We Get It, They Don’t

Summary

A singularly funny journey through a lifelong obsession with music, from comedian, television writer, and host of The Best Show Tom Scharpling

Tom Scharpling started buying records at the neighborhood drugstore when he was eight years old, and his obsession with music has never stopped. His love of music shapes every part of who he is, from his relationships to his career to his struggles with mental health. It turned him into the person he is today, which is a weird dude in his fifties who is equally consumed by Charli XCX and Creedence Clearwater Revival.

We Get It, They Don’t sees young Tom falling under the spell of “Dream Weaver”; hearing Donna Summer and disco for the first thrilling time; and learning that buying Pink Floyd tickets requires a heavily orchestrated approach. In his teens, when he is committed to a psychiatric hospital, bands like Depeche Mode and the Cure are his solace. But seeing Nirvana in a two-hundred capacity club in Hoboken changes everything. Diving headfirst into indie culture, Tom learns he isn’t simply gazing up at unapproachable heroes; he can actually talk to the bands after seeing them play the greatest show of his life.

Tom became a DJ at the legendary radio station WFMU in his early twenties, and now over twenty-five years into his radio/podcasting career, he’s sharing this testament to loving music throughout life, continuing to search for exciting new sounds and not merely subsisting on the stuff that moved you as a teenager. We Get It, They Don’t is a funny, touching, and thought-provoking reminder of how music can be incredibly personal while resonating with everyone with a head and heart.