So the Virgin Megastore in Orange closed down. Why don't I care?

Remember the scene in "Borat" where he tries to kidnap Pamela Anderson? That was shot there, but that's not enough to grant it landmark status.

When the Tower Records chain went down a couple of years ago, I wrote some gushy, teary-eyed tribute and mourned it like the end of an era. I liked Tower. There was something familiar and welcoming about their stores. Not so here. The Virgin Megastore was always cold and dark, with cement floors and a bunch of chrome all over the place. They were overpriced too. On at least one occasion I found something I wanted at Virgin, balked at the price, and then walked over to Borders and bought it for five bucks less.

So the Orange Megastore was just another going out of business sale. Did I hover over the scene of the crime to pick the bones clean anyway? Guilty, but due to a combination of economics and apathy, I didn't go hog-wild this time around.

When the sale was new and the discounts were minimal, I picked up a couple of CD's

The Replacements - Sorry Ma Forgot to Take Out The Trash. The latest reissue all digitally remastered, revised, revisioned, and re-kanoodled with bonus tracks and all that other stuff. I do say that it holds up pretty well. There were other Replacements album re-releases that I intended to pick up when the discount got bigger, but too many other people had the same thought.

Little Walter - Chess Records compilation. I like the cover photograph that shows the scars on his face and the stitches in his forehead. He was the undisputed king of the electric harmonica. Aspiring harmonicats are still afraid to imitate him.

1977-The Spirit of Punk Compilation- About four zillion punk rock classics on one 2-disc set. It was really cheap too. This can't possibly be legal. When is a bootleg not a bootleg? When you slap an "import" label on it.

A couple of weeks later, the prices went down to 60% off so I got a few more.

Iggy Pop - Nude and Rude. This is another greatest non-hits compilation, but the first one spanning from the 60's to the 90's. Yeah, I have most of the records but I was really excited to see something I recognized in the racks.

Brian Setzer - Collection 81-88. A couple of Stray Cats b-sides and unreleased oddball stuff padded with songs from his flop solo albums of the 80's. This was obviously meant to cash in after the Brian Setzer Orchestra got big. I bet those suits at the record company never suspected that anyone would actually like this as much as I do. "The Knife Feels Like Justice" means just as much today as it did in 1985 or so. In other words, I still can't figure out what the hell it means. That just makes me like it more.

Ray Charles - The Essential something or other. Deceptive packaging covers up a great collection of pre-Atlantic, pre-fame recordings. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Then I got a couple from the red-tag 3 dollar budget bin

Charlie Haden - The Haden Family Album. I've heard of this guy. He's a jazz bassist who just released an album of country/bluegrass songs. I like it. Elvis Costello and Jack Black sing on it, but not together. I looked at the credits while listening to one of the songs, found out that it was Bruce Hornsby singing, and I still liked it.

Alice Cooper - Along Came a Spider. Again, I was excited to see an artist I recognized. I tried to listen to this concept album about a serial killer or vampire or something, but I didn't really get it. I'm giving it to a friend who is a big time Alice Cooper fan from way back. Happy Belated Christmas, Frenchie.

So there were no fantastic deals to be had, but I did end up with something really cool.

Check it out. I thought this six-shelved metal rack was a bargain at only twenty-five clams. It doesn't look like much sitting here in my garage, but once I had at it with some shop rags and disinfectant, its true beauty emerged from under years of smug hipness.

Here it is, fully loaded with over 800 CD's, a treasured souvenir with very little historical and emotional significance. The knife doesn't always feel like justice, but sometimes the fork feels like karma and the melon baller smells like anarchy.