What does downloading an album or song from Spotify actually do? I assumed that it placed the file on your phone or hard drive sorta permanently, and you could access it thereafter until the end of time.
I ask because I have previously downloaded most of Neil Young’s music; this I did way before the announcement that he was leaving the service.
Anyway, I can no longer play his stuff. Did Spotify disappear it from my hard drive? Or was it never really there to begin with?
mmm
Spotify I believe checks your downloads once a month to ensure that the digital rights management is up to date. You don’t really “own” the album, you were just borrowing it.
Mine are not playing either. 
You can probably get it from Youtube !
Right, and I think other streaming services work similarly. Amazon Prime, for instance: there are albums, songs, movies, etc. that you have free access to as long as they’re “on Prime” (which includes some ability to download them so you don’t have to be online while you watch/listen to them), but if they’re removed from Prime, you no longer have access. If you want to “access it thereafter until the end of time” you have to buy that particular album, movie, etc.
And that is why I think streaming services pretty much all suck for the consumer. The idea of renting your music just seems like lunacy to me.
They can be great for sampling music, which you can then buy if you decide you like it enough to want to own it (and/or support the artist).
OK, question 2:
I own pretty much all the Neil Young I need on CDs.
Can I load them into my drive and make Spotify see them?
(I know I don’t need Spotify to hear them. I would still like Spotify to play nice with them for various reasons)
mmm