How to Shop for Music for Mother's Day

Few gifts are as universal as music for Mother's Day. Whether your mother loves jazz, classical or classic rock, there's always some song or album she'd probably love to own. It's easy to buy music for others, whether you buy what you need online or at a local music store. You can shop for music for Mother's Day up until the last minute and you'll get the perfect gift every time.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Look through your mother's music collection to get an idea of what she likes. Are there a lot of jazz CDs in her collection? Does she have a bunch of musical soundtracks? Knowing her favorite genre will help you shop for music.

2. Take an inventory of the music she currently has and use that list to cross-reference what she has and doesn't have. For example, if you notice she doesn't have a particular album by an artist she loves, you should consider buying it to complete her collection.

3. Wait for sales. Mother's Day is a big commercial holiday, so finding sales on music should be easy through a number of different providers. It's possible to find sales a week or more in advance, giving you plenty of time to find the right music.

4. Buy your mother music for her iPod at iTunes (see Resources below). In order to do so, you'll want to create an account that includes her information as a gift recipient and then make it available to her on her own PC.

5. Use Amazon.com for all your music needs (see Resources below). In addition to a huge selection of CD and albums, Amazon.com has DVDs and videos or performances by many popular artists, as well as boxed sets containing complete discographies.

Tips & Warnings

• Buy tickets to a concert hosted by your mother's favorite artist in addition to picking up a new album. Concert tickets are a terrific gift no matter whom they want to go see.
• Double-check that the album you're getting for your mother for Mother's Day isn't one she already owns. At least, make sure to get a gift receipt to make returning it easier.
• Don't download music for your mother illegally. Bit-Torrent or any other file-sharing resource that offers music free of charge is doing so without the consent of the artists and is considered a criminal act.

Resources

• Shop for music at iTunes
• Shop for music at Amazon.com