4 ARTS Friday, September 7, 1984 The Michigan Daily Oxford Blues hits Page-,8 an all By Emily Montgomery T HE INSPIRATION behind the film Oxford Blues is a mystery to a slim, few. The film's main purpose it seems is to give sex-starved teenage girls a long, hard look at actor Rob Lowe in shorts. And it's a good thing the movie has that one attraction, however weak. The misguid d plot and setting offer little else to the movie's limited audience and even less to those old enough to vote. Lowe portrays. Nick D'Angelo, an obscenely arrogant and conniving jerk from Las Vegas. In the film, D'Angelo conveniently turns male prostitute for one night in an effort to use his newly- acquired revenues to "buy" his way in- to Oxford University. And what could a vain valet from the -time I Dunes Casino want with an Oxford standing? . Is it a chance at self- improvement'! Is it greater academic achievement or even a larger female clientele? No, it's a girl - but not just any girl. D'Angelo's pursuit is a British debutante appropriately dubbed Lady Victoria (Amanda Pays) who is studying at Oxford. Once he has prostituted his way onto campus, Nick proceeds to follow in the tradition of the Ugly American. He refuses to take heed of proper British, or even Oxford etiquette practiced by his schoolmates. He stumbles into echoingly silent classrooms mid- lecture, dresses "flashy punk" to oc- casions that require black gown and tie, and even steals a boat for a rowing race in which he jumps into in an attempt to outdo Lady Victoria's fiance. Yes, Nick rows and he rows well, Lowe which is decidedly his only worthy character trait. His rowing talent, at first, would seem the likely vehicle by which Nick could manage to acquire some allies at Oxford. Perhaps the only such vehicle he possesses since he has alienated nearly every other candidate for friendship he meets.. Once he joins the rowing team, his fellow paddlers learn quickly that Nick is not to be relied upon. When the team is forced to forfeit a meet because of his absence, Nick is told he has "no second chances." After they kick him off the team, he sits clueless, soaked in a -fountain, screaming for them to reconsider. (What a scene.) Will he ever learn? Ally Sheedy (Wargames) does her best as supporting actress in what turns out to be an unbelievable role. She plays a girl from New Jersey who secretly Rob Lowe rows toward romance - has a crush on Nick. The crush is about4 as unbelievable as the possibility of anyone from New Jersey going to 0X -' ford. I won't reveal if Nick gets the primi cess of his locker pictures, the sectet'- crush, or neither. For those of you who might be dragged into the theater by a Rob Lowe ogler, that suspense may e the only reason to stay awake. I will sh y this though. For me, Rob should have quit while he was ahead in his first film. He had a lot more "Class" in that one.7; ;; Cooney to launch Ark season , , Modern love Jonathon Richman, former songwriter with the legendary Modern Lovers, performed a solo acoustic concert for a- small but enthusiastic audience on August 23 in the Michigan Union Ballroom. PaChelbel Canon tops Monday Dag concert By Andy Weine F RIDAY AND Saturday nights will be special occasions for the- Ark and for Ann Arbor folk fans as folk. music gem Michael Cooney returns to familiar ground to give what should be two of his typically rousing performan ces. According to Dave Siglin, director of the fifteen-year-old coffeehouse which recently moved from Hill Street to 637 S. Main, Cooney's launching of the Ark's second beginning is "fitting since i. . . _. ,_ .. a 4.L... 1__., = ." He also draws from a great wealth of folk music. On nearly a dozen different instruments, he plays everything from sea ballads to blues to ragtime. Cooney has one record of his own and has appeared on several television shows, including Sesame Street and th- e Today Show. He also has toured ex- tensively in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Europe. Cooney has played in and helped organize a number of folk festivals, in- cluding the Mariposa Folk Fest in Toronto. He has also edited and written for the only major folk song magazine, Sing Out. Audiences know Cooney as a folklorist who weaves good-humored and interesting tales between songs. In this, he ranks with a handful of folk musicians who convey a sense of how folk music ferments and flavors through time. Audiences should be prepared to do more than just listen. Hearty voices are needed to sing along-for Cooney's love of music has been known to be con- tagious. "Canon in D Major" by Johann House, Hillel Foundation, Lutheran he basically openea tis place." What Pachelbel will be the featured piece in a Campus Ministry at Lord of Light, St. Siglin means is that Cooney was among free outdoor performance by the Mary's Chapel, the University's Office the first nationally known performers Galliard Brass Ensemble to be held on of Ethics and Religion, -and the Wesley to play at the Ark, helping to establish it the Diag on the steps of the Graduate Foundation. as a first-rate folk music coffeehouse. Library at noon on Monday. The performance will include a Cooney's performances shine with This annual performance of the moment of silence and following the what can best be described as a very Pachelbel Canon is being sponsored by Canon, the ensemble will give an hour human performance, as opposed to the Campus Chapel, Canterbury House, long concert including a wide variety of celebrity shows aimed to tickle and woo Ecumenical Campus Center, Guild brass music. audiences. Michael Cooney, one of the original performers during the Ark's beginnings; returns to play there Friday and Saturday night. Murray starts Eclips By Mark S. Taras Although not yet thirty-years-old, tenor saxophonist David Murray has achieved tremendous critical and popular acclaim both as a soloist and a leader. Tonight Murray and the other members of the David Murray Octet bring their little big hand to the Univer- sity Club for Eclipse Jazz' first show of the season. Murray has been playing the tenor saxophone since his high school days in Berkeley, California. At Pomona College in Los Angeles, he studied un- der Stanley Crouch and began perfor- ming and recording nationally and in- ternationally when he was 22-years-old. This is not Murray's first visit to Ann expands to Ann Arbor... T a Y .2 r BACK TO SCHOOL SALE! savings up to 50% off list complete selection of: art & drafting supplies & equipment picture frames & custom framing (-S.: A s nA urhmr e season Arbor. Those who saw last year's World Saxophone Quartet concert . at Rackham Hall will recall how David's solo left the audience and fellow-player Oliver Lake literally speechless. Whether as a member of the WSQ or leading his own quartet, octet, or big, band, Murray puts the swing out front, In a recent interview, Murray ex- plained, "People don't want music they have to suffer through-Ronald Reagan's suffering enough already an' they want some relief from that. They're in the mood to hear something snappy, and I can deliver it because 1 feel the same way." Murray, who prefers to work with larger ensembles, is a gifted iF provisor who acknowledges a debt Albert Ayler. A joyous composer whp allows his tunes to blossom and grow, Murray has recorded "Flowers for Albert" several times and each recor- ding has revealed its sound in a new way. The other members of the octet also are noted in their fields. Drummer Bily Higgins, for whom Jimmy Heath wrote the tune "Smiling Billy," has enlivened the bands of everyone from Ornette Coleman to Pat Metheny. Trumpete Baikida Carrol has worked with Jack'. DeJohnette's Special Edition and Oliver Lake. Rounding out the octet are trombonist Craig Harris, saxophonist- Steve Coleman, trumpeter Roy Cam. pbell, pianist Rod Williams, and bassist Wilbur Morris. Murray and his octet will perform two shows, at 8 and 10:30 p.m. Tickets-, are $7.50. jI '1 NC~fX-NIF~CpIM "ASPEER f O1 Eft REVIEW-INRODUCTION TIM L 1N I A