as présenté. au plaisir de te relire!

  42. Nathan says:

    i discovered phil cordell – red lady through your blog and it’s become one of my favourite songs ever. worth the £25 i paid for it! thanks for blogging without ego.

  43. dj palindrome says:

    wow – it is so amazing and inspiring to see all of the comments….missing LD today so i just stopped by office naps for another listen to 2007’s Middle Eastern Mix. it was just what i was needing.

    as little danny’s #1 fan, i would encourage all of you who have found inspriation/information on this site to take a crack at it! dust off your 45’s and settle in at your keyboard….say a little or say a lot.

    it is with great trepidation that LD has but naps on the back burner and it would mean a lot to him and to all of those weekly visitors – like yourself – if nap fans would step up and keep the blog fresh while LD is otherwise committed to higher education.

    KEEP OFFICE NAPS ALIVE!!

    xo
    JD

  44. Anonymous says:

    good luck to ou- always enjoy reading your posts, and listening to the tunes.

  45. Rob says:

    Hey Danny: It’s been a great pleasure and all the best for the future – whatever that might be.

    best wishes

    Rob

  46. fliznoyd says:

    I love your work and value the time you put into it!

  47. Just wanted to thank everyone who’s left a comment. WOW. It is an honor to have such a broad range of readers, and your reaction to this has caught me off guard in the best possible way. I’m humbled. This semester’s been a bear thusfar, but I’ll hopefully be back soon. Much love! -Little Danny

  48. JW says:

    Thanks for everything thus far, Danny. The quality of your fantastic site was, and is, inspiration for my own humble efforts.

  49. lightningclap says:

    I hadn’t stopped by here in a while. This is one of a handful of extremely high-quality blogs in both selection and the commentary.

    Having both the “ear” for all this music and the ability to add something informative is a rare talent. NOBODY else is doing quite what you did here.

    Game recognize game.

  50. Anonymous says:

    Thanks for the excellent work on the blog, and good luck in your studies.
    JdB

  51. Thank you SO MUCH for your generosity. You’ve shared so much fabulous music over the last few years and I’m immensely grateful. (Also, I wonder if a lot of collectors would have wanted to horde it?!) Your writing is wonderful too – so intelligent and precise. You will be missed, but good luck with your studies and thanks – a lot!

  52. Anonymous says:

    miss you man. come back to your naps

  53. Anonymous says:

    We would like it if you came back, love the internet.

  54. Anonymous says:

    Merci… Revenez…

  55. taro nombei says:

    Just want to add my small thankyou to all the above…
    I only just stumbled in here by chance — but what a great site. Not just all the brilliant obscure music but the way you put it all in context. Great writing, a labor of love. Much much appreciated all around the planet, as far as Tokyo!
    TN

  56. Anonymous says:

    Awesome site!!! Thanks for this and good luck for your studies!

  57. *** says:

    I’ve only just discovered this site and you’re leaving! 🙁
    Its a very impressive showcase. Do come back soon.

  58. LD – Hope your studies are going smashingly. I’m sure you’re keeping (extremely) busy.

    I don’t know if you’re occasionally checking back for these comments, but I just wanted to see if you had any more of your quality mixes you could post as a teaser/glimmer of hope that some day Office Naps will triumphantly return.

    Hope all is well!

    Cheers,

    Mr. Attention

  59. beto says:

    awesome danny. looking forward to all you’ll create when you finish your degree. all the best

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