Month: July 2006

There are some mixed emotions among music fans in the Magic City. This weekend we celebrated the history of Ensley’s famed Tuxedo Junction and the music associated with it. There are some that are happy for the attention being paid to our American Idols. Our “boys” (Ruben, Bo and Taylor) are serving as examples of the musical talent that exists in Birmingham, Alabama. There are some that would say that the Idols do not represent the best, a point that may be argued for some time to come. However it is true is that music and venues are a plenty in the metro region. Or are they?

This is a city that takes music seriously; it may not have the resources of a Nashville, Memphis, or Atlanta, but it’s not them, it’s Birmingham. Philip Jordan currently explores the issue of musical venues and the status of the current local music scene in this week’s Birmingham Weekly. (Turning out the Light, Birmingham Weekly, 7.20.2006)

The story grows out of the recent announcement of Moonlight Music Café’s (MMC) closing at the end of September. The question is whether this is the end of the scene, or a call to arms to recognize what is currently out there in its entirety and preserve and expand it?