We need a little New Year's right now

Have we ever needed a New Year more?

2008 was definitely a downer. But instead of putting a damper on our good time, it ought to inspire us to new heights of madcap revelry. When the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve, we definitely will have a reason to celebrate.

The Big Kahuna of Triangle merriment will be the First Night program in downtown Raleigh. This year's extravaganza will include about 50 events for people of all ages, culminating with the dropping of the beloved acorn in Moore Square. Look inside for highlights of this year's schedule.

Area nightclubs will also be bopping. Durham's Broad Street Café has a Music Maker Relief Foundation benefit with John Dee Holeman, Captain Luke, Cool John Ferguson, Macavine Hayes and other blues luminaries from the MMRF roster. Also in Durham, Mel Melton's Wicked Mojos play Papa Mojo's Roadhouse, and the Wusses play Pinhook. Red Collar, Hammer No More the Fingers and Kerbloki ring in the new year at Chapel Hill's Local 506. Beatles songs come to life at Carrboro's Cat's Cradle, via the tribute act Abbey Road Live. And for a truly weird experience, it'd be tough to top the hillbilly-vampire stylings of Unknown Hinson at Raleigh's Lincoln Theatre.

Those who follow a different drummer (or violinist) can turn their ears toward the N.C. Symphony, whose New Year's Eve program features "Music Inspired by Dance." And anyone looking to laugh away the tears of 2008 may want to check out comic Joe Reep at Charlie Goodnight's in Raleigh.

Those are only some of the events on this night, when bars ramp up their offering, and restaurants -- including Zely & Ritz in Raleigh, the Peak City Grill and Bar in Apex, Pop's in Durham and Bonne Soirée in Chapel Hill -- dress their menus to the nines, offering elegant, elaborate meals (for a detailed list of gastronomic delights, visit blogs.newsobserver.com/epicurean).

So dim the lights, hit the heights and bid 2008 a much deserved Good Riddance!

First Night Raleigh Highlights

You might think that Guitar Hero isn't all that hard -- it's just a video game, after all -- but you probably don't play it at Blake Peebles' level, either. And that's a very high level indeed. Known worldwide for his Guitar Hero prowess, the teenage Peebles is chasing his dream of making it on the professional video-game circuit. You can take him on to see how you match up with one of the best at the "Guitar Hero Challenge," 7:30-10 p.m. at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences Auditorium.

Christine Lavin sings, plays and writes a mean song. And she can be mean, as in funny-mean, although she never picks on anybody who doesn't deserve it. Also a linchpin of the folk ensemble Four Bitchin' Babes, the New York-based Lavin plays at 8 and 10 p.m. at the Church of the Good Shepherd Sanctuary.

You can judge a bass player by the company he keeps, and John Brown keeps time for some of the best. The director of Duke University's jazz program has played with artists including Rosemary Clooney, Nnenna Freelon and Elvin Jones, not to mention each and every member of the Marsalis musical family. His Groove Shop Band gets things going at 6 p.m. on the main stage.

For the better part of three decades, the Chuck Davis African American Dance Ensemble has been a tradition in the Triangle and beyond, bringing festivity and joy to thousands of public gatherings. First Night offers up a triple-dose -- 7:30, 8:30 and 10 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall.