w w w w w lqqw Nop- u T -. Iuf c Get excited The Moody Blues Office of Major Events Crisler Arena 8 p.m., Saturday, October 29 By Mike Cramer THE MOODY BLUES are touring again. And even though ticket sales have gone very well, it doesn't seem like very many people are all that excited that they are coming to town. Maybe it's because they aren't calling this a "farewell tour." Or maybe it's because they aren't threatening to break up within a year. Or maybe it's because the Moodies aren't in the news all the time for getting arrested like other big-time rock stars. Maybe it's because they just toured two years ago or because their new album isn't burning up the charts. I don't know, but it seems like there ought to be more excitement around here. The fact is that the Moody Blues (bassist John Lodge, flutist Ray Thomas, drummer Graeme Edge, and guitarist Justin Haward) have been together for nearly 20 years. (Present Children's Children ('70), A Question of Balance (70), Every Good Boy Deser- ves Favour ('71), and Seventh Sojourn ('72). For a time in 1972, they simultaneously- held the number one and two spots on the American album chart, with Days of Future Passed and Seventh Sojourn. In the mid'70s, the group's members did some solo recordings, with limited success. But in 1978, they rejoined to record Octave, which reached the top 20. Their lbum, Long Distance Voyager, went platinum and also generated two top-five singles, "Gemini Dream" and "The Voice." Their newest release The Present, has yet to prove itself. Of course, commercial success does not a super-group make. A lot of downright lousy bands are commer- cially successful. The thing about the Moody Blues is that they are not only palatable for the masses, they are ex- tremely talented and highly innovative. Their songs have heavy lyrics, poetry, flutes and violins - they also have humor and wild guitar riffs in many a song. The Stones fan, the Elvis Costello fan, and the Barry Manilow fan can each enjoy the Moodies with equal en- thusiasm. (I Guess that's why they've sold so many records). Anyway, they're playing Crisler Saturday night. And Stevie Ray Vaughn (hot blues guitarist who played on David Bowie's Let's Dance album) is the warm-up act. This should be a big show by a really big-time band. We should all be excited. Sw parents get together to make decisions about school policies such as what time classes should start. Students also in- terview potential teachers before they are hired. Town meetings are important, ac- cording to current Community High Dean Connie Craft, because "we believe that whenever possible, people who are affected by a decision should be involved in the decision. Our basic philosophy is the best interest of the students. We do more than just say that - (we) attempt to carry it out." ATH and science teacher Eisenberg eves that students are the most im- portant factor in education as a whole, not just at Community High. "My biggest complaint about education is we don't ask the kids what they want," he says. "Primarily I'm here for them. Kids respect that - it doesn't let them feel less important. Kids will respect teachers that respect them and it's easier to teach them." And students do appreciate it. They feel they can talk with their teachers as friends, not just authority figures. "The teachers here talk to you, they're nice to you," says senior Plescia. "They talk to us like we're people instead of like we're a number." Because of the relaxed atmosphere at Community High many students say there is no "in" group and no "out" group as is a trademark of most high schools - everyone fits in one way or another. 1 ! R .r. ifi:" rA . -4:"f}y ,A 1 irksrAr . ? t r Mo I Video class: Community High alternative keyboardist Patrick Moraz replaced Mike Pinder in 1978; and Denny Laine left the group long ago and went on to fame with Paul ],McCartney and Wings). Since 1967, when they first released super-giant-monster classic "Nights in White Satin," they've racked up "more platinum albums than any other sur- viving super-group," a mighty accom- plishment, considering the status of other "surviving super-groups.'' The Moody Blues' most commer- cially (and probably musically) suc- cessful period was the early '70s, when they released a string of straight platinum albums: On The Threshold of a Dream ('69), To Our Children's people in straight book learning...but I had greater readiness and better preparation for preparing my own curiculum." Mendel also says calling his high Jazz it up Jaco Pastorius Eclipse Jazz U-Club 8 p.m., Sunday, October 30 By Larry Dean A m Arborites of all ages and oc- cupations are going to be treated to two very special concerts when bassist supreme Jaco Pastorius plays the U-Club on October 30. "Special" because the U-Club is such an intimate space, and also because Pastorius is such an amazing talent. Even those who are not jazz en- thusiasts probably have heard of Pastorius. Born outside Philadelphia in 1951, Jaco moved with his family to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida when he was seven. His father Jack was a drummer and vocalist, and his mother Stephanie enhanced the family's musical ap- preciation by taking Jaco and his two younger brothers to afternoon jam sessions where jazz music coalesced with soul and Cuban sounds. Pastorius started out playing drums, like his father, but around the age of 15, i switched to bass. He listened to all the big pop sounds of the day-the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Elvis Presley, James Brown, Sly and the Family Stone. As a result, Pastorius' bass playing began taking on a diversely amalgamated scheme, in many ways more derivative than, say, the meek blues vamps of the Rolling Stones-ut leagues more in- spired. Jaco joined Weather Report, in itself one of the most influential of all "progressive" jazz outfits, two years after bumping into Weather Report keyboardist Josef Zawinul outside of a Miami concert. His impact was im- mediate upon the group: Jaco's jaunty stage presence became the focal point of the band, his playing augmented by weirdly melodic and tributal bass licks. When the band was in the studio recor- ding Heavy Weather,'Zawinul realized Pastorius' proficiency in technical mat- ters and gave him co-producer credit; after that, he maintained.a technical position in all of Weather Report's recording projects. Pastorius' first self-titled solo album didn't sell up a storm for Epic Records when it was released, but it did raise the brows of a variety of musicians who were tuning into Pastorius' music. People as diverse an Joni Mitchell, Pat Metheny and Ian Hunter asked Jaco to contribute to some of their records; on Hunter's All-American Alien Boy LP, he even played lead guitar as well as bass. Pastorius is hailed as one of the greatest innovators of the electric bass. Since leaving Weather Report (with whom he garnered a number of awards for his musicianship), he has recorded a second solo album, Word of Mouth with the able help of folks like Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Tom Scott, Hubert Laws, Jack DeJohnette, Mike Brecker, Don Elias, and Toots Thielmans, amongst others, in the sup- porting cast. In response to the success of that LP, Jaco formed Word of Mouth, a new band for touring and playing purposes. They've hit the road in support of the latest Pastorius solo effort, Invitation, recorded live in the Orient. The line-up 'Some (students) need a different structure like Einstein needed-they threw him out, too! -Wiley Brownlee deputy superintendent of schools should be "an alternative choice for kids that want certain learning styles. "Some (students) need a different structure like Einstein needed - they threw him out too," he says. "The assumption at Community is that kids have to have a pretty good self-concept not to be upset to be different." Although alternative schools are "out of the fad era" now and many districts have eliminated them, Brownlee says he doesn't think the recent national uproar about mediocrity in the schools will hurt Community. "Ann Arbor is serving all kids with excellence, not going back to basics," he says. "Graduation requirements (at Community High) are the same for those people. They just learn their "No matter what you do or what you wear you always blend in because everyone's different," says Joy Guen- ther, a senior in her second year at Community. "There are no jocks and burnouts - no one really cares what you do as long as you don't bother them'' Rajeev Samantrai, president of LSA's student government, graduated from Community High in 1980. When he went there, he says, the students were ''all misfits, disenchanted with education in general." There were basically three kinds of students, according to Samantrai. Those who were completely burned out, these who were bright but not motivated, and those who were excep- tional students but did not fit in at the other high schools. Samantrai says Community High did prepare motivated students who knew what they wanted for college. But he feels he didn't get enough guidance in some areas. "No one ever talked to me about college," he says. "They just assumed I knew. It's easy to slip through the cracks." Matthew Mendel, who also graduated from Community High in 1980 and now attends Princeton University, agrees with Samantrai that self-motivation is a big part of being successful at Com- munity High, but feels he left Com- munity well-prepared for college; "I think Community prepares you in a different way than a traditional high school," he explains. "I might have been at a little disadvantage to some school teachers by their first names helped make him more comfortable with the mutual respect of student- professor relationships at college. Community High officials often have had to defend the school against the common misconception that most of its graduates do not go on to collegs. About 60 percent of Community High's graduates have gone on to four- year institutions, according to Larry Stewart, the school's counselor for con- tinuing education. At Huron, about 65 percent go on to four-year schools, and at Pioneer, about 75 percent go to two- or four-year institutions. Last year out of a class of 76 students, 13 came to the University, 12 went to Eastern Michigan University, three are at Oberlin College in Ohio, one went to George Washington University in Washington, D.C. and several enrolled at Washtenaw Community College. Stewart also said Community High students have averaged scores of 1,000 or better on the SATs over the last 11 years. The average in-state score for a University student is 540 for the verbal section and 620 for math. University English Prof. Lincoln Faller, who once taught a class at Community High, said the students were '"much brighter than I would have expected high school students to be. They were on a par with freshmen at this University." Administrators have no qualms about saying that Community High isn't for everyone. But according to Brownlee, a former Community High dean, there EVERYTHING IN THE LI A Publication of The Michigan Dail' Englis Like High h change ding tc Comm in Ann "I st somew but the proof,' elemer not as But, an opp ture a] should all, it's Baa I / \'dx 1 \oI Pastorius: Mouths words of group includes Kenwood Dennard on drums, Alex Foster on saxophone, Randy Emerick on baritone sax, Ron Tooley on trumpet, and Don Elias on percussion. Rounding out the group is Michael Stern, unconventional guitarist who rose to fame in Miles Davis' new band. Stern played on Davis' The Man With the Horn LP, and was considered controversial by jazz purists for his loud, racous, rock 'n' rolly playing, which Davis heartily OKed. There will be two shows at the U- Club: one at 8 p.m. and another at 10:30. If there are still seats left, the af- fording of overpriced tickets might be a good idea, since this is likely to be a great experience at a hefty cost. For further ticket information call 763-6922. 5; 'K].1/ For advertising informatio 4 Weekend/October 28, 1983