The clock struck 8 on Saturday night when a tired Editor push the “Export as PDF” for the final time on his computer, completing the last page of Crossroads – 2015.

For regular readers of this newspaper, Crossroads is the special broadsheet edition we have published every year since 2001. It’s a collection of local lifestyles articles and photos, featuring those individuals and groups that cross our path here in the Roanoke-Chowan area. Following tradition, Crossroads is inserted into each Saturday edition of the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald and each Wednesday edition of the Gates County Index throughout the month of February.

Each year, Crossroads carries an overall theme. In the past we’ve featured educators, businessmen (and women), sports personalities, and the like. For the past two years we featured Women at Work (2013) and Men at Work (2014).

This year’s theme was music. We sought out individuals and groups here in our local four-county that are musically talented. And I need to add at this point that we had a great time interviewing our local musicians. I knew we had some gifted people here locally, but to hear their stories, especially how they got their start in music, made me realize even more just how lucky we all are to have this sort of local entertainment to brighten our lives.

One other “shout-out” goes to Tim Flanagan in Murfreesboro. Tim, a transplant to our area after he and his wife moved here and restored the old Barnes House, transforming it into a bed & breakfast, contacted me in January, expressing interest in being a contributing writer to our company. I explained to Tim about Crossroads, and he jumped in feet first….contributing three outstanding articles.

As part of Crossroads – 2015, there was a “Name That Tune” contest and a reader-interactive Top-10 Playlist. We had fun with both of those as well.

The contest featured weekly clues, each associated to a certain song. I purposely made the first three clues extremely tough (we have received a few entries thus far and none have been correct) in an effort to keep interest in the contest. The fourth and final clue publishes this week. If you know your music, this clue will lead you to the correct answer. Good luck to all who are vying for the chance to become $200 richer. We’ll draw one winner from all correct answers. The deadline to enter is next Friday (March 6).

The Top-10 Playlists submitted by our readers have been very interesting. You can tell a lot about a person based on the music they like. If you knew mine, it’s a dead give-away that I’m a Southern Rock kind’a guy with a different twist thrown in for good measure.

My Top 10 list of all-time favorite songs are:

#1 – 24 Hours at a Time (live version): Marshall Tucker Band;

#2 – Melissa: Allman Brothers

#3 – Call Me the Breeze: Lynard Skynard

#4 – Orange Blossom Special: Charlie Daniels Band

#5 – Five Pound Bass: Robert Earl Keen

#6 – Carolina by the Sea: Super Grit Cowboy Band

#7 – Under the Boardwalk: The Drifters

#8 – New Life: Marshall Tucker Band

#9 – South City Midnight Lady: Doobie Brothers

#10 – Till the Storm Passes By: Mosie Lister

Thanks to all who made Crossroads – 2015 our best yet. Stay tune next year to see in which direction Crossroads will lead us.

Cal Bryant is Editor of Roanoke-Chowan Publications. He can be contacted at cal.bryant@r-cnews.com or 252-332-7207.