End of An Era

Robert Christgau, the so-called "Dean" of American rock critics has posted his last Consumer Guide. I started reading the CG way back in the early seventies when it was reprinted in Creem magazine, then found out it was a staple in the music section of the Village Voice, so I became a regular reader of it there. This in turn led me to discover not only Christgau's other writing on music, but also Andrew Sarris' and later J. Hoberman's film reviews; Nat Hentoff on First Amendment issues and other political topics; Alexander Cockburn's columns on the press; Vladimir Estragon (actually Geoffrey Stokes) on food (which kind of inspired my Soup Diary), and so much more. But it was Christgau who drew me to the paper in the first place, and through him I first found out about some artists that were previously unknown but since became big favorites, like Amy Rigby, Sleater-Kinney, James Carter, and a whole bunch more (not least of which was providing some guidance to start exploring African music, which seemed so inaccessible before Christgau's cogent picks in the Guide). Over the years, all of those other folks were let go (except Hoberman, the only reason I periodically check in with the Voice in recent years), and Christgau himself was cut loose a few years ago. The Consumer Guide has been appearing for the past several years at MSN.com, and it was always a treat when the first of the month rolled around and I could check out his quick hit reviews. It was always gratifying when he liked something I did, and a little disconcerting when he didn't (I learned to trust my tastes over any critic's comments, but it was usually fun to read the pans too). So I guess I can't depend on Christgau for a head's up on the next musical surprise in my future, but I'm very grateful for the role he played in shaping my musical education up to this point (and trust it will continue in some other format).