Roswell’s dubious claim to fame is the allegation that an alien craft of some sort landed nearby back in 1947. The town largely shunned this weak form of civic celebrity until the late 1990s, when it dawned on Roswell’s civic fathers and mothers that there was money to be made. The 1997 “50th Anniversary of Something, We’re Not Sure What” was a big success, but apparently things have waned some in the intervening years, according to Wyatt Buchanan of the Plainview Herald:

A few bands played outside, which was the highlight of the event. One act, The Dibs, drove 24 hours from Long Beach, Calif., to play to what they were told would be a crowd of 15,000-20,000. There were maybe 15 people watching, each fighting for the shade.

At the end of their set, the band begged people to buy their CD so they would have enough gas money to get home. (I bought one. It?s good, really good.)

(Thanks to Dave Thomas for the link.)