The B-Side

"This ain't no party, this ain't no disco, this ain't no fooling around." - Talking Heads, "Life During Wartime" (1979) From the promise by theater employees that the evening's show would run an hour and 50 minutes with no intermission to the warning that the performance would begin at 8 p.m. with no opening act, it was clear that the crowd which had come to Red Bank's Count Basie Theatre to see former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne Monday night (Nov. 3) was in store for something closer to a night of theater than a rock concert.

Just like every other critic, blogger, scene regular and frequent record store patron around this time of year, I've compiled a "top 10" list. However, rather than throw together a list of my favorite albums, singles, videos, re-issues or beards using the same pool of nominees as every other list-maker, I've decided to make my "top 10" pretty personal. Here is a list of the top 10 shows I saw in New Jersey this year.