The Michigan Daily-Saturday, February 18; 1978-Page 5 Goodman, ost light up.Power Center By ANDY KURTZ P OWER CENTER was the gills on Thursday only meant that some 300 p out on Steve Goodman's e excellent concert. Accomp Post and local harmonica Ruth, Goodman re-establ as one of Ann Arbor's fav mers. The festivities commen on his own: his all-too-b 'The audience MAN often blistering rhythms, he improvised no less than three fully rhymed blues n't packed to numbers, ranging in topic from the night, which neutron bomb to a chronically breaking )eople missed guitar strap. energetic and Goodman is a witty and sensitive anied by Jim songwriter, with a fine ear for clever whiz Madcat -lyrics. Even his more serious songs ished himself rarely become maudlin - his perform- vorite perfor- ance of the quietly affectionate "My Old Man" was genuinely moving. In the ced with Post face of such excellent work, it is even )rief set was possible to forgive him for the soapy lit- tle tearjerker "The Ballad of Pennv Evans" which he has wisely pruned from his act. For all it's overexposure, "City of was de- New Orleans" remains a great train song, especially when accompanied by the wailing harmonicas of Madcat Ruth. In a time when lyrics seem par- ticularly neglected, Steve Goodman continues to write songs of wit and in- sight. AFTER COMPLETING his final number, Goodman attempted to leave, but was hauled unceremoniously back by the cheers of all present. For two additional encores he teamed up with Post and Ruth for cracklingly good ver- sions of songs by Sam Cook and John Prine, including a rousing sing-a-long on "Bye-bye, Love." There were beau- tiful harmonies hammered out between Post's rough croon and Goodman's quavering baritone, besides a great deal of hilarity, causing even the usually stonefaced Madcat to break up. The three formed a very creditable can- can line during "The Twentieth Cen- tury Is Almost Over," and regret was unanimous when the concert finally en- ded. Steve Goodman enjoys playing Ann Arbor, and hopefully will be returning soon. Perhaps his next concert will sell out the Power Center; if a wretched production of Hamlet leaves no seat unoccupied, a talented and exuberant singer-songwriter should certainly be able to do the same. The victims in seven out of every fo fatalities from falls are elderly persons. Most of these accidents occur in the home. Daily Photo by JOHN KNOX Jim Post - Oqq AV lighted, and its rapport with the performer com- plete; but there are other things besides gnomish appeal that make Steve Goodman an impeccable concert artist.' somewhat ragged but altogether en- joyable. Mustache bristling, eyes swim- ming vaguely back and forth, Post howled and stomped his way through a spiritual which described a day off for the disciples, complete with Sony Por- table TV and a cooler of beer. Swooping down into the audience, Post crooned a lovely version of his own "Dancing in the Wind" in his classically roughened folksinger's voice. A fine musician and an engaging performer, he admirably set the stage for the evening's, main event. Amidst tumultuous applause, Steve Goodman came bouncing onto the state, looking for all the world like a hyperkinetic dwarf as he sailed into the lively "It's a Sin to Tell a Lie." Without a break he tapered off into the poignant, witty "You Should Have Seen the One That Got Away," a beautiful little song about fish stories: Hindsight makes the heart grow fonder, That's about the cost, When you go around saying "I love you" With your fingers crossed. THE AUDIENCE was delighted, and its rapport with the performer com- plete; but there are other things besides gnomish appeal that make Steve Good- man an impeccable concert artist. Fir- st of all, he doesn't bother an audience with endless, tedious anecdotes or beer- and-dope small talk. He comes to sing, and so obviously enjoys it that audien- ces are immediately more comfortable than those burdened with the usual meaningless concert chatter. But above all, Goodman is a fabulous guitarist and a brilliantly intuitive musician. Plucking and strumming at I vA V 1 I 31 I Steve Goodman Daily Photo by JOHN KNOX ELP "slatest album, 'Works' doesn't By MIKE TAYLOR AFTER SEVERAL YEARS of semi- retirement, Emerson Lake & Palmer returned last year with the pre- tentiously titled Works Volume 1, a double-record set, and more recently Works Volume 2, a single record. If the second edition of Works is any indica- tion of the band's current output, then they should have stayed in hiding. Works Volume 2 Emerson Lake & Palmer At/anticSD19147 There are twelve songs in all, but not one of them is worth a second listen, and most of them don't even deserve a first listen. Never before have I heard an album so consistently filled with schlock posing as art. Ironically, though the tunes are consistent in their dreariness, they bear no relationship to each other. Works Volume 2,sounds more like a random pastiche of tunes that should have gone in the trashcan rather than an album; it makes records like Brain Salad Surgery actually sound, good. Take songs like "Tiger in A Spot- light" and "When The Apple Blossoms Bloom in The Windmills Of Your Mind I'll Be Your Valentine" (please). "Tiger" is a chaotic collection of key- boards, drums, and bass with no melody but lots of mindless rhythms and computer-like vocals. "Apple Blossoms," like much of the material, was first released years ago - in this case it was the B-side of a 1973 British single. This time we're spared Greg Lake's annoyingly flat vocals, but elec- tronic doddling with no beat just isn't my bag - after all, it's got to have a back-beat to be rock'n'roll, doesn't it? Rock'n'roll this isn't, nor would I call it music. "Brain Salad Surgery," which never made it to the album of the same name, finally appears here. It's a nasty little tune perfectly suited for Lake's evil voice, but hardly anything to get ex- cited about. "So Far to Fall" is filled with schmaltzy orchestration, which seems to be ELP's newest discovery. Perhaps they think having an orchestra playing along with you shows good taste; unfortunately, the end result doesn't taste good at all. In the "Still ... You Turn Me On" and "Take a Pebble" pretty ballad depar- tment are Lake's "Watching Over You" and Irving King's "Show Me The Way to Go Home." They are indeed pretty ballads. Lots of people do pretty ballads. And then there are the solo efforts, those tunes designed to show E, L, and P sound just as good all by themselves- as combined into ELP. Lake's "I Believe in Father Christmas" is the cutest of the lot. A hummable ditty, it's at least worth a few spins once a year at your Christmas party. Carl Palmer offers the album's most interesting moments. "Bullfrog," recorded with a British jazz unit called Back Door, explores some intriguing rhythms; on rare tunes like this Pal- mer's arsenal of percussion is quite an asset. "Close But Not Touching" is an ambitious foray into a big-band jazz/rock'n'roll sound. Unfortunately, though both tracks show more imagina- tion than the rest of the record, they aren't substantial enough to warrant repeated listening. Keith Emerson's tributes to honky- tonk piano are only slightly more listenable than the soundtrack to The Sting. "Maple Leaf Rag" is incredibly ordinary; the London Philharmonic Orchestra makes it even more amusing. "Honky Tonk Train Blues" is stiff, and Emerson's own "Barrelhouse Shake-Down" is prosaic enough to make one laugh. Except it really isn't very funny. I've never been a great ELP fan, but I never thought they'd make as junky an album as Works Volume 2 is. Let's hope the next time Emerson Lake & Palmer decide to make an album, they sit down and make a real one, together. It might not be a great album, or even a very good one, but it couldn't help but be bet- ter than this one. Although the common street pigeon is generally considered a drab, dirty bird, most of the 290 pigeon species are tropical and are brightly colored. H159mosmwparmagrw~grm On =4' FT-3496-1 -AW-- -damr- -Ai- -Adki, -.&- -.Aw- -A.' 'A; ! -&' -&' %&' 'LAL Greg Lake SANS SOUCI large furnished 1 and 2 bed- room apartments available for fall occupancy Located across from U of M stadium Bus Service every 15 minutes from Hoover St. to State St. call 995-3955 visit resident manager at apartment K-1 wl e've been rea-ding 4 t (iklE since 1890- 4 +w4 TO PROTECT mono or , i o r~r&I A l *:*I . ,.: