reviews
Qjrmm
the top
5-point
scale
If impressions set the stage, then I was sure
the concert was gang to follow the same
morbid fate of others. There were no people
stacking garbage cans outside of the EMU,
trying to gain access to the terrace and
thereby assuring themselves illicit entry. The
usual crowd of gate-huddlers and listen-to
music-freebees was missing. All that wished
to enter, with appropriate admission, found
excellent seating. not a bad seat in the house!
So, with this lack of enthusiasm on behalf of
the masses for the scheduled billing of the
evening apparent, we reposed ourselves in
the small metal chairs which we could have
done without, and awaited the entertainment.
Ah, here we go. The first group of the
evening to take the stage called themselves
Coal. This local six man group ranged
somewhere between the Jackson 5 and Isaac
Hayes as far as the style of music. They
immediately set out to liven up the ballroom
and, much to my enjoyment, succeeded
admirably. One song worth mention was
titled Groove-maker. At this point the group
began to jell and put it together. I set an ar
bitrary scale for rating the songs between 1
and 5; Coal succeeded in keeping the tempo
well above three. People began to rock bade
and forth, became more informal, relaxed,
and were just about ready to get into a par
tying mood. Now, it wasn’t so much the
ballroom as a big house party. The band
broke into If you’re gonna use me, use me up;
there wasn’t a body unmoved nor a foot un
tapped. To use colloquial expressions, “They
got down!” and “Rocked out!”
The musicians were adequate and put forth
a good sound. If Larry Davis would ' **rn to
play something other than the tambourine,
such as organ or piano, this group might put it
all together. He does have a fine voice and
really became a standout in many of their
selections. They have several releases; one
particularly fine one, Sapphire, which should
be a big hit with AM radio. I would go so far as
to say it was their best song of the evening. All
in all, they did a fine job and should look
forward to well-deserved success.
Then, the surprise of the night. Announced
as the Grover Washington Junior Quartet, I
couldn’t for the life of me figure out what was
a Junior Quartet? Oh, Jr. is his name. Within
the first forty bars of music I knew we were
all in for a big treat. My five-point scale lost
all meaning as the group had surpassed fifty
before the third song had ended.
It was easy to see that Grover Washington
reached out and swept the audience to new
heights of euphoria. The audience replied
their approval many times during a song with
bursts of applause and whistles. This man had
expertise that just wouldn’t quit. If you were a
jazz buff, you might have compared his
technique and his individual concept of
melodic playing to John Coltrane; his fire and
personal approach to the horn of Joe Hen
derson ; or his distinct sound and fine
arrangements to another great contemporary
figure like Oliver Nelson.
But, you didn’t need to be a buff to enjoy the
fantastic sound This group played the best
notes to hit this campus in a long, long time.
Their rendition of Ain’t no sunshine was much
better than the album cut. It should be noted
that the group he travels with is not the same
he records with, however there is no ap
preciable loss of talent. Each member of this
quartet is an excellent musician in his own
right. Put them together and what you get is
an evening of entertainment you won’t soon
forget, provided you had foresight or
foreknowledge of this very capable per
former. If you missed this one, consider
yourself one down on the social scale, and six
down on what’s happening.
Grover Washington Jr., comes over better
in concert than on record. He has a warm
personal style that becomes all too sterile
when recorded; a kind of spontaneity that you
get only with a live performance. You can
talk about his excellent trills and outstanding
breath control, but however you word it, it
still comes out fantastic.
This was jazz at its best and the show of a
lifetime.
P.S. A good album to pick-up on: Grover
Washington Jr.: Inner City Blues
Gary L. Cole
Disappointing Doobies
Doobie Brothers fans flocked to the Salem
Armory Friay night to soak in their hero’s
music. For their sake, I hope they got their
money’s worth; I’m not sure that I did.
I considered myself lucky in just making
the gig by the seat of my pants (literally, I lost
a good portion of the rear end of my jeans
getting out of the car.) by arriving twenty
minutes late. Soon I would have second
thoughts about my luck.
When I got into the place Steely Dan was
laying down some pretty fair music but there
were some people that were sitting down on
the floor. Usually, this is a bad sign.
Things got better when they rolled into a
number of their next album, called the
“Boston Rag.” The next four songs after that
(one of which is “Dirty Work,” I believe)
sounded similar to the “Rag,” with all of the
group membersharmonizing excellently.
A good rendition of their hit “Do It Again
ended their portion of the show.
Good, solid rock and roll here. Nothing
spectacular, but very enjoyable for the eye to
watch and the ear for listening.
The Doobie Brothers turned in the same
type of performance but it might be wise to
end it at nothing spectacular.
The Doobies disappointed me. There was
nothing really wrong with the way they
played, but there was nothing really right
about it either. Too bad, everyone was ex
pecting much more than the Doobies gave.
They did seven numbers but they really
didn’t start cookin’ until the fifth one (“Jesus
I Just Alright”). They followed it up right
with the hard rock and roll sound of
“Disciple.”
Honorable mentions go to “Listen To The
Music,” “Rockin Down The Hiway,” and a
cut off their next LP, “As Clear As The
Driving Sun.”
After their set Tom Johnston and Pat
Simmons, lead and rhythm guitars respec
tively, told me that the group is now doing its
own type of varying set. Apparently their type
of set is very short as the concert was over by
10:30 p.m.
Johnston and Simmons write most of the
Doobies music and are not on a Jesus trip as a
lot of people are inclined to believe.
Johnston explained, “The Jesus thing just
happened to come into a couple of pieces of
music that we wrote.”
The music performed by the Doobie
Brothers reminded me a bit of the old James
Gang. That’s fine, but like the James Gang
concert that I saw, it was too damn short and
not dynamic enought (music wise, not show
wise). At $4.50, a shot I call it a pretty ex
pensive concert.
Jim Worlein
r TH€ UNPERSITY 1
rlm society
presents
a study of the emancipation of a human
bring from a sterile and futile existence -how
a protest strike changes forever the life of a
primitive girt in a Tunisian mining village.
Jean-Louis Berfucelli's
Ramparts of Clay
“one of the most sophisticated protest films
ever made.” - TIME
and a short
The Perfection of Matter
a 20-minute look at the roots of modern
science—alchemy, as it is still practiced in
North Africa, where science flourished during
Europe’s Dark Ages.
SUN., Feb. 4, 7:00 and 9:15
UNIVERSITY THEATRE
Memberships available at the door
^(Non-members admitted for $1.00 at 6:50 and 9:05)
•• Barrister’s •<
10% Discount
on anything
in the
Coffee Shop
with student ID
★ ★ ★ ★
Rap’s World Famous
Singapore Slings $1.25
Dudley Floodpuddlers ,75c
1769 Franklin Blvd.
NUC PRESENTS
FRIDAY FEBRUARY 2.
HIGH
SCHOOL
Directed by Frederick Wiseman. A biting
critical analysis of American education. "It is
wicked, brilliant documentary about life in a
lower-middle-class secondary school. It should,
get bastly more exposure." - Life Magazine
"Horror! Horror! Here is the evil of banality.
What's solemn is made silly, what's silly is made
solemn." - Newsweek. "Scene after scene builds
to a powerful cumulative effect - not of anger,
but of immense sadness and futility." New
Republic.
!
AISO, •;
HIGH SCHOOL RISING
a short. 180 PLC. 7:00and 9:00 P.M.
J