P aye 6, Portland O bserver, S ep tem b er 3, 1986 THE ENTERTAINMENT SEEN NMEf Z 3 H ABO UT TOW N Act One By Ken C o v in g t o n Randy Sm ith/On the Verge IL HI Charlie M id n ig h t. Jam es B row n. Dan Hartm an Mr. Soul, James Brown James Brown, who recently hit the pop top five for the first time in twenty years with the song "Living In America," is finishing o ff his next LP, which should be out early in the fall Here, the hardest working man in show business shows off the words to the hit (which will be on the new LPl w itti his producer, Dan Hartman (on the right) and the man who co wrote the song with Hartman, Charlie Midnight Ion the left). Producer Dan Hartman, who's also a singer and performer, has had his own string of hits on the charts ("I Can Dream About You," "Instant Replay") like James Brown, Hartman also has a new album coming out in October C.T.C. Gala to Christen New Theatre and New Season September 12 will be a festive night for Hawthorne Boulevard when The Columbia Theater Company opens its doors to ttie public After six months of building, painting, shifting, removing and adding, the old Fine Arts IhrMter located at S f TOtli and Hawthorne will he the newest addition to the Portland Theater Scene follow ing the performance of Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance" ,20 years to the day after its successful opening on Broadway), the Columbia Theater Company will host a Champaigne Gala lor all of its opening night patrons. Tickets for this festive occassron will be $ 15 00 and includes the post production festivities. Group rates and Senior Citizen rates are available For further informa lion, call the theater at 232 7005 Eat, Drink and Dance w ith th e la te s t v id eo hits Sitting in back of a Jet Limousine, long white and luxurious. Randy Smith seems right at home. Still full of energy from the night's perfor mance, his eyes sparkle just like his suit, and. if I didn't know any better, I could swear I'm about to interview a member of Prince's band But, no, this is Randy, born and bred in Portland, the boy next door, all grown up and coming into his own "It's about to happen for me, man, 'cause I can feel it," says Randy "It's taken a while, but all things (success) come in time " Randy was always in love with music His parents played a lot of differ ent music at home, and, by the time he was 12, Randy fancied himself a drummer and practiced and studied in his spare time, always seeking per fection. As soon as "birds of a feather flock together", he was |oined by some others in the neighborhood seeking the same creative musuical out let They were Marlon McClain, Yuhl Thomas and Bruce Carter, to name a lew One evening, as Randy watched television and saw the Beatles drive their audience to a frenzy, he decided that showbusmess was his destiny Since that day, Randy has experienced, studied and explored the music world, relentlessly searching for the keys to the kingdom known as "stardom ", thus giving him the title of not only musician but producer, as well When his first group. The Slikophonics, was formed, it was apparent that it took more than talent to make it to the level that Randy wanted to attain professionally Randy knew enough musicians to stay busy through out tfie years, be it |am sessions or straight gigs, studying everything from the technical standpoint to administrative procedures, as well "The tragic part was watching some of my most talented friends get mistreated and discouraged," says Randy, "but it taught me the do’s and don’t ’s. I decided to go for it about two years ago and formed The Flirt Band We were in the process of completing our first video when I was given the opportunity to go on tour with a group out of Seattle known as Force Major That group gigs all over the world, and I couldn't pass that opportunity up After 9 months on the road, I knew enough to know exact ly what I wanted and how to do it and keep it going straight to the top I returned home, and I’m now in the process of doing |ust that His only drawback is getting the group's energy focused in the same direction, but, as we all know, nothing good comes easy This week as you read this article, the group is working on an LP due to he released in January Randy Smith believes in delivering a show both visually and musically; |ust the right combination to achieve their goal Randy Smith, il even on sheai determination, is on the verge of something big Do yourself a favor and catch a rising star Coming soon to a club near you Bee G ' • .................................................................5700 N E U nion. 281 1178 Fri. Sat . Billy Larkin fit Co.; Sun., Jam session Brasserie M o n tm a rte 626 S W Park 224 5662 Fn. Sat , Dennis Springer Quartet Eldorado C lu b ................................. 5016 N E U nion 284 8664 Fn Sat., Randy Smith and The Flirt Band. Sun , Walter Bridges Big Band. Janice Scroggins Quartet H o b b it....................................................... S E 39th ft H olgate. 771 0742 Fri Sat Mel Brown Quintet Jazz Q u a rry .................................................1111S W Je ffe rso n. 222 7422 Fn. Sat , LeRoy Vinneyar Trio Key Largo .......... 31 N W 1st. 223 9919 Fn Sat Calvin Walker, Sun . Cool'R Last H u rra h ............................................. 566 S W A lder 224 1336 F n . The Dan Reed Network P in o c c h io 's .......... 309 W Burnside. 228 1830 Thurs . Spare Change (formerly Street Music! Remo's 1424 N W Glisan 221 1150 Sun , Jam w Ron Steen Salty's ........ fo o t o f S E M arion. 239 8900 Fri Sat . Cool R Shanghai Lounge 0309 S W M o n tg o m e ry . 220 1866 Sun , Cool R Top of the C osm o 1030 N E Union, 235 8433 Mon Sat., Gene Diamond h Aires W haler 120 N State S t.. Lake O sw ego 636 8880 Fn Sat., Shirley Nanette Band HOTTEN 1. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rumors ................... .................................... Timex Social Club/Jay Theatre of the Mind ....... ............................................ Mtume/CBS Bloodline............... LaVert/Warner Bros. Get Busy 1 Time ......................................... Full Force/Columbia Back in Black .. ................. .......................... W hoodini/Jive Midnite Starr/Solar Headlines......... I Commit to Love................................................. Howard H ew itt/Elektra Always in the Mood .............. Shirley Jones/Manhattan Word Up Comeo Polygram Janet Jackson A&M C ontrol... R o y e E 'S B A R -B -Q U E cover u n til 11 30 p . rn The place to bring a friend m eet a friend m a k e a fr ie n d 6 " .V a e ir i t Jazz is alive and well in Portland, as proven by Original Richard s Restau rant and Niteclub, as they start off September with the exciting sounds of the Hobbs'Bard Big Bangg Every week Wednesday thru Saturday Original Richard's, located at the corner of McLoughlin it Holgate, offers the FAMILY K A T U S I m i . HT ._... We WAYS TO GET Y O l R TIC RETS IN M H n O N l........... I «•! l"H M Vi * . . .’••• ‘