I don't use the library at all, I only use the Explorer views to browse to files that I want to play, and benefit from the fact that they are automatically added to the playing now list when I start their playback.
Most of the media files are on network drives, but I don't have the network server on all the time. If I open MC while the network server is not running... all files on network drives are removed from the Playing now list.
To be honest, I'm not using MC for audio files playback. I'm using it for video files playback. JRVR and support for BluRay (and DVD) menus is the the only reason I bought MC last year.
And the only way to have a history of what video files I played without importing into libraries (which I was really into when I was younger, but now I just see it as a waste of time that I can use for something else) is to have them automatically added to the Playing now list when I start their playback. But like I said... open MC while the network server is off, and everything is lost.