Google Adds Music Search Options

Google has added new options for searching for music on their site. It's not really a syntax, more of a search shortcut. Unfortunately its music knowledge is not as eclectic as I am and I bamboozled it more than once.

From Google, do a search for a musician or a band. Do not search for Mississippi Mass Choir, The Dan Band, Professor Longhair, Michael Hedges, or Shiela Chandra, because Google won't recognize them. Anyway, when you do search for a band Google recognizes -- Patsy Cline works -- you'll get a picture of the artist/band, along with a list of their albums and songs. (Sometimes Google won't have a picture for them, like in the case of Steven Halpern. In that case you'll get what looks like a generic musical notes icon.)

Google also has a detail page available. When I clicked on the one for Patsy Cline I got a list of artists (one, natch), albums, and songs called Patsy Cline. (Amazing number of songs called Patsy Cline.) When I clicked on the artist, I got taken to http://www.google.com/musica?aid=ULijOUkun1J, which lists Patsy Cline albums by popularity (you also have the option to list them by release date.)

Each album has its own page. Patsy Cline's 12 Greatest Hits album has a page at http://www.google.com/musicl?lid=1M3I_YXnT_J&aid=ULijOUkun1J that not only lists the songs from the albums, but has pointers to where those songs can be purchased online, including places like Real and iTunes. Some of the albums had links to reviews found on the Web.

You can even get links down to the song level, and this is where it gets slightly funky. I clicked through to Patsy Cline's Sweet Dreams, which has its own page at http://www.google.com/musics?lid=1M3I_YXnT_J&aid=ULijOUkun1J&sid=j0GzzHUvKEO. This page points to lyric pages for the song, as well as providing more details about the song, like the authors, Lennox/Stewart. Lennox/Stewart? Erm, seems like Google got this song mixed up with some other Sweet Dreams.

So be aware that not everything in Google's music information will be absolutely correct, and be aware that it doesn't include all musical artists.

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