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November 21, 1978 - Image 5

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The Michigan Daily, 1978-11-21

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The Michigan Daily-Tuesday, November 21, 1978-Page 5

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Jazz guitarists mesmerize RC

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IV

By KEITH TOSOLT
"The Liberation of the contemporary
jazz guitar" is the aesthetic intent
behind the guitar duets of Rodney Jones
and Bruce Johnson, whose combined
improvisation was the feature of Eclip-
se's second Bright Moments concert of
the season Friday night.
The "liberation" the duo is attem-
pting is as much a reaction as it is a
release. It is a reaction against the pop-
jazz idion, the commercially palpable
music of George Benson, Chick Corea,
Stanley Clarke and others, in order to
re-orient the priorities back to more
purist intentions. In turn, it is a release
of that supreme concept of originality
from its confinement under the
quagmire of commerical acceptance.
"WE'RE WORKING on another new
wave of music that hasn't, been ex-

ploited," said Bruce Johnson, the more
outspoken and extroverted of the two.
Johnson, who has played bass behind
drummer Chico Hamilton (with whom
Rodney Jones also played before
moving on to Dizzy Gillespie's quartet),
speaks of the importance of the self in
the creative process, drawing on one's
life experience and own feelings to in-
spire truly unique music. The highly
personalized styles of the guitarists at-
test to the extent to which this
philosophy has been integrated into
their playing.
Jones is more the technician, reflec-
ting a serious demeanor, but his
playing is by no means mechanical -
even though he concentrates on playing
runs. While he is no less serious about
his work, Johnson tends to be more
flashy (as far as this description ap-
plies to the usually reserved jazz

guitarist). He does little tricks like
strumming his guitar pick-ups and
muting the strings to achieve per-
cussion sounds. His solos show a strong
element of the bass, and he will often
play a bass line in conjunction with his
lead runs.
THE COMMUNICATION between
the two guitarists is remarkable. It is as
if their improvisational instincts have
merged together, yet each retains an
element of individuality. At one point
they left the structure of a piece and
each pursued his own (but related) line
of dynamics in chords and runs. This
cpntinued for some time as they moved
farther away from the original struc-
ture. Suddenly, they came together on
the same chord, seemingly without any
cues, and took the piece into another
direction.
One piece began with some mellow

4

1

..._

Heart causes.
palpitations in Toledo
By TIMOTHY YAGLE
When a band succumbs to the gimmickry of flame throwers and flash
pods to tantalize their audience, this usually implies that the banderequires
something aside from their music to put on a good show. Although it was
somewhat exciting (and blinding) to see Heart engage in such theatrics
onstage in the Toledo Sports Arena Saturday, the band proved that it does
not need these gimmicks; their blend of heavy-duty rock and certified
mellow easy-listening tunes does the job quite well.
Although her sister and four other fellow musicians provide a searing
and powerful back-up, lead vocalist Ann Wilson clearly dominates Heart,
both in conceptual orientation and in sheer stage presence. Onstage, Wilson
typifies the sort of threatening sexuality singers like Mick Jagger and
Robert Plant flaunt. Although Wilson's, like Plant's, is a shade pre-
packaged, she is very intentionally intimidating, sauntering to the front of
the stage and putting on a show for the rabid, largely high school crowd in
the arena (which, incidentally, resembles an oversize high school gym).
HEART OPENED their show with guitarist/keyboardist Howard Leese
pounding on the bongos and lead guitarist Roger Fisher leaping like a
hungry tiger from behind his sound monitors as he launched into the hard-
hitting opening chords of "Cook With Fire." It was on the haunting "Devil's
Delight" that they introduced their exploding gimmickry, a la Kiss. The
music quickly dispelled the need for it. A superb "Magic Man" began the
group's hit parade, continuing with "Love Alive" and "Crazy on You,"
which featured Nancy Wilson for her acoustic guitar prelude.Exuberant
versions of "Kick It Out" and "Barracuda" ended the regular set.
The band concluded with several encores, and lined up before drummer
Michael Derosier like they were taking a family portrait. And Heart is very
much like a rock and roll family. One of the few sexually integrated bands in
rock, they have shown in their past LPs, and continue to prove, with their
new Dog and Butterfly, that despite everything else that's going on, they can
keep their love for rock alive.

GLEE CLUBS SMOKE A T JOINT CONCER T:
U,' Purdue bothwinners

By BILL BARBOUR
The University of Michigan Men's
Glee Club sang to a packed house
Saturday night, which was really no
great surprise. Even though the concert
was well-publicized and had the benefit
of a large alumni contingent in town for
the afternoon's football game, people
were drawn to the event by that which
makes many return year after year:
the Glee Club's incredible musicality
and diversity. This was demonstrated
in abundance Saturday at Hill
Auditorium.
It is a tradition of this group every
year to perform a joint concert with'
another school. They invite the glee'
club from a school that the Michigan
football team is playing that afternoon.
This year Purdue's Varsity Glee Club
was invited and, though their com-
patriots fared less well on the playing,
field, their vocal performance was im-
pressive.
MUCH OF the Club's literature is
sacred music. Their best efforts in this
area included "Pilgrim's Chorus" from
Wagner's Tannhauser, which balanced
well and accentuated the linear
chromatic movement for which the
composer is famous. In "Wandering,"
the Club proved themselves a true en-
semble responsive to their director's
whims for abrupt tempo change. "If
You Believe," featured John Myers as
a tenor soloist. Myers has the sort of
classically good voice one could
imagine encountering in an old movie
CIGAR STORE
INDIANS
ASCUTNEY, Vt. (AP) - Edward
Boggis, who has a secluded workshop
near here, claims to be the last full-time
cigar store Indian carver in the United
States.
"Occasionally you will hear of some
other person carving a cigar store In-
dian," said Boggis. "Usually that per-
son is somebody I taught how to carve
wood. As far as I know I'm the, only
woodcarver around who specializes in
wooden Indians.
"I've carved thousands of them over
the years. There's quite a demand for
them."
His most famous Indian, an eight-
footer, can be found in the gallery of a
tobacco company in New York.
Boggis, 55, started carving large
statues when he served with the Coast
Guard during World War. II. Later,
while employedrat the Vermont State
Correctional Institute, he taught wood
carving to inmates.

or radio broadcast. The poor solo
microphone, unfortunately, made it
sound exactly that way.
Of their popular repertoire, two num-
bers stood out. The first was "All The
Things You Are" by Jerome Kern and
Oscar Hammerstein, performed with
extreme sensitivity. It was a showcase
for the group's ability to sing at a soft
dynamic. The second was "You Will Be
My Music," which featured bass-
baritone Michael Needham as soloist.
Needham, who plays basketball for
Purdue in the "off-season," has a
powerful and penetrating voice, and hit
each note of this usually unwieldy song
with perfect clarity. Purdue closed
their portion of the program with "Bat-
tle Hymn of the Republic," and after an
intermission, the Michigan Glee Club
took the stage.
THOUGH Purdue's performance was
good, Michigan's was an order of mag-
nitude better. On songs such as their
opening number, "Laudes Atque Car-
mina," which they do differently every
year, the Club showed why they won
their fourth first prize in the Inter-
national Musical Eisteddfod in the
summer of 1978. Every number evinced
their fine ensemble tone and perfect
blend of voices. The highlights of their
portion of the program were "The
Bridal Party," where their subtle
musicianship at fragile, soft sections
came through; "Cockles and Mussels,"
which featured an excellent solo by
tenor Kevin Doss; and a performance

by the Friars (a sub-group of the Glee
Club) of Steve Martin's "King Tut."
This choice bit of comedy was helped
along by funny choreography and a
good Steve Martin imitation by bass
Jeff Sinclair.
Michigan finished its part of the pro-
gram with a series of classic Michigan
songs, including "Go Blue," "Michigan
Men," and, of course, "Hail to the Vic-
tors." The two clubs then combined to
sing "Brothers Sing On" and the alma
mater of each school - "Hail Purdue"
and "The Yellow and Blue." Although
both the groups displayed admirable
professionalism, the University of
Michigan's Glee Club is simply more
than a polished ensemble. I left Hill
Auditorium that night convinced I had
heard the most musical group on cam-
pus.
GRIN AND BARE IT?
DONCASTER, England (AP) -
Bridgroom Steve Morris of Doncaster
flushed his top set of false teeth down
the toilet on the eve of his wedding.
Morris phoned a dentist friend, who
managed to put the smile back on his
face just in time for the wedding.
His wife said he never complimented
her on her wedding dress, but "just
kept on about his teeth."

chording which was built upon until
Jones turned it into a boogie-woogie,
which Johnson then varied into a rock
and roll progression. It ultimately ,n-
ded up with a Spanish flavor. Another
piece had Jones laying out some of the
all-time classic beginner guitar licks
from tunes like "Secret Agent Man"
and "Purple Haze." Though these ex-
cursions into various styles and riffs
may have seemed to negate the
premise of originality, I think they're
better explained as touches of humor.
Besides, the improvisation around
them was too strong to point to anything
else.
THE BEST piece (of the first show, at
least) was a very unorthodox version of
John Coltrane's "Giant Steps." Though
marred at times by Johnson's en-
thusiasm (like plucking his nearly un-
winded low-E string), it was an ex-
cellent arrangement of this jazz classic.
Improvisational music, at its best, is
a spontaneous artistic process. But of-
ten the indulgences of the artist can
make it an unbearable thing to be sub-
ject to. Jones and Johnson indulge
themselves with disharmonic phrases
(at times), but they generally create a
style of free-form guitar which is not
only pleasant to listen to, but challenges
our pre-conceived notions of that
elusive idiom known as "jazz."
HOME
INSULATION
TOLEDO, OHio (AP) -,Homeowners
considering use of fiber glass insulation
should be aware that there are two dif-
ferent types, "batts" and "loosefill,"
according to an insulation expert here.
"Both kinds are good, but batts offer
ne special advantage: assured perfor-
mance," says Kevin Gallagher, a
marketing manager, Owens-Corning
Fiberglas.
Batts are insulation "blankets" that
are unrolled into place between joists in
attic floors. Loose-fill refers to in-
sulation in a chopped-up form, which
must be hand-poured or pneumatically-
blown into place, he explains.
Because of its particle nature,
variations can occur in the installed
thickness of loose-fill which ultimately
affect its ability to resist heat transfer,
Gallagher adds.
"With batts," he says, "these
variations can't occur since the
material is prefabricated into specified
thickness and density before it is in-
stalled."

A Gambl
By STEVE HOOK
Between sets at the Ark Friday night,
Gamble Rogers examined a long list
containing the names of previous Ark
performprs. He studied it for several
moments, then quietly said, "I've
worked with over half of 'em"
Listening to his picking mastery, and
seeing the warm professionalism he
presented to the crowd, it's easy to
believe.
In a performance which lasted over
four hours (and was followed by shouts
for more!), Rogers built an intimate
relationship with his audience. "I'm
glad I came to your party here," he told
the Ark crowd with a smile early on in
his performance. From the sea of
satisfied faces filling the room, it was
clear that the audience shared his sen-
timent.
HE IS A tall, slender southerner in his
early forties, famed as a guitar player,
story-teller and singer of whit he calls
"Southern Gothic Art Songs." Con-
tinuing his career as a self-acclaimed
"twentieth-century troubador," Rogers
has brought his music and stories to
clubs and coffeehouses across the
country for seven years, building a sub-
tle, but well-respected, reputation.
But although his guitar playing does
bring him acclaim, it is his long,
detailed monologues about life in the
South for which he is best known.
Friday night he splendidly told of
politicians and philosophers, cops and
"commercial Indians," traveling
salesmen and rednecks, all the while in-
terjecting his famous "ten-dollar wor-
ds." Indeed, humorous big words and
all, his stories paint a picture of the
South as vvidly as a Faulkner novel.
A student of the Merle Travis three-'
finger picking school, Rogers displayed
a relaxed but in-control approach to the
instrument. When he picked "Orange
Blossom Special," for.instance, or his
own "Rosewood," it was obvious he had
perfected the style.
ROGERS' SINGING, even with his
less-than-superb voice, is justified,
because of the song's strong and
emotional lyrics. Many were light-
hearted and whimsical, such as his

e pays off
"Black Label Blues," or "A Long Way
from Breakfast to Bed." Others reflect-
ed a much more serious side of the per-
former. As he sang,.Dylan's "Don't
Think Twice," and Kristofferson's
"Bobby McGee," he was somber and
contemplative.
Rogers has performed with the best
in his field, at folk festivals and night-
clubs all over the country. Musicians
ranging from Doc Watson (who shares
his picking style) to Jimmy Buffett,
John Prine, and Steve Goodman, have
expressed their admiration for Rogers.
It was Goodman who once said, "He's
so talented the record people don't
know) how to package him."
Rogers, though, is not too upset.
"PEOPLE TEND to equate an ar-
tist's success on his record products,"
he said. I've been successful for a long
time. I've everything I want beyond my
wildest dreams. I have all the work I
can handle doing what I love to do. I'm
well paid. . . I just couldn't ask for
more."
And for those who saw him at the Ark
this weekend, neither could they.
CREATIVE ARTS
IN PRISONS
WASHINGTON (AP) - The National
Endowment for the Arts has named five
federal prisons for its 1978 Artists-In-
Residence program.
The program, which places
professional artists in federal prisons,
will be conducted at facilities in
Springfield, Mo., El Reno, Okla., Ter-
minal Island, Calif., Lexington, Ky.,
and Peterburg, Va. Besides increasing
the number of creative arts programs
in the federal prisons, the program
aims to make the arts available to per-
sons not in the cultural mainstream.
Each participating prison will
receive a total budget of $16,500. The
National Endowment provides $5,000 of
the total, with the remaining $5,000
coming from the central office of the
Federal Bureau of Prisons and $6,500
from the Bureau's regional office or
contributed by the prison.

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"PROTECTING CHILDREN:
SOME SHARED FALLACIES IN LAW
AND THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES"
Robert Burt
Professor of Law,
Yale University Law School
Today-4:00pm
Schorling Auditorium
School of Education
Let your imagination soar with
yoi

University of Michigan
Gilbert & Sullivan Society Presents 4

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