ARTS_ The Michigan Daily Saturday, September 18, 1982 Page 7 A concert of record By Jerry BrabeneC T HE LIVE recording sessions for the Ann Arbor Music Project's (AAMP) compilation album Cruisin' Ann Arbor settled into a comfortable and efficient groove Thursday night at Joe's Star Lounge, featuring polished sets by Madcat Ruth, Steve Newhouse and White Line Fever, and George Bedard and the Bonnevilles. Wednesday's frenetic mood, generated by opening night jitters, an adventurous set by Mike Gould and the Gene Pool Band, and the time tested R&B of the Blue Front Persuaders and the Urbations, gave way to a more relaxed country atmosphere Thursday, as if the crowd from Flood's had migrated en masse to Joe's. Opening night technical hassles precluded a real sound check prior to the Wednesday show, but by Thursday the sound crew had the bugs worked out, and the assured performances of all three groups attested to both their own ex- perience and the skills and hard work of the AAMP crew and the staff at Joe's. Peter "Madcat" Ruth continues to amaze with his creativity and professionalism, and his set with bassist Jason Boeckeloo, opening Thur- sday's show, established a warm rap- port with the audience that would last through the evening. Ruth's hot little duo played like a five-piece band, on favorite numbers like "Fishin' Blues," and others. The highlight of Madcat's set was an extended harmonica caden- za that utilized Ruth's full arsenal of electronic effects in building up a variety of sound textures that cap- tivated the crowd. Next, the sound crew briefly swar- med over the stage in preparation for Steve Newhouse's quartet, White Line Fever. Featuring the writing and singing of guitarist Kevin Brown and bass guitar by Sailcatz veteran Wille McGoon, Newhouse's set was strong in country standards by Merle Haggard, Buck Owens and Jerry Reed, and finished up with a kinetic medley of dance numbers that was a nonstop history of Ann Arbor dance music, from "Wipeout" and "Woolly Bully" to the reggae hit "Johnny Too Bad." Brown sang his originals "Playing Kansas City on a Twelve-String Guitar" and "Country Cowboys" like Ann Arbor's answer to Jackson Browne, and teamed up with Newhouse for some burning lead guitar work on Jerry Reed's "You Took the Rambler out of Me." Headliner George Bedard runs a more humorous, rockabilly influenced country band that brings out his twangy guitar and hayseed vocals on tunes by country outlaws like George Jones and EddiesCochrane. The Bonneville's sound is rounded out by the the very capable pedal steel guitar of Mark O'Boyle. The Cruisin' Ann Arbor project con- cludes tonight at Joe's, and. the highlights will soon be available on an album featuring a cut each by all twelve bands. The first three nights have been great successes, and the con- trasting moods and styles attest to the variety and vitality of the local music scene. The series winds up with the new want sounds of Non Fiction, Boal, and the Cult Heroes, so come down to Joe's and take part in a bit of local music history in the making. Peter 'Madcat' Ruth blasts out some tunes last night at Joe's Star Lounge. Records Aswad- Not Satisfied' (CBS) Opening line to grab neophyte reader: This album was not made by Jamaicans! Opening line to grab informed reader: Sly and Robbie are NOT on this album! Logical conclusion to Fred Neophyte and Fred Informed: This so-called reggae album sucks! Why, doesn't it have to? Verdict of Fred Reviewer: "Not Satisfied." Fred N. & Fred I. (F&F): But Mr. Reviewer, like, Sly and Robbie, man, and Black Uhuru! They're the best sin- ce . . (sob!) Bob Marley died! (reverential bow of heads). Your Upstart Reviewer (YUR): Sin- ce Bob died, nobody has taken his role as a mover of reggae music to new heights and new areas. Uhuru are ex- citing live but, to be honest, its last couple albums, while good they are, haven't touched its Showcase. And before you mention it, I'm getting a lit- tle bored of funny-named cowns chan- ting what translates to "Oh boy, doesn't. he wrldatink; let's smoke some pot" over the same drum and bass line, and I haven't heard the new Bunny Wailer album yet. F&F: What makes these Aswad people so great? (skeptical laughter) YUR: Three reasons : a) what's there, b) what's not there, and c) the Thump. F&F: HAHAHAHA! Let's leave! YUR: What's there: 1) warm har- monies, 2) a horn section from planets unknown (haven't heard this much good horn playing since ska died), 3) crackling blues guitar licks, 4) layer upon layer of pretty keyboard sounds, S 5) occasional decent (not great) words. F&F: What about b) ? YUR: What's not there: I even like what's not played better than what is. Reggae is about space. Space between the notes. There is a lotta space here; that's fun. F&F: And the Thump? YUR: Well, I'm a little embarrassed. When I turn this record up loud, and the drummer bludgeons his set par- ticularly forcefully ... F&F: Yes...yes? YUR: It really hurts my chest and I get a tingly feeling in my bones. I kind of like it. F&F: Wow, you're really sort of a weirdo. YUR: Oh, I forgot to mention one thing: I guess even I am not satisfied. F&F: (gasp) After all this! Why? YUR: Because Aswad's dub albums are a hundred times better than this, and I'm waiting for the next one. F&F: Can we wait too? YUR: Have a seat. F&F: We could never understand these Jamaicans anyway. YUR: (sound of loud inhaling, followed by violent coughing). -C. E. Krell Robert Gordon-'Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die' (RCA) Stray Cats fans know all about Robert Gordon, the person perhaps most responsible for the New York City revival of rockabilly starting about five years ago. This album is a compilation of representative Gordon works from past LPs, plus three previously unreleased numbers-a live "Black SI OE ErvrnnI & EII r DIUIrI1 Slacks," and two Marshall Crenshaw tunes, "Something's Gonna Happen" and "Wasting My Time." Gordon's fine cover of Crenshaw's "Someday, Someway" is included, as is his version of "Fire," which Springsteen wrote especially for him (Springsteen and the Pointer Sisters both do it better unfortunately). The excellent guitar contributions of Link Wray on Gordon's second album Fresh Peter Gabriel- 'Security' (Geffen) When Peter Gabriel delivered the master tapes of his third self-titled solo album to Atlantic Records, they refused to distribute it on the grounds that the material was "commercial suicide." Gabriel took the tapes to Polygram, who agreed to sign him for easily prompt you to check under the bed or in the closet for the beasts hiding with Gabriel's imagination. The current style of composition Gabriel favors is based on percussion and electronics, beginning with a basic rhythm track and progr'essing to the rinstrumentation and then, finally, to the lyrics. This forces him to give equal consideration to both sides of songwriting. No two sound exactly alike, but there is a conceptual air to the songs on Security that harkens back to "Biko" on P.G. III, with an accent on native cultures and tribal rhythms ser- ving as the core. From that point on, the identity is Gabriel's alone. No one pops up from the old Genesis days to provide back up on Security; even Robert Fripp, a three-time past contributor, is missing. There are five musicians essentially involved, in- cluding Tony Levin of the resurrected King Crimson, David Rhodes fromRandom Hold, and synthesizer whiz Larry Fast, plus minimal help from a half-dozen or so others. Thew songs don't move as regimentally as before-instead, they jump with the spastic handclaps in "The Family and the Fishnet" or the percussion-fest that closes out "The Rhythm and the Heat." When they do keep a steady beat, however, it's a gallup rather than a jog you're in for. Undeniably, Peter Gabriel is im- proving consistently with each album by exploring the limitations found within the scope of a rock and roll ar- tist. His greatness comes from a willingness to look from side to side as well as ahead at the boundless avenues open to his unique interpretation, to break through new grounds. Security is a fitting testament of those ideals. -Larry Dean I THETA XI FIRST STOP FRATERNITY RUSH this Sun ay . .unt . .. 1345 Washtenaw (Near S. Un iver.) 761 - 6133 :j Actor/singer Robert Gordon takes a ride back to the early days of rockabilly in "The Loveless.'' Fish Special are better represented on tracks like "The Way I Walk" and "Sea Cruise." Gordon can do Presley (the Jor- donaires even back up on "The Way I Walk") and Gener Vincent, but has a simultaneously fresh and contem- porary voice, especially on the more recent Crenshaw tracks. He's equally comfortable with ballads and very hot rockers. My only complaint is that RCA chose not to include "Are You Gonna Be the One," an excellent original from the 1980 album of the same name. Also, I wish I'd seen Gordon as a motorcycle man in his movie "The Loveless." I've heard rumors of a forthcoming possible Gordan-Crenshaw collaboration which, if true, would combine one of pop rock's best songwriters with one of its finest current singers. -Ben Ticho a one album deal. Ironically, that album turned out to be an artistic and critical triumph, as well as his best selling to date, and even earned Gabriel some airplay on commerical radio with the single, "Games Without Frontiers." Subtitled Security, Gabriel's latest LP has as distinct a personality within its grooves as his past three. Although most mucially similar to the last release, it takes the ideas originally hinted at there and expands them. Like the Talking Heads on Remain in Light, Security is an experimenting ground on which Gabriel runs rampant: lyrics aren't so much sung as spoken, drums accent rather than propel the com- positions, music seethes and pulsates and continually leads the listener where they would least expect. The result is an album of intensely disturbing music that, again ironically, gives one little or no feeling of "security"-it could MED SCHOOL? NURSING? PT, OT, DENTAL, VET, PHYS ED? S. bnq emun5tyma 40a an Sec pM~yS OOy 1.75D~ Smere t~tooEE9gSoper m~mbr oS aps S FO toei C-ce ne 54 4S DetC for rot, .554t54.oat , ve n 9sEcES0oob. Ro%,- DPII toLAW,BU4SINESS,st. Sena, $ 5 i $190 Dmstoqe S&moa nqoyobe SUPERMEMORY FOR SCHOOL I$16 GE DE AARBR0,202MI 4814 por,5, I rnif ao04 'Q.Drre'e.d;OeiibcS, MED SCHOOL? NURSING? PT, OT, DENTAL, YET, PHYS ED? C ora s eoi',,c~tnees emoas l~ gng mut fmoaot-Oem - pv-41045 #50 5h55kbook kSu,,O[SflteSch. piques 545Ocke.lopaq SoptmtmO!y 0$ besc, bed 5.nsoos bessSefles ptchClrc loohld to 1-1- scE SCOCF-d54bk.subjectsS For 4rads, W54554'045,e- .C5555skc5500I5s Bsok applyo LAW, BOSINESS, 554 SCen $b645 ss $1.0004450450 a045554 0.011 SUPERM4EMORY FOR SCHOOL 816 GE DOES ANN ARB0R, M. 48104 Pr Ot'mi0JDOOR may 1 r..,0 C iOdecole' Dance Theatre Studio 711 N. University (near State St.), Ann Arbor " 995-4242 co-directors: Christopher Watson & Kathleen Smith day, evening and weekend classes new classes beginning Sept. 13 i ''IRRESITIBLE' VINCENT CANBY N. Y. TIMES SAT SUN Sonly $200 shows before 8:00 p.m. INDIVIDUAL THEATRES 5,t, Ave ,o eb e r 701-9700 Gregorys(PG) SAT. SUN-12:50, 2:40, 4:40 6:30, 8:20, 10:10 MON-6:30, 8:20, 10:10 RICHARD GERE DEBRA WINGER AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN ______________ .5 U . I N .