Last Friday, early in the morning, I saw my wife, Stephanie, off on her airplane trip to New York to sing with the Texarkana Regional Chorale at Carnegie Hall. From our daily reports, the trip is going quite well. In fact, she is singing at the second concert at Carnegie Hall even as I write this blog.
Among the joys of being in New York, Stephanie has attended two Broadway musicals--"South Pacific" and "The Phantom of the Opera." She also enjoyed dining at the Russian Tea Room, pictured below. Sounds like a wonderful trip.
After Stephanie's plane left, Nick and I had some free time in Little Rock and the neighboring town of Benton. We asked ourselves, "What would be interesting to see?"
The answer was quick and obvious: Book stores and music stores.
We were able to locate a Hastings Books and Records in Benton. I found a few books at really cheap prices, and we also picked up a few discounted musical selections.
I was quite happy with discovering a CD of Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson performing together. They do several of each other's songs, such as Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" and "Unchained" and Nelson's "Family Bible," "Night Life," and "Crazy." I always enjoy hearing Nelson more than seeing him, and I always enjoy Johnny Cash.
Nick picked up a copy of Bob Dylan's "Unplugged." I was glad to see this CD added to our growing collection of Dylan's works. I have heard it in the past and liked it. I cannot listen to Dylan at all times, but there are occasions when his music is a perfect medicine. Nick also got a really good deal on a CD by a group called Carbon Leaf. I will have to leave it to him to comment on them.
Living in Texarkana, we have little access to good music stores. Anytime we happen across a good store, we have to spend at least a little time and hopefully a little money. We like Barnes and Noble stores because they have both books and music. Hastings stores can be a pleasure as well, especially since they carry cheaply priced used CDs. Personally, I like the Ernest Tubb Record Shops best of all. (Least favored for musical selections: Wal-Mart and Target.)
Monday, June 7, 2010
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Nicksays:
ReplyDeleteI also fell in love with the Clash's London Calling album at the Barnes and Noble in Little Rock. Should have bought it- it was only 8 bucks. A shame. Carbon Leaf plays sort of upbeat pop/rock. I'll have a review up later. Yes, Wal-Mart has an abysmal music selection, but Best Buy is worse-all they have is rap and metal. Target is weak on variety of artists, but they carry more indie rock than Wal-Mart. Barnes and Noble has better selection in World, Jazz and Bluegrass than Hastings, plus you get to listen to samples of the CDs before you buy them. The prices are jacked up at B&H, though, and there are no used CDs. Final Verdict: Go to B&H to listen to the CD, then try to find a used copy at Hastings.