I guess the point is that although the singles market has always existed in one form or another, the LP art form is declining. Even among musicians I don't see the same enthusiasm about "albums" as there was 15 years ago-dwlb wrote: But since singles existed for years before the "album" became an art form in its own right in the 1960s...there's more than one way to skin a cat, and I think the single-type experience is more of what we're seeing people be into.
"did you hear the new (X) album?"
"yeah, I downloaded a few tracks from iTunes"
Of course, I'd be lying if I said I didn't appreciate the convenience of having my entire music library in a device smaller than a pack of Marlboroughs or the ability to download any song, any time. There are things I miss about the pre-digital era, but my dad says the same thing about the '50s- there are plenty of things that are better today, too.