A sad week in the music world...

CBGB is gone. And I'm sad... I always wanted to go there to see a show and experience the place... Yeah, the owner says they're re-opening in Vegas, but it's not the same...

And then to top it off, Tower Records in Dallas is closing. Of course, this article is from two weeks ago, but that just shows how I've been in my own little thesis world... I only found out this week when I was working on my thesis and thought, "Fuck this, I'm going to buy CDs at Tower." So I hopped in the Saturn and headed towards Dallas. So I was pretty bummed about the closing, but the upside was that everything was on sale...

And for anyone who is thinking, "Well Steve, you've got two Virgin Megastores in DFW." Sorry, but those are too sanitary and none of the staff knows the first thing about music. I could go in to Tower Records and have a decent conversation about which Oscar Peterson CD was his best, or "I like this band and this band, would I like this band?" Virgin is more about selling DVDs and video games, and I've found their music selection sorely lacking in places.

Yeah, I like CD World and Good Records alright, but when I need some jazz or classical, I've got nothing but Amazon really. Border's has devastated their music section so much it is unrecognizable and Best Buy stocks the cheap-ass "Music for a romantic dinner" CDs. So my impulse purchases of jazz and classical are pretty much gone unless I go to another city or wait for the damned thing to come from Amazon or get locked into some DRM from Apple.

Yeah, I'm kinda cranky...

...But I'm also somewhat relieved, because I've finally turned my thesis in to my committee! That's a major load off my mind. Just gotta get it through there, and I'll get to wear purple in December...

So sad week musically, but a good week thesis-wise...

Perhaps it's "rolling away again in Margaritaville.."

First, I don't know if anyone saw the World of Warcraft episode of South Park a few nights ago, but it was great.

I don't know if anyone caught this, but apparently, famed-frat slacker Jimmy Buffett got busted in Europe with about 100 tabs of ecstasy. Apparently he was on his way to a resort in St. Tropez.

Ecstasy? Really? I always saw Buffett as more of a beer-and-stoner kind of guy. But seriously, what's with the cracking down on all the old farts? First Ronald Isley gets cracked on his taxes, Nelson goes down on grass and now Buffett with X. I guess we're really cleaning up the streets/spaces behind tour busses?

I saw Jimmy Buffett at Texas Stadium with George Strait and Alan Jackson. Needless to say, it wasn't my usual fare. But actually, he played a very entertaining show, and I felt like I got my over-priced ticket's worth.

Buh-Bye Oasis...

Robert Philpot at the Star-Telegram reports that the Oasis has switched formats, and is now "Movin 107.5" featuring r&b hits.

Fans of smooth-jazz radio station KOAI/107.5 FM "The Oasis" must've felt as if they had a bomb dropped on them Monday -- especially if they turned on the radio at 6 p.m. and, instead of finding relaxing light jazz to get them through traffic, got hit with the Gap Band's You Dropped a Bomb on Me.

There are many doctor and dentist offices scrambling to find a new radio station in the metroplex this morning, and I ain't sad about that one bit. I actively despised the Oasis, and aside from the insipid music, here was another reason why. I was having a conversation with an acquaintance once, and we were discussing music. My wife and I had recently attended a jazz show at Caravan of Dreams (RIP), and I was telling him about it. He replied, "Oh yeah, I like jazz! I listen to the Oasis!"

So to all the D/FW folks who thought they were listening to jazz when they tuned to the Oasis, here's a secret: You were actually listening to your parent's easy listening bullcrap...

And a hearty thank you to whoever pulled the plug on the Oasis...