It will be slow going around Unfair Park HQ for a while, as we try to get the ringing out of our ears from last night's Dallas Observer Music Awards ceremony at the Granada. Christ, what a special night -- and one for which we can take no credit. It belongs elsewhere -- to the Reunion Tower Revue, who breathed new life into hits that were and should have been; to the presenters, including a chief of police who looked more than a little bemused by a crowd that couldn't decide whether to cheer or boo (and did both?); to Hal Samples, who snapped many great photos for a good cause; and to our promotions department, Candy Lancaster and Jennifer Robinson, who stocked both our Saturday-night showcase and awards ceremony with booze, food and a more than a thousand folks for whom local music is as much a pleasure as it is a passion. And bless you, you winners, for showing up -- and for giving some of the best acceptance speeches I've heard in 20 years of doing DOMA. (Especially one particular 4-year-old who stuck it out till 11 p.m. Salim, that's one hell of a boy you're raising there.)
And, of course, there is Bobby Patterson, about whom we've said plenty but never enough. Don Cento, James Driscoll, Rich Martin and Matt Kellum -- Shibboleth to you; "Syphilis" to Bobby -- have big plans for the man, plans worthy not only of what Patterson's done over the last 40 years but worthy of what he's capable of doing on any given night. "Oh, my God," said a stranger standing next to me last night, as Patterson and the band tore into "Don't Be So Mean," a slice of 1968 funk that could have been 1978 punk that might well be 2008's best "new" song. And, well ... yeah.
No doubt as the fog clears we'll have more to report; have we ever mentioned that Most Amazing Musician Ever -- that is the award he took home, right? -- Chris Holt does an amazing Boz Scaggs and Meat Loaf, jeez. Till then here are couple of photos from the thousand we took last night; wish we had sound, but, hey, guess you had to be there. --Robert Wilonsky
