christabel and the jons, etc

Jon and I went out Friday night to poke around Market Square and see what was happening. We had forgotten that MOVIES ON MARKET SQUARE are now underway, and there was a really large crowd out on the Square, watching "Shrek."  Although Downtown's revitalization is getting to be old news these days, I still get a little thrill every time I see hundreds and hundreds of families (as opposed to the usual crowd of the same 150 hipsters you used to see at every Downtown event) enjoying an event on Market Square. I plan to check the schedule and see what's playing next Friday and take the kids.

Anyway, we were too late to see the movie, so we popped into Oodles, where I hoped to catch up with some friends. Last time I was at Oodles, I had a few drinks and a really good cheese and fruit plate with some sort of soft cheese (maybe camembert) covered in fuit jam. So I tried to order that, because I was really hungry. The extremely friendly waitress told me they no longer offer any sort of cheese appetizer or cheese plate. This was sort of annoying, seeing as how they are a self-described wine bar. One would think cheese would be the kind of thing available to order at a wine bar that serves food. But nope. No cheese of any kind was located, so Jon and I ended up splitting a serving of lasagne. It was okay. Nothing to write home about.

The band setting up to play when we got to Oodles was CHRISTABEL AND THE JONS. They've been getting a lot of buzz locally lately. I wasn't sure what I'd think, since my understanding was that they have a very jazzy sound and I am not a fan of jazz, and jazz vocals in particular. But in fact, they have a more of an old, country-swing sound that I loved. Christa, the lead singer has a stellar, really unique voice. I will definitely go see them again.

Alas, we had to leave Christabel and the Jons to wander down to Preservation Pub to catch some of Angel and the Lovemongers, who had guest musicians from Econopop sitting in. John T. Baker was on guitar and the esteemed Dr. Jim Rivers was playing keyboard. They sounded great, as always.

There was a large, happy crowd at Preservation, including owner Scott West, who was almost unrecognizable with his newly shorn head. I don't know Mr. West personally, but like most of us who enjoy Downtown, I have long been a patron (and fan) of his businesses. I know he will likely be GOING TO PRISON SOON and there was something really poignant about seeing him dancing to the band, accepting hugs and words of support and condolence from friends and barflies. The crimes to which he is pleading guilty speak for themselves; I'm simply saying that it's sad to see another human being on the verge of being locked up for a period of time.