L. Kent Wolgamott: Tijuana Gigolos sign off on New Year's Eve

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A few months ago, drummer Dave Robel told me that New Year’s Eve could be the final go-round for the Tijuana Gigolos.

I’d hoped that wouldn’t be the case. But Lincoln’s premiere roots outfit is hanging it up — at least as far as regularly scheduled gigs are concerned — after its Zoo Bar show Dec. 31.

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The Tijuana Gigolos will wrap it up on New Year's Eve. (Courtesy photo)

That doesn’t mean the Gigolos are done for good. The split was amicable, and guitar/singer/songwriter/frontman Marty Steinhausen says it’s very possible that the band will get back together for some one-off shows in the coming months, marking occasions like the 60th birthday of a certain drummer.

But they’ll be missed. The combination of Steinhausen and Tony Meza on vocals, the sharp songwriting and well-chosen covers, the richness and depth provided by Tom Harvill’s keyboards and the in-the-pocket rhythm section of bassist Jeff Boehmer and Robel, along with Meza’s congas, bongos and other assorted percussion has been hard to beat for years.

The Gigolos sounded the best I’d ever heard them when they took the big outdoor stage at this summer’s Celebrate Lincoln festival. Then Meza was sidelined with some health problems. He’s now back and going strong and they were great again the last time I caught them at the Zoo Bar.

If you want to catch the Gigolos one last time, here’s their schedule for the next month:

Tonight, they’ll be at McKenna’s in Omaha for a 9 p.m. show. Cover charge is $5.

Dec. 8 — P.O.  Pears, 7:30-10:30 p.m.

Dec. 14 — Zoo Bar FAC, $3, 5-7:30 p.m.

Dec. 21 — Zoo Bar, $6, 9 p.m.-1 a.m.

Dec. 31 — Zoo Bar New Year’s Eve Bash, $15, 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Advance tickets on sale at the Zoo.

Backtrack Records in Rolling Stone

Backtrack Records owner Jeff Loos wasn’t sure whether the caller was pulling his leg or not. But he gave the person who claimed to be from Rolling Stone magazine his top 10 best-sellers list for the week that ended Nov. 7.

Lo and behold, the call was legit.

So if you pick up the current issue of the magazine, dated Nov. 29 with Jay-Z on the cover, and turn to the inside back page of “Charts” and under “Local Favorites” is Loos’ list.

For the record, here it is:

1. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, “Raising Sand”

2. Natalie Merchant, “Tigerlily”

3. Van Morrison, “Pay The Devil”

4. Bruce Springsteen, “Magic”

5. Bob Dylan, “Modern Times”

6. Britney Spears, “Blackout”

7. Levon Helm, “Dirt Farmer”

8. Reba McEntire, “Reba: Duets”

9. Joni Mitchell, “Shine”

10. John Fogerty, “Revival”

That’s a far different bunch of records than usually shows up in the “Local Favorites” column, which tends to sample hipster-dipster stores that are heavy on indie rock and literal local faves. But Backtrack’s list reflects its older clientele, which favors rootsier music that might not have been released even this year — to wit, the Dylan record.

With the notable exception of Spears, the rest of the list sits comfortably in Americana land. But it’s not so out of touch with the pop charts. The Top 40 album chart on the page includes the Plant/Krauss duet, Springsteen’s excellent new disc and Reba’s duets.

Backtrack has been selling records in Lincoln for 16 years, mostly on the web. But Loos once had a College View store and now is open for business at 1549 N. Cotner Blvd. While he sells some new records — hence his Rolling Stone mention — Backtrack’s primarily a vintage LP store, selling quality vinyl 45s and albums from the ’40s onward, with a special emphasis on the ’60s.

Elvis was that good in Omaha

I raved about Elvis Costello’s opening set at the Bob Dylan show late last month and I’ve since received aural confirmation of how great that show was. I got a bootleg recording of the set in the mail, and it’s a vivid reminder of how Elvis and his guitar conquered the Qwest Center and how Costello was able to arrange his songs in powerful solo style.

For the record, I do not condone unauthorized recordings of live performances, nor do I reproduce any such bootlegs that might come into my possession. But the Elvis set sure sounds good.

‘I’m Not There’ likely to come to Lincoln

There’s no date set yet, but it looks like Todd Haynes’ brilliant new film about Bob Dylan and his many personas will be playing Lincoln at some point in the near future. Negotiations are under way with The Weinstein Company to bring the picture, which features six actors playing characters based on Dylan’s persona, to Lincoln. I’m guessing that won’t happen until January, but it’s possible it might get squeezed in before Christmas.

Regardless of when it opens, it’s highly recommended to Dylanologists as well as art film fans. I’ll be seeing it again — a true rarity. It’s in a pitched battle with a couple of other movies for one of the top spots on my top 10 of 2007.

Reach L. Kent Wolgamott at 473-7244 or kwolgamott@journalstar.com.