In CD music: Vic Chesnutt

The local music community and fans worldwide mourn the loss of Athens-based singer-songwriter Vic Chesnutt, who passed away this Christmas.

He was a true original.


Vic Chesnutt (October interview with Outside Films)

NPR: R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe Remembers Vic Chesnutt

Elf Power Remember Vic

New in CD Music

Recent additions to the CD music collection include:

Collective Soul (rabbit)

The Blueprint 3/ Jay-Z

The Kinks Choral Collection

My Christmas/ Andrea Bocelli

Midwinter Graces/ Tori Amos

Gold and Green/ Sugarland



I Dreamed a Dream/ Susan Boyle

I Look to You/ Whitney Houston

New to the DVD Collection

Bruce Springsteen: the complete video anthology, 1978-2000 -- featuring everything from 1978's "Rosalita" to 2000's "If I Should Fall Behind." Brian De Palma, Jonathan and Ted Demme, John Sayles, Tim Robbins, and Sean Penn are among the Boss's directors.

The NFL's Funniest Players -- Hosted by Michael Strahan. Profiling hilarious moments, courtesy of the National Football League.

5ive Days to Midnight -- Timothy Hutton and Randy Quaid star in this SciFi channel miniseries about a physics professor who discovers he has only five days to prevent his own murder.

In our CD section: Bob Dylan

Okay, maybe you've heard that Bob Dylan has released a Christmas album. Maybe you've already listened to it. But long before he was harking the herald angels and walking in a winter wonderland, Dylan crafted some of the most powerful and memorable songs in the history of rock music. That isn't to say that his latest release isn't memorable in its own right (or that it won't be in the library's Seasonal CD collection one day)...but a better bet might be a trip down a different lane, and through the wonderland that Dylan wrote himself. Click here to see Dylan CDs in our catalog.

(And lest Santa's elves peg us for a bunch o' Grinches, here's a listen to folk rock's favorite son recite "The Night Before Christmas.")

New in the DVD section: The Wrestler

Director Darren Aronofsky's dramatic film stars Mickey Roarke in a gritty and often unsettling portrait of a wrestler at the end of his career. Roarke and costar Marisa Tomei both received Oscar nominations for their work, and Roarke won both the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor and Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead.

View this DVD in the catalog.

In CD music: Who Was Changed and Who Was Dead/ John Wesley Harding

Long before author Wesley Stace visited the Decatur Book Festival (he's been there twice), he was performing on stage at venues such as Eddie's Attic as John Wesley Harding. Who Was Changed and Who Was Dead is his latest album, the first in five years, and features guest appearances by many of Harding's musical peers, including REM's Peter Buck and singer-songwriter Kelly Hogan (Rock*a*Teens, Jody Grind). Named for a Barbara Comyns novel about ergot poisoning in a small village, the CD is everything Harding fans have come to expect and love about the man -- catchy riffs, lyrics that run from laugh-out-loud sarcastic ("Top of the Bottom") to the more meditative ("A Very Sorry Saint") -- but written and delivered with the assurance and introspection of a true poet. The CD also includes a recording of a live performance, featuring songs from his back catalog. Well worth the listen, whether the first or the twentieth time. Reserve this CD

Take A Tour of the New AV Department

Take a little peeksie at the library's flashy CD music section, divided by musical style. When completed, it will feature browser friendly and clearly labeled flip bins for the entire collection and rotating selections from the library's music-related book and DVD collections. Did I say flip bins? I sure did.

The audiobook, DVD and VHS collections also get fancy digs, in a forest of spacious shelves and displays. And, thanks to our wireless Internet connection, you can now search the catalog on your laptop from any of the library's hip new seating areas. Think of it as your own private park, where a festival of entertainments and information awaits. Only here, it's always sunny.

And did I mention the kiddies? They get a music bin all to themselves, in the Children's "Pond."

Welcome to the NEW Conyers-Rockdale Library.
We rock. Totally.