The Michigan Daily--Friday, January 5, 1979--Page 7
The folk are back. in town
By ERIC ZORN
On the twelvth day of Christmas,
rather than a lecture hall full of
peculiar and expensive gifts, your true
love might be more than tickled by a
pair of tickets to the SecondAnnual Ann
Arbor Folk Festival. The Festival,
presented by the Office of MAjor
Events, features some of the very best
folk music recording artists in two
shows at the Power Center, Saturday at
2:00 and 7:30 p.m.
As long-time headliners and friends
of the Ark, all performers are donating
their fees to the nationally respected
non-profit coffeehouse in order to
secure its continued operation.
Headlining both shows will be David
Bromberg and Norman Blake, and the
other performers - Gamble Rogers, U.
Utah Phillips, Mike Seeger and Alice
Gerrard, Bryan Bowers, John Roberts
and Tony Barrand, and Norman
Kennedy - will appear in one show. TV
newsman from Channel 2 in Detroit
Ron Sanders, who has featured the Ark
in area media presentations; will be the
emcee for both performances.
DAVID BROMBERG, who used to be
David Brom berg
RECORDS
known only as a guitar virtuoso, has
built a solid reputation as a singer and
entertainer, treaing audiences to his
own brand of folk and rock with a little
bit of everything thrown in.
More traditional in their approach to
folk are Norman and Nancy Blake. The
two are especially noted for their
beautiful instrumental work on old
fiddle tunes, as Norman flat picks with
nimble precision on the guitar while his
wife strokes a smooth cello line. Last
time through Ann Arbor they were
joined by Nashville fiddler James
Bryan.
Mike Seeger, Pete's brother, has
been an important influence in
traditional and folk music for over
twenty years as a collector and
performer of southern mountain music.
Renditions of the old favorites by
of
1
e
*
4 l~og J00
S~e # 0f
Mike's group, The New Lost City
Ramblers, are often considered
definitive. This time through Ann
Arbor, Alice Gerrard will sing tenor
with Seeger, and the duo promise an
exciting performance.
THE AUTOHARP is not an
elementary school instrument in the
hands of Bryan Bowers, a tall and
scruffy fellow who is a fine songwriter
from the west coast, and known as the
premiere autoharp player in the world.
Fully recovered from a nasty cut in his
hand suffered before an Ark concert
last fall, Bowers will entertain with the
magical selection of instrumentals and
vocal numbers which have electrified
audiences across the country.
The rest of the festival will be just as
exciting and diverse, with. no two
performers offering the same brand of'
traditional and more progressive folk
music: U. Utah Phillips, "The Golden
Voice of the Great Southwest," sings
songs of trains, hoboes, wild women
and good times; Norman Kennedy
sings and tells stories out of the Scottish
tradition while John Roberts and Tony
Give 'Em Enough Rope
The Clash
Epic JE 35543
By MIKE TAYLOR
The system built by the sweat of the many
Creates assassins to kill off the few . .
"Guns on the Roof," The Clash, 1978
The Clash has the good sense to see
that revolutions are fought with guns;
this potent message rings true
throughout their brilliant new album,
Give 'Em Enough Rope. In fact, Give
'Em Enough Rope is the best example
pf-revolutionary fervor translated into
rock 'n' roll since Bruce Springsteen's
Darkness on the Edge of Town; The
Clash's sound is the most vicious I've
heard since the Sex Pistols - so brutal
that poor Bruce sounds like Jackson
Browne in comparison.
From the opening drum beats of
"Safe European Home," which sounds
like gunfire, to the last desperate chords
of "All the Young Punks (New Boots
and Contracts)," which sound like
mournful wails from someone who
refuses to surrender, Give 'Em Enough
Rope is alive with the sounds of war-
fare. Lead guitarist Mick Jones, lead
vocalist and rhythm guitarist Joe
Strummer, and bassist Paul Simonon
have created, with producer Sandy
Pearlman and mixer Corky Stasiak's
help, a maelstrom of sound. The vocals
have been mixed so low that it's often
psible to decipher only snatches of
lyrics; words come and go like
crossfire. The murky mix is filled with
cascading guitars, rivetting solos, and
echo effects; it's a brittle, hard-as-nails
sound.
THE FIRST THREE tracks make
Give 'Em -Enough Rope's premise
disturbingly clear. "Safe European
Home," "English Civil War," and
"Tommy Gun" form a sort of holy
trilogy, a ferocious statement of
purpose.
I went to the place
Where every white face
Is an invitation to robbery
Sitting here in my safe European home ...
"Safe European Home," like many
Clash songs, is reggae transformed into
rock 'n' roll. Layers of sound, banks of
instruments float in and out of the mix,
creating a whirlwind effect. It's the
loudest and most dense song on the LP,
and it was my first favorite. The words
may mean different things to different
people, but I see this song as the tale of
Barrand accompany their English
traditional songs on a variety, of
instruments.
There will be something for everyone
at the Ann Arbor Folk Festival: for
lovers of the old traditions and fans of
the emerging ones. At least as much as
any other kind of performer, the folk
musician must have a feel for the
history of his music and a sense of
where it will go in the future, and the
best of them (and we'll have the best on
campus January 6) realize that there is
equal beauty in what was and what will
be. The traditions of the people are
alive, and changing, and these are the
musicians simultaneously preserving
the past and exploring new frontiers.
Prof. Carl Berger of the University's
School of Education delivered a major
address recently on the future of energy
at the 1978 Pennsylvania State Science
Conference in King of Prussia, Pa., the
University announced.
Berger also serves as director of the
Midwest Trial Center of the Science Ac-
tivities for the Visually Impaired
Project based at the University of
California, Berkeley.
someone who refuses to acknowledge
the forces of social upheaval around
him or her - thus, it could be about any
of us.
"English Civil War" and "Tommy
Gun" draw us deeper into the conflict.
"English Civil War" is a rather
straightforward rock tune enhanced by
an ever-present "When Johnny Comes
Marching Home" theme. "Tommy
Gun" uses drums as machine guns and
guitars as machete; its ominous lyrics
go something like this:
Tommygun -
You ain't happy unlessyvou got one
lommy gun -
Ain't gonna shoot the place up just for fun
Whaterer he wants
You're gonna get it ...
It's kill or be killed
"JULIE'S IN the Drug Squad" comes
as a pleasantly upbeat number after all
this stuff about war and revolution.
This one and "Last Gang in Town" are
the most playful tunes on the record;
"Last Gang in Town" employs a
delightful rhythm pattern, and I love
the James Bond guitar solo that comes
towards the end.
Turn the album over, crank it up, and
you'll hear the familiar chords of "I
Can't Explain." But very quickly the
Who becomes the Clash:
Guns, guns
.Gunas, gens
Guans, guns
They torture all the women and children
Then they put the men to the gun
Gunis, guns
They shake themin terror
G;uns, guns
Killing in error
'"'guns
Nobody's kidding
Oirfooling around
Guns, gus
This is a place where no judge can stand
Gus'guns
Guns on the roof
",guns
Made to shoot ...
"Stay Free" is an engaging tune
about two old buddies; one joined the
Clash, the other joined the revolution.
"All the Young Punks (New Boots and
Contracts," which takes its cue in ter-
ms of melody and spirit from David
Bowie's "All the Young Dudes," is a
magnificently multi-textured song. The
lyrics offer little hope:
F~ace front
You got the future
Shining like a piece of gold
Butt I swear as we get closer
It looks like a lump of coal
But it's better than some factory
Give 'Em Enough Rope's premise
disturbingly clear. "Safe European
Home," "English Civil War," and
"Tommy Gun" form a sort of holy
trilogy, a ferocious statement of pur-
pose.
If you care about new direc-
tions in rock 'n' roll, or just like to
dance, you owe it to yourself to pick up
their two fine albums, along with the
singles that came between albums -
"Complete Control," "Clash City Rock-
ers," and "(White Man) In Hammer-
smith Palais." Happy listening!
Join
the
Arts
Page
if only I had my papers
typed at the
PAPER CHASE
CHECK OUT OUR TYPING
& copying rates.
In the MI6CH. UNION,
next to U Cellar 665-8065
I worked there for a week
Once
Iluckily got the flu ...
OVER4000VEGESOLD!
Try us for an early evening dinner
OUR VEGGIE AND CLUB SANDWICHES
HAVE 5EEN KNOWN TO FEED TWO!
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OPEN: Mon, Tues 10-7
* "0pWed-Sat 10-8
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FOLLETT'S
TAKES THE
HASSLE
OUT OF RUSH!
We at Follett's know you've dreaded this day-coming back to school
after a great Christmas vacation. So we're doing everything possible to make
starting this semester easier.
We'll help you save money by offering great textbooks values. 5% off
new texbooks. 25% off used textbooks. 5% off reference books. 5% off
professional textbooks.
And we'll take the hassle out of rush. At Follett's there's never a line
because our store is self-serVice and all textbooks are consolidated on the
lower level. And we accept Bank Americard and Mastercharge too. And we'll
refund the full amount on any textbook bought at Follett's (with receipt) til
January 25th.
So start this semester off on the right foot at Follett's. We're open 9
a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Mon. through Fri. Saturdays 10:00-4:30 and Sun., Jan.
7-10:00-5:00. Shop early for the best selection.
OLLETT'S
A student for good food was eager,
Though his money to spend was quiet
meager.
Stopped and tried our cuisine;
Found it within his means.
So now he's a regular Leaguer! L. T.
The~chigan
LA2Jie Next to Hill Auditorium
Located in the heart of the campus,
it is the heart of the campus .. .
Lunch 11:30 to 1:15
Dinner 5:00 to 7:15
SNACK BAR
Lower Level
Open 7:15 AM to 4:00 PM
Send your League Limerick to:
Manager, Michigan League
227 South Ingalls
You will receive 2 free dinner
tickets if your limerick is used in
one of our ads.