ARTS
Sunday, September 25, 1983

The Michigan Daily

Page 5

Sign of the Zodiac

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By Eli Cohen

THEY CAME late, but they came in
ready to play, ready to rock. The
adrenalin was contagious. The Buzztones,
Friday night at Rick's, were high-
powered, high-energy rockin' rollers.
The first set included only two
original tunes, and was mostly Motown
cover material by James Brown or
Aretha Franklin and other favorites
like "I Heard it Through the
Grapevine." The crowd at Rick's was
tentative about this local band; very
few people danced in the beginning set.
It ended almost unnoticed amid the
video and dart games. Yet the two
original songs in the early part of the
show were very imaginative. Heavy on
the keyboard solos, the new songs had a
much more modern flavor. "Hear-
tbreak," especially, seemed to be top-40
material; a kind of combination of
Motown piano work and more new-
wave synth and bass style.
The second set was much more suc-
cessful in getting people out on the dan-
ce floor. By the time it finished with
"Jailhouse Rock" by Elvis Presley,
everyone in Rick's was immobilized.
Even the 40-minute intermission bet-
ween the first and second sets, in which
we were inundated by Doors did not

slow down the pace set by the Buz-
ztones.
The second half-hour had more guitar
and drum solos rather than the
keyboards in the beginning portion.
Songs such as "Great Balls of Fire" by
Jerry Lee Lewis were very popular
with the crowd. Again, however, there
were few original tunes in the middle
set. The stand-out was a song sung by
the keyboard player Boot Hill.
The third set was the killer. The 20
minute break went by quickly, and the
Buzztones were back. Most of the best
original material was saved for the
final set. Tunes like "Encyclopedia"
and "Bow Wow Wow Wow" really got
the crowd dancing. The Buzztones'
high-energy rock was completely infec-
tious in the last half-hour. Anyone out
there dancing was totally captivated by
the adrenalin of lead singer Lamont
Zodiac.
While the first set was dominated by
the keyboards, and the second seemed
to rely more on the lead guitar, the
third set was clearly the drummer's
half-hour. Reggie Macambo, drummer
and co-songwriter, had as much
adrenalin as Zodiac at the end. After
"Bow Wow Wow Wow," their last song,
everyone at Rick's including the band

was covered with sweat and completely
into the Motown-type dance tunes of the
Buzztones.
The five-member band from Detroit
includes bassist Red Banner and lead
guitar Roscoe Paradise in addition to
Zodiac, Macambo, and Hill. The Buz-
ztones are ready to break into the
national music scene. They have an EP
coming out on a major label, which they
just finished recording and they are
being produced by Was Not Was, with
whom they have recorded "Bow Wow
Wow Wow."
The band has gained prominence in
the Detroit-Ann Arbor club circuit for
their excellent Motown covers and the
R & B-inspired original music. The
Buzztones also opened for Robert
Palmer when he was in the area earlier
this year.
The Motown covers and the highly
imaginative original songs written by
Zodiac and Macambo combined with
the talented and energy-filled perfor-
mance make the Buzztones' concert a
thoroughly enjoyable and dance-filled
experience. If you missed them at
Rick's on Friday and Saturday nights,
they'll be back at the Second Chance on
October 18. See you there.

I

I ANN ARBOR

I

2 INDIVIDUAL THEATRES
5th Ae at .be 7* 6-9700
$2.00 WED. SAT. SUN. SHOWS BEFORE 6 PM
A NIGHT WHEN CASANOVA,
THOMAS PAIN AND RESTIF
DE LA BRETONNE MEET AND
WITNESS THE END OF ONE
WORLD AND THE BEGINNING
OF ANOTHER.
MARCELLO
MASTROIANNI
HARVEY
f) KEITEL
HANNA
SCHYGULLA
LA NUIT DE VARENNES
FRI. 7:00, 9:15
SAT., SUN. 2:30, 4:45, 7:00, 9:15
HE'S ON TRIAL FOR BEING
AN IMPOSTER. IF FOUND
GUILTY HE WILL HANG.
GERARD DE PARDIEU
FRI. 7:25, 9:30
SAT., SUN. 1:10, 3:15, 5:20, 7:25, 9:30

f ...

%.I

Lamont Zodiac of the Buzztones wails out some Motown classics for the dan-
cin' fans at Rick's Friday night.


Mellow Fellows twist and shout

By Jane Carl
THE CROWD WAS young and
small, and the first set start-
ed an hour late: but when Big
Twist and the Mellow Fellows finally
did take the stage at the U-Club on
Friday night, nothing could keep the
audience from dancing and clapping
their hands to the soulful beat.
Larry "Big Twist" Nolan dresses like
an old-time Chicago gangster and
claims to have penned the '50s hit "The
Twist" at age 15 , which he then gave
to Hank Ballard, who recorded the
original version and took credits as the
composer. At 6-feet-44nches, 300-
plus pounds, no one is likely to argue
with Big Twist, but when he opens his
mouth, out comes a velvety baritone
that could melt butter.
The Mellow Fellows is definitely a
misnomer. Keyboard player Sid
Wingfield specializes in hot, soul licks,
and guitarist Pete Special's repetitive
blues solos sizzled. The bass player, a
22-year-old Tango West, strutted grin-
ning and grimacing as he laid down the
beat for the horn section - Don Tenuto,
trumpet; Jim Exum, trombone; and
Terry Ogolini, tenor saxophone - to
hang their Motown riffs on.
What this band does best is play the

£ 1-

'60s Chicago R&B blues. Soul favorites
like Tyrone Davis' "Turn Back the
Hands of Time" and Steve Goodman's
"It Would Be You and Me" sparkled
with solid playing and Big Twist's
nicely understated style. Twist growled
menacingly through "You Brought the
Blues on Yourself," and the group was
so tight on "Cold Women (With Warm
Hearts)" that the song's sexist
message was lost in the crowd.
But the rotund Twist and his
multiracial septet were not merely a
trip into yesteryear, they drew on all,
forms of vintage, black American
music, plus rock and funk influences
that gave them a distinctive, contem-
porary sound. Their obvious enjoyment
of their work spilled over into the en-
thusiastic, but undersized crowd who
screamed for more.
There is a rhythm and blues revival
going on out there, and Big Twist and
the Mellow Fellows are at the forefront
with their interpretations of standard
works and inventive new material.
Even those who aren't blues fans, but
do appreciate good music should regret
having missed this group, because they
put a twist onto an old genre, a big,
soulful twist.

IRAN~IEN&
DAVIS
Oct.6, 8pm
Power Center -
8.!50 76rc1l

,bfb)
4t
'0 .

Daily Photo by DOUG McMAHON
Lots o' twistin' went on Friday night at the U-Club as the Big Twist sang and
the Mellow Fellows blasted out their rockin' tunes.




West changes folk style with audience

By Deborah Robinson
A RTISTS CAN take the liberty to
change their material even after it has
become a legend of a particular genre
and Friday night at the Ark, folksinger
Hedy West did just that. West often
makes changes in her songs, both those
she wrote herself and those passed
down to her from generations of moun-
tain singers and musicians.
Fortunately, roughneck banjo
strumming is not West's style and she
combines her many influences to create
a beautiful sound from a frailing or a
clawhammer. She displayed fantastic
naturalness with this oldtime brush-
and-pick style, weaving lovely har-
monies and counter melodies into
rhythmic tune. Alternating with the
frailing, West also used an unusual up-
brushing style she learned from an old

relative in Georgia, Uncle Tom Forten-
berry.
When asked what usually determined
her performing style, West explained
that it was performing itself. Influen-
ced by her family, years of classical
piano training, and travels abroad, her
music changes most as she learns what
elicits the most positive responses from
her audiences.
Tradition fed by such a premise can
easily become commercial - slick,
cheap, nebulously "folksy ." However,
West seems to possess a formula which
marks her music as her own, while
bringing across a power to "ancient"
songs without destroying their in-
tegrity.
When she finally played her most
popular song to date ("500 Miles") as
the encore, many in the audience found
it unrecognizable. This was just one
example of many throughout the

evening when West changed the style of
her song. The response was favorable,
however, and West explained that she
loves to hear herself or others play ver-
sions of her own songs different from

the originals.
Hearing Hedy West perform did
resemble theater. Her songs. did not in-
spire excitement, but provided satis-
fying entertainment.

AUDITIONS-
IMPACT JAZZ
DANC E

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Registration begins September 19

Classes begin October
University Artist and Craftsmen Guild
Calligraphy Acrylic Painting

3

AUDITIONS

SEPT. 27
SEPT .29

7-10 PM.
6-11 PM.

BALLROOM
MICH. UNION
UAC OFFICES
MICH. UNION

will be
Is, doors
all night
track all
asses, p
and.
Septemh
8:00-4
the fab
bilities
I Dean J


Drawing 1&2
Bookbinding

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