CD Adventures at Wal-Mart

I'm a poor Midwest college grad without a well paying job (I am one of many), so it goes without saying that I do a fair amout of my shopping at the local Wal-Mart (wait did Wal-Mart get rid of the '-' in thier name?). So yesterday I'm at Walmart buying Christmas presents for my niece and nephew, and of course I mozy my way over to the electronic section, because the electronic section is really the only section of Walmart that I generally enjoy visiting. Unlike most trips, I actually had an item I wanted to buy. I was searching for the new album by recent English supergroup, Black Country Communion.


I need to buy this

I had convinced myself that, "ya Walmart will has it, I've seen it there before"; lying to yourself is rarely a good thing. Why would Walmart have this album, it's not by some huge pop sensation, it's not a Country Music album, and it's not a greatest hits collection, so logic should have kicked in and informed me that my quest was futile. It didn't, so I searched the alphabetized sections anyway. Let's see here, we go Bieber....more Bieber...best of the Black Crowes....Blake Shelton, fuck it's not here. Looks like I'll have to get it at Best Buy or the Electric Fetus, I'd already searched the empty wasteland that is Target's CD section and they sure as fuck didn't have it.

Sinking slowly into music fan depression, I took a full gaze at Walmart's music section; my god was it pathetic. Only a year ago, at this very store, two and a half ales of the electronic section were devoted to CDs, but now sadly, one aile is all that remains. Browsing is both frusterating and pointless, having to flip through CD after CD becomes incredibly tedious, especially in the $5 section where there isn't even an alphabetical order to aid your cause, just random CDs mixed in together, but even if your in the right section and proper letter of the alphabet unless your looking for a popular new pop album, a country album, a best of collection, or a high selling classic, Walmart probably doesn't have it. "Oh great and powerful Walmart, thy is suppose to have all my consumer desires, and yet, no Black Country Communion does thou find perched upon your shelves, poised to rock my mind. Perhaps your are as evil as I heard." On a funnier note: ever notice how overrun every Walmart is with endless copies of KISS's last album Sonic Boom? Lol, as much as I do like that album, doubtful Walmart will do many exclusive album releases in the future.

New Album plus concert DVD and Best of Disc and still no one wants it.

Shaken but not stirred, I perused the $5 CDs wondering what lost treasures I might uncover. Crap...crap...crap....already own it....crap....eureka. I found Ozzy's classic debut solo album Blizzard of Oz. I know the majority of songs off this album, but have never actually listened to the complete work and for $5 I was ready to begin my Ozzy solo library. About to leave the electronic section, my brain finally came online "Uh, didn't Ozzy re-record that album with new band members." Fuck that's right, in 2002 Ozzy did release this album without Bob Daisley on bass and Lee Kerslake on drums. Than I notice the sticker on the lower left hand side of the CD, "re-recorded tracks featuring Robert Trujillo and Mike Bordin. Fuck me, I can't buy this piece of shit now.

Goddammit, I hate finding fucking fools gold. I put the CD down and took one more visual pass through the $5 section, anymore hidden gems? And than I saw it, his fucking evil face, Murray!! Forget Ozzy's, the first singer of Black Sabbath, first solo CD, they had Last In Line, the badass second solo effort from Sabbath's second lead singer Ronnie James Dio (RIP). Where Ozzy had failed (and Walmart to a large extend) Dio had succeeded. I purchased the album and left the mega store content. Actually no, I still wanted Black Country Communion, but I was happy with my purchase.