-Friday, October 12, 1979-The Michigan Daily
B-52's A T MOTOR CITY ROLLER PAILACE
Energy and ecclectic surrealism
STARTS TONIGHT
FRIDAY 7:05-9:35-SAT. & SUN. 12:35-2:40-4:45-7:05-9:35
What happens when kids grow up
and parents don't.
,,r" :
4
, .
" ti'
; . .
1
. .
By PHILIP DOLIN
I wanted to buy a candy bar before
joining the crtowd in front of The Motor
City, Roller Palace, in Detroit, where
the obscure, new wave band The B-52's
were about to perform.
As I gave the cashier my quarter she
told me that she wouldn't be caught
dead at The Roller Palace because it is
a scuzzy, disgusting pit. Being a mild
admirer of the new wave scene, '1 took
this as a good sign, and entered the
theater.
Pushing my way in-sharing floor-
space with psychedelic colored roller
skates-I noticed that The Roller
Palace was indeed a roller palace, with
the stage set off on one side of the
wooded surface.
The 52's were an hour late but the
time was easily spent staring at my
fellow ticket holders. Mast of the rock
and roll pilgrims were -dressed in
ceremonial garb, incliding the latest in
worn leather jackets, tight pink pants,
and blue and black striped hair.
EVENTUALLY, when the 52's
emerged, they erergized directly into
their theme song, the amazing "Planet
Claire." This tune combines some ec-
clectric pieces of sixties' rock with the
band's own unmistakably ultra-modern
style.
It begins with a driving guitar
progression borrowed directly from the
old Peter Gunn spy series. Lead
vocalist Fred Schneider adds a scin-
tillating walkie talkie beep beautifully
computerized tightness. The most
cohesive forces were the harmonies
supplied by Katie Pierson and Cindy
Wilson. Their high pitched screams and
trills were omnipresent and perfectly
executed throughout the entire eveing;
In "Dance This Mess Around,' the;:
girls borrow a few lines directly fron
Diana Ross and The Supremes:
Walk talk in the name of love
Before you break my heart
But they continue to assault reality:
4'-
The B-52 S
--l-,
if7
Trini Alvarado Jeremy Levy Kathryn Walker John Lithgow
Terry Kiser David Selby Roberta Maxwell Paul Dooley
Irene Worth A Lion's Gate Production
United Artists
synchronized with Cindy Wilson's
bongo beat.
The band also adds some
progressions from some of the old
James Bond movies for more sixties
input.
Guitar player Ricky Wilson also uses
an old Mosrite guitar to continue the
motif. He dazzled the crowd with his
powerful melodies which countered the
keyboard and vocals.
THE BEST PART of the B-52's are
the lyrics they sing. No one says they
are cerebral, however, they fo often
border on the surreal. Exemplary is the
description of Planet Claire:
Planet claire has pink air
All the trees are red
No one ever dies there
Noone has a head
They continued to play all of the
songs off their only album, including
"52 girls," "Dance This Mess Around,"
and "Lava." All songs contain the same
Why don't you dance with me
I'm not no limburger
Just a limburger
The B-52's played a few songs that
were not on their album, and a few.
more tunes were simply announced as
"dancing music." The appreciative
Roller Palace patrons responded to the
high energy sound by continuously dafn
cing the syncopated jerk. After the first
few songs, the crowd of about 500
spread out over the entire floor
engaging at what looked like a prom
given by the Adams' family.
RECORDS1
TERRYS GILLIAM & JONES'
MONTY PYTHON
1975
By KURT HARJU
Think of Bonnie Raitt's career as an
inverted bell curve. Her first two
albums were masterpieces that really
put her on the graph: They were also
peaks she's failed to match since.
Sweet Forgiveness signalled a
definite upswing, however. Her seventh
and most recent album, The Glow, con-
tinues the rising trend. If Raitt keeps
this up, she might even surpass
AND THE HOLY GRAIL
In the days of yore, lion-hearted men of noble thoughts court modest women
with reverent words and chivalrous deeds. But not in this comic travesty
featuring the cast of lunatics led by GRAHAM CHAPMAN and JOHN CLEESE.
"Sets the cinema back 900 years." Color. Needs subtitles.
Short: BANANA I (Norman Magden-1976) A parody of educational TV and
language lessons, this - hort shows how to conjugate the verb "to banana."
The feeling is infectious and each of
the remaining nine songs are infused
with the same energy. Strong ren-
ditions are given to the couple of Issac
ayes-David Porter tunes, "I Thank
ou" and "You Good Thing (Is About.
To End)," which open the album. The.
traditional Jackson Browna song-one'
of her early trademarks-has returned"
for the second LP in a row. "Sleep's,
Dark and Silent Gate" (intended as a,
tribute to Lowell George to whom she
dedicates the record) is even more.
heartfelt than her version of Browne's
"My Opening Farewell" from Sweet
Foregiveness.
Raitt transforms Tracy Nelson and%
Andy Mahon's "I Could Have Beene
CINEMA GUILD
TONIGHT AT
7 & 4:05
OLD ARCH. AUD.
$1.50
The Glow
Bonnie Raitt
Warner Brothers
I
CINEMA Ij
PRESENTS A
DEATH IN VENICE
(Luchino Visconti, 1972)
The late Lchino Visconti was famous for his lush, beautiful filnts, and one
of his most gorgeous is this adaptation of Thomas Mann's novel. An aging
composer falls in love with a beautiful boy in Venice during a plague.
tar sitdied, the film chronicles the last days of the man's love
dn,4i46 i-W tusic from the symphonies of Gustav Mahler. "A master-
pfecel A (11fitraofrare beauty, a work of pure enchantment! Dick Bogarde
is bfil W -NY Daily News. With Marion Berenson, Bjorn Anderson.
(130 min)7:00 ONLY
(Roberto Rossellini, 1945)
Shot during the dying days of the Nazis ii Rome, this powerful film of
human drama spawned Italian neo-realism. Most of the people in the
film are not professional actors, and much of the footage was shot by
hidden cameras. However, the tensions and heroic resistance of the main
characters are so intensely recreated as to make this film a masterpiece.
(103 min) 9:15 ONLY
previous highs and have a hit record
with her next release.
While Raitt has always been a sen-
sitive and enthusiastic interpreter of
other musicians' works, her albums in-
creasingly became unfocused collec-
tions without strong underlying themes
to support them. Her lows were usually
better than many of her contem-
poraries' best stuff, but they never-
theless prevented her from becoming a
superstar.
The .tow has spark, though, and the
promise of more fireworks to come. For
this album, Raitt recruited Peter
Asher-the recording whiz who gave
booster shots to the careers of James
Taylor and Linda Ronstandt-to help
produce the best sounding music she's
had in years.
More importantly, Raitt has included
one of her original songs-only the sixth
she's ever recorded and the first sin'ce
she wrote three for her 1972 classic Give
It Up-and that's reason enough for ap-
plause. "Standing By The Same Old
Love" demonstrated the assertiveness
and committmentt that are echoed
elsewhere in the set.
What appears at first to be advice to
the lovelorn; later, the song becomes a
moving anthem to maintaining control
on all of life's endeavors, and, for Raitt
in her musical career.
She sings an encouraging expression
of her own ambitions:
And I want you to know
That I'm not just along for the ride
And I won't settle for less than
Everything I've got inside.
Bo nnie Raitt
Angell Hall
$1 .50, $2.50 Double Feature
Tomorrow: FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILV ERS
Your) Best Old Friend" from a balled
into a bluesy lament with the help of her
trusty electric slide guitar. Her best
though, is the fast rocker "You're Go'n-
na Get What's Coming" by Robert
Palmer.
Raitt's is one of the most unusual
female voices in rock and Asher helps
give it wider appeal without significan-
tly changing her style. If Raitt sticks
with him and permits time for the comi-
bo to cook, popularity and platinum aie
not out of the question.
Applications being taken for new members
Mpp,
U-M Office of Major Events presents
WWWW welcomes
EAGLE .S.
THEL CG
m
RU>
r 7
I LAW
r'i
C
2
arrmranxe' s suxaa s*IS-",TfTS ssr aasassrs'oms
Henle y-GlC * WFra
Do) Foidcr ".Joe Wa lshi
4
)
f
i
"
n
R
a
v
a4
+
.M
M4
a,
T ii iiothy
B. Schuit
'Two concerts
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY
I