Tuesday, September 11, 1973
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Page Five
Blue
Good
By ROY CHERNUS
Ann Arbor has been well known
for some time now due to its ex-
ports ranging from models of
political-social progressiveness to
Ann Arbor Film Festivals. The
Ann Arbor Blues and Jazz Fes-
tival is the latest exponent in
this local tradition, but its road
of good intentions this year led
unfortunately to failure.
Countercultural bastion J o h n
Sinclair has played a leading role
in the city's 'export" business,
primarily in the political-social
realm.
He gradually assumed mes-
sianic leadership on the aesthetic
end with the production of an-
nual Ann Arbor Blues and Jazz
Festivals, free concerts, coordin-
ation and direction of recordings
of these events, and promotion
of local artists. All this is now
handled by his Rainbow Multi-
Media organization.
Rainbow has produced an ad-
mirable cultural precedent with
the festivals, particularly . this
year's. This is the first occasion
in which a music festival has
been broadcast live, and over 33
states. The mere sustenance of
an annual community festival ,
hovering around the 20,000 mark
(as opposed to the usual one-shot
extravaganzas) is itself a formid-
able undertaking.
Sinclair's aesthetic motives un-
derlying most of the five con-
certs' programming were s i n-
cere: to provide premiere ex-
posure of young unknowns and
rediscovery of old forgotten ar-
tists with opportunities for re-
cording and radio promotion in
the process.
and Jazz Festival:
intentions go
A
R
T
A special segment of the fes-
tival was laudably devoted to re-
gional pride in indigenous De-
troit-area artists. This comple-
mented the recent Detroit Belle
Isle Blues Festival in promoting
community cultural activity and
appreciation which the common
commercial concerts can't pos-
sibly do.
But all in all, it didn't work.
The wonderful idealism was mar-
red by many things, not t h e
least of which was the indis-
criminate programming in pure-
ly musical terms. The "Blues and
Jazz" billing of the festival was
misleading, for the amount of
jazz presented was pitifully
small.
The blues medium demands in-
strumental and vocal emotional
eloquence to breathe life and im-
mediacy into its simple chord
structures. But the eloquence was
lacking as I often found it near-
ly imposible to sit through inter-
minably long and boring blues
sets.
Incompetence would run for 20
minutes at a time with contriw
ed vocal haranguing - trite ef-
forts that never got the message
across.
Especially deplorable were the
futile eforts of Jimmy Reed's
band to do a set without him. Yet
they fared no better when he
finally arrived. '
It was Walter Horton whom I
heard alone speak honestly for
the blues with some stunningly
virtuoso harmonica playing and
sympathetic accompaniment.
Those I was most excited to
hear, Ray Charles and contem-
porary composer-musicians Char-
les Mingus and Ornette Coleman,
turned out performances which
ranged from mild to bitterly dis-
appointing.
At fault was the terrible sound
system adjustments which caused
Charles to stop more than a few
times during his set. Still, he
came out the least scathed by the
poor acoustic environment with
his superb array of big band mu-
sicians in a set consistently pol-
ished yet upbeat.
Mingus' group, to be properly
savored, should never be heard
to begin with in any place hold-
ing more than 50 people. He al-
most single-handedly revolution-
-ized the function of bass in jazz
from plodding, static rhythms like
a huge metronome restricted to
the "proper" roots of conven-
tional chord progressions to a
dynamic percussive-melodic func-
tion in new forms of composi-
tion.
Alas the poor amplification of
his bass produced none of the
requisite clarity or balance for
full appreciation of Mingus' com-
positions and ensemble.
In Coleman's case, the let-
down was more of his own f hult.
Even with a sextet of some of the
most prominent avant - garde
jazz players in this country, his
set didn't click like his albums
have done.
The best moments were his
and Dewey Redman's raucous,
soaring sax solos of angular nusi-
4:00 4 Movie
"Drive Hard, Drive Fast"
(1969)
9 Dews
56 Nine Symphonies By Whom?
9:30 2 Movie
"Coffee, Tea or Me?" (1972)_
9 it's a Musical World
10:00 7 Marcus Welby, M.D.
9 Ascent of Man
50 Perry Mason
56 Detroit Black Journal
10:30 56 Jerry
11:00 2 4 7 News
9 CBC News
50 One Step Beyond
11:30 2 Movie
"The Capetown Affair." (1966)
4 Johnny Carson
7 James Garner at the -
California 500
9 News
50 Movie
"British Intelligence" (1940)
12:00 9 Movie
"Virgin Island" (English
1958)
1:00 4 7 News
1:30 2 Movie
"Mambo" (Italian; 1954)
30 Newsspr
wcbn
7 Morning Show
9 Rock
12 Progressive
3 Folk/Rock/Progressive
6 News/Sports
6:30 Talkback with Lee Gill--phone In
7:30 Jazz/Blues
11 Progressive
cal lines backed up by Jines
Ulmer's complex chordal chops
in fascinating counter-rhythm on
guitar. But the percussion was
mostly anoying with no deviation
from fast and furious banging A'r
extended periods of time.
The muddy reproduction of
Charlie Haden's astonishing teca-
nical bass work, an integral rhy-
thmic and harmonic keystone of
the ensemble's music, didn't help
the sound either.
wrong
From what I heard on the ra-
dio, the broadcast sound was far
superior to the live product. Be-j
sides, there were interesting air-
ed interviews and commentaries
by musicians and festival work-
ers.
I would encourage everyone
seriously interested in blues and
jazz, and not just in having "a
real good time" as advertised, to
stay home next year.
IA
Fall Term
U of M STUDENTS!
Buy USED TEXTBOOKS
COME AND MEET US
ANN ARBOR CIVIC THEATRE
MASS MEETINGS-SEPT. 10-14
201 MULHOLLAND (off WI Washington'
SEPT. 10 7:30-10:00 P.M.-PUBLICITY, BOX C
FICE, USHERS, MEMBERSHIP AND NC
SHOW ACTIVITIES
SEPT. 11 7:30-10:00 P.M.-SET CONSTRUCTIO
PAINTING AND DESIGN, LIGHTS A
SOUND
SEPT. 12 7:30-DOORS OPEN
8:00-ACTING
8:30-DIRECTING
9:00-WORKSHOPS AND ONE ACT
PRODUCTIONS
9:30--STAGE MANAGEMENT
SEPT. 13 7:30-DOORS OPEN
8:00-PROPS
8:30-COSTUMES AND MAKE-UP
SEPT. 14 7:30-9:00 P.M.-OPEN HOUSE
SAVE
UP
TO
33'/3
0
/0
AT
SOLLETT'S
State Street at North U.
Check our new book prices, too!
J
If you were unable to come earlier in the week please come
tonight. Members will be on hand to answer all your questions
about community theatre.
I
NEW WORLD FILM COOP-Presents- | |'||| | || || | |
OF-
)N-
ON,
* IN KURT VONNEGUT'S *
SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE
Winner 1972 Cannes Film Festival-Jury prize and award. "One of the
most daring, original, and tota11y fascinating pictures ever made."
-Rex Reed
SHORT: Lenny Bruce in THANK YOU MASK MAN, the erotic,
animated adventures of the Lone. Ranger and his close, close
friend Tonto,
TUES., WED., & THURS. ONLY
Sept. 1 1, 12, & 13
7:30 and 9:45 P.M. (Tues.-Natural Science Aud.,
Wed. & Thurs.-Modprn Lanquaqes Aud. 3)
This bizarre rendition of the Lewis Carroll classic, patterned after the
Tenniel drawings, features such intriguing casting as Gary Cooper as
The White Knight,' Cary Grant as the Mock Turtle, Edward Everett
Horton as the Mad Hatter, and Jack Oakie and Rosco Karns as Tweedle-
dum and Tweedledee. W.C. Fields plays Humpty-Dumpty, and delivers
superb in-character readings of author's nonsense verse.
WED. & THURS. ONLY, Sept. 12 & 13
7:30 and 9:45 P.M.
(Wed.-Natural ScienceAud., Thurs.-Modern Languages Aud.)
ALICE can be seen as a double-feature with SLAUGHTERHOUSE
FIVE at the usual 50c discount.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
NEXT WEEK DON'T MISS
SATYRICON & BILLY JACK
Dclv Photo by KEN FINK
Luther Allison at festival
Dial
662-
6264
231
S.
State
IF
NOW SHOWING!
Open 12:45
Ali ATE, Shows at 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 P.M.
Feature 15 minutes later
"Will make you
The DictorsComp.nypr*c*s n feel good ollover"
--ShouitNBC-TV
GPM"'
111.3t.
Please make these corrections on your New World Schedule-Billy Jack
formist replaces Strawberry Statement.-thank you.
replaces the Conformist, Play It As It Lays replaces Billy Jack, The Con-
_-_ _ ____ _ ___--_
;1 _____ - - , _________ *--------------~-- -* - ~ ------_______ -----*-*-----* -*-------~--*------- _____________________________
mIT
DR
S
te'
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1
A PROGRAM OF JEWISH STUDIES
FALL '73 COURSE SCHEDULE
Two Mike Nichols Hits
Together for the first time
tonight
6:00 24 7 News
9 Andy Griffith
56 Zoom
50 Gilligan's Island
6:30 2 CBS News
4 NBC News
7 ABC News
9 1 Dream of Jeannie
50 Hogan's Heroes
56 How Do Your Children Grow?
7:00 2 Truth or Consequences
4 News
7 To Tell the Truth
9 Beverly Hillbillies
50 Mission Impossible
56 French Chef
7:30 2 What's My Line?
4 Bo Schembechler Debut
7 New Price Is Right
9 Bewitched
56 Investing in Stock Market
8:00 2 Maude
4 America
7 Furst Family of Washington
9 Telescope
56 Evening at Pops
50 Night Gallery
8:30 2 Hawaii Five-O
7 Movie
"Deliver Us From Evil"
9 Woods and Wheels
50 Merv Griffin
1-
I
I
Jo
LA
JosephELevine presents a
Mike Nihols Fim
CarnalKnowledge
Panavision-Technicolor*
An Ave* Embassy Pcture
OSEPH E. LEViNE A
p usecsa /
MIKE NICHOLS
AWRENCE TURMAN
4A ' A+ i'
TECHNICOLOR PANAV SION
An Avco Embassy Release.A
ACADEMY
AWARD
WINNER
BEST
DIRECTOR
MIKE
NICH4OLS
Ali
L- -
NOW
SHOWING
SOON: CLOCKWORK ORANGE
1214 S. University
Dial 668-6416
For Show Times
Hebrew for Beginners
Intermediate Hebrew
Hebrew Speaking Club
Basic Judiasm I
Basic Judiasm II1
Prophets
Hassidism
Modern Jewish
Philosophy
Modern Jewish History
The Holocaust-
ght Visions
Yiddish Literature
Kafka and the
Fall of Man
Famous Jewish Trials
The Role of Women
III
II
the zaney
MARX
BRTR
ROOM SERVICE
in Judiasm
Groucho as a Broadway
tries to get out of paying
bill
TO"JIGHT: 7 S°30
producer,
his hotel
Politics and Government in Modern Israel
5'
10:00
i
ill