, gthemselves to remix the tape at 38 rp-
Chrisie soel was outraged at the apparent
lakof respect for his work and shortly
after Epic released Cold Spring Harbor
he became a Piano Man, this time in the
California sunshine, instead of the New
York dusk.
Unless you have lived in a cave for
Billy Joel what life is like -as a Piano Man - Joel
Office of Ma r Events guese it) "Piano Man."ec n yu
Crisler Arena It's been a pretty easy fight ever sin-
Saturday, February 4, 8 p m. ce. Streetlife Serenade and Turnstiles
followed and made Joel a winner in
By Sua auhRound Two. Even though Billy was fin-
Susa A'Ikuchding success more and more luminous
T HE TRANSFORMATION is cor-reelios tent.rHesti stedethat his
plete: Billy Joel is a new man, wife Elizabeth manage his career (they
Gone are the sentimental, heartfelt have since broken both business and
songs of The Stranger. Joel has marital ties); once she took the reigns,
seemingly abandoned his often-melan- Billy literally could not be stopped.
choly style (epitomized in "Just the The Stranger proved to be his biggest
Way You Are") for a more upbeat, accomplishment to date and Joel was
carefree attitude. "Uptown Girl," a now enshrined in the Sentimentalist's
nonsensical piece highlighted only by Hall of Fame with lyrics like You 're
the fact that Joel's latest squeeze, always a woman to me and Don 't go
Christie Brinkley appears in the video, chan gin' to try and please me, I love
does nothing for his credibility, which you just the way you are. "Always a
until now, has been very good. Woman to Me" may have sounded like "
Joel, of the battle-'em-every-inch-of- a Geritol commercial, but the public > .
the-way school of success, has come a ate it up anyway. a
long way since his Piano Man days. Not Rebellion set in once more with the
only was that the title of his first hit release of 52nd Street and Glass Billy Joel: Downtown guy
single, but it adequately describes the Houses. Tough rock 'n' roll statements timhdaanadmd tbc o btwsls oua mn h ass
beginning of Joel's career. like "Big Shot" and "You May Be triumphed sagainm and madeitbckt butcasess poar-Veamnh m assges
Always longing to be a musician, Joel Right" were embedded in these albums the l utagehm ndL as boe cauey o its i-itm mesage.h
participated in two group projects in and perpetuated. Joel's image as a ThegNlohn Curtain LPn wsre mor mLsaeJ has saird the el 'with
the early '70s, both of them failing with rough guy who rode motorcycles and thghtful ha ueithe5n Strbeer msgeas arevisert tof Fank arl 's
the critics and the public. Then success just happened to like music. Geitlas ladciis Hoss h obernesws sntye haisreinscn. "ofn GVrl"i
seemed to be knocking on his door when The past couple of years have been deite lys plad citc bt itcwas.. and "te Four Sasons. "t"owrn Girl"
Epic records signed him to a production rocky, if not successful for Our Hero. In luitees polanit thkeeord- andu Tell er Abuth I"ae'dep
and management contract, between Glass Houses and 1983's Nylon buying tenlhbcnmaeorbeam but terwi ly arurhythmic
But Joel the artist battled with Epic Curtain, Billy crashed up his bike and "o-0album.", donettleo etasue foe hn:ay il ol
the business conglomerate when some his thumb along with it. Some skeptics "Amlent, ai dowearts t of ret se foed thg: egyll Jel-
masterful mixing turned his Cold thought his piano-playing hand was unemapomt it l gthd chats, butdt conceris fild wt eneinergy, en-t
Spring Harbor album into a speed race, permanently injured (and would thus nihad aicu"lal goodc betrsn "Gor-ehusamyo ad entrtanet.Wa
It seems the engineers, took it upon curtail his touring career)Y but he nih agn a uhbte og oecnyuakfr
'See me,'
feel me,
Tommy
Golden Rose Productions
Michigan Theater
Thursday, February 9 - Sunday,
February 12, 8 p.m.
By Barb Schiele
F IFTEEN YEARS AGO, The Who's
Peter Townshend made rock
history when he wrote and composed a-
hit "rock opera". It was the first of its
kind ever to be written and recorded.
Six years after that in 1975, The Who
and their rock musical hit the screen;
the film featured great stars like Ann-
Margaret, Elton John, Jack Nicholson
and Tina Turner.
Now a combination of rock music,
dance, theater, and very special effects
brings Tommy to life, on stage at the
Michigan Theater. After a year and a
half of working to put together this one
show, Golden Rose Productions presen-
ts the rock extravaganza, Tommy.
This show promises to bring its
audiences every possible type of enter-
tainment the theater can offer, from the
sounds of a live ten-piece band belting
out The Who's best, to the sights of
professional jugglers and a real
magician.
And of course the show includes the
great things performers have to offer,
like energetic song and dance.
Because the theater production of
Tommy includes such a wide spectrum
of entertainment, it will be different
from anything ever experienced by
average theatergoers and concert
lovers. Producer Joshua Rosenblum
believes that Tommy is different and
exciting; it dares to do what no other
theater performance has ever done.
"It's something I've always wanted to
do," said the University engineering
The Tommy Cast: Touch me, feel me.
student Rosenblum. Rosenblum
produced last year's Hair and
Runaways.
"This is the first thing in Ann Arbor
that takes a chance with theater.
Nobody's been involved in this type of
thing before," Rosenblum said.
Michael Goldberg, Rosenblum's par-
tner in Golden Rose Productions, and
the director of this show, has directed
and taught theater here at the Univer-
sity and at Carnegie-Mellon University.
.Goldberg and Rosenblum chose
Tommy because, "Its a show that says
something," Rosenblum said. "It will,
draw all people - even non-theater-
goers. Tommy is the type of show that if
you want to just stand up and clap your
hands, you can!"
In an attempt to describe this
theatrical/rock operatic feat, Rosen-
blum said, "It's very much like MTV;
we're picturizing a bunch of songs."
The songs tie together and form the
plot. It's The Who's story, only more so.
"The one thing that people remember
after seeing the movie Tommy is the
baked bean scene with Ann-Margaret."
Rosenblum hopes that after seeing the
theater performance, the theme of The
Who's story, rather than just a weird
scene, will stick out in the viewers'
minds.
The tale of Tommy follows the
average plotline of a young boy, who,
after a traumatic experience, becomes
deaf, mute, and blind. Even modern-
day remedies cannot cure Tommy's
handicaps; however, he discovers his
uncanny knack for, you guessed it,
playing video games. . . just kidding -
Tommy plays pinball.
Anyway, after he becomes "the body
table king," Tommy miraculously
regains his senses. The story continues
and. in the end, leaves Tommy won-
dering if he was just better off the way
he was because the world isn't really
that great all the time.
Besides the unbeatable music of Pete
Townshend, Roger Daltrey, Keith
Moon, and John Entwistle, Golden
Rose's production of Tommy includes
several other outstanding factors.
Choreographer John Parks, a visiting
professor of Dance here at the Univer-
sity, was a choreographer for The Wiz
on Broadway. Having the best dance
director has attracted "an unbelievable
cast."
The cast is made up of 34 talented
men and women, 75 percent of who are '
Priceless
soprano
Leontyne Price
University Musical Society
Hill Auditorium
Saturday, February 4, 8:30 p.m.
By Gordon Jay Frost
A Carousel
of Hair Fashions
315 N. MAIN
Haircut $9.00
Permanents
regularly $35-$45
(including cut)
995-5858
L EONTYNE PRICE has won out
against all obstacles. At 57 she is
still the leading U.S. exponent of opera.
From her 1961 debut at the Met, as
Leonara in Il Trovatore, she eliminated
the prejudice against black women. in
the field. She effectively and smoothly
switches between recitals and
operatic roles.
Also, almost uniquely in an at-
See LEONTYNE, Page 5
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INDUSTRIAL ARTS/VOC ED...
You're Keeded Al
the World.
Ask Peace Corps industrial Arts/Voc Ed volunteers wt
degrees are welcome in the workshops of the world
They'l Itell you they want to help people be self-sufficie
they ore trading their skills, knowledge and enth
experience. Ask them why Peace Corps is the roughe
PEACE CORP
1
4 Weekend/February 3 1984
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