Before we begin, did you check out TOC‘s Pitchfork coverage? It’s quite good.

Now then: I got this e-mail yesterday from Amazon UK:

“We’ve noticed that customers who have purchased or rated Spaced Out – The Very Best of William Shatner & Leonard Nimoy by William Shatner have also purchased The John Baker Tapes Vol.1 by John Baker. For this reason, you might like to know that The John Baker Tapes Vol.1 will be released on 28 July 2008.”

First: Yes, I did buy Spaced Out. Before you mock, listen to Spock sing “Both Sides Now,” and see if you don’t choke up a little.

Second: My first reaction to this was: “How idiotic. There’s absolutely no reason why someone who likes ironic renditions of hits and novelty songs of the ’60s would like this.”

Third: They’re totally right. As soon I read track titles like “Big Ben News Theme” and “Radio London (News Idents)”, I was looking up what the current exchange rate is, wondering if other Spaced Out purchasers also like Prime Minister’s Questions, and thinking about starting a Facebook group called “Marketers Know Me Better Than I Thought And That Scares Me.”

In conclusion: This is why I finally decided to read The Long Tail.

MP3 – “Both Sides Now” by Leonard Nimoy