Until about ten years ago, I usually played oldies as background to almost anything I was doing- work, leisure reading, driving, anything.
Then I got a bulldog puppy who, when she napped, snored like a 300 pound guy. Bullies sleep a lot, and one can hear it throughout the house. It was a beautiful sound. I used to say she was the Pavarotti of snoring. She was beautiful to look at also.
Since she died, I don't play music as background to anything other than driving. I prefer listening to the sounds of my old house, the street noise, the birds, and even the planes I can hear from inside. My neighborhood is really quiet even though the homes aren't very far apart, so it is centering to hear the same sounds that have surrounded me these 30 plus years in this house.