4 ARTS The Michigan Daily Tuesday, February 12, 1985 Page 6 Tempts, Tops Rock By Dennis Harvey W HILE BANDS like the Stones, The Who and their American coun- terparts were busy bringing the punk menace back into rock and genial chaos back onto its stage, Motown R & B ar- tists of the mid-sixties were often going in the opposite direction, putting together highly choreographed shows with near orchestral-sized bands and lots of visual polish. When the R & B market began to wane, many of the Motown performers who didn't adapt to disco or pop tastes found themselves well equipped for a downscale move to smaller clubs and older, more nostalgia-oriented audien- ces. Their acts had long had a slickness that was, by the 1970s, generally con- sidered unfashionable for a 'rock' con- cert. I saw Tina Turner play in Italy last year when the first of her comeback singles had just been released, and the show was a curious in-progress illustration of her transtition from a rock-lounge act (she'd spent most of the immediately preceding years playing Vegas-style venues) to one designed for a younger audience that is unlikely to remember "Proud Mary" or "River Deep, Mountain High." Her energy level was, not too surprisingly, in- credible, and it was fun to have her do routines with two female go-go dancers, but the show suffered from a wimpily conventional K-Tel favorites song list and too little spontaneity. There was a little of that dry, over- planned quality at the 7:30 Tem- ptations/Four tops concert at Hill Auditorium Saturday night, but there certainly weren't any problems with having enough decent songs. Between them, The Tops and Temptations probably have enough classic tunes un- der their belt to fill several hours, and it's too bad they didn't do just that. The large number of new or at least un- familiar songs was welcome and in a way it wasn't. It's admirable that the bands don't pander too easily to nostalgia fiends by offering a blatant evening of Greatest Hits live, but on the other hand the mixed bag of newer tunes couldn't come close to the stan- dard of scream-provokers like "Reach Out I'll Be There" and "I Can't Get Next to You." Still, the voices were swell no matter what the context. In the evening's jokey battle of the bands - one moderatly lengthy set by each group, and a couple of unfortunately too-brief en masse stints - it was a deadlock over who won the Fashion Disaster Award (matching tuxes with red waitstands, or matching biege leisure suits with lavender ties?), but the Temptations managed to sneak by with a bit of an edge in the overall performance category. The general degreee of audience hysteria hit a steady high somewhere during the Tempts' set and stayed there till the end. Ann Arbor has always been crazy about Motown music, even beyond the realm of simple regionalism, but it was still a bit surprising to see Hill Auditorium packed and screaming for two bands whose output during the last few years - well, probably the last decade - at least - has been relatively ignored. Suble I a Thie wickis Dailyq Daily Photo by DAN HABIB. In a performance more innovative than sentimental, three of the Four Tops do what they do best. . I. i Test yourself. Which early pregnancy test is as easy to read as red, no -white, yes? Which is a simple one-step test? Which has a dramatic color change to make the results unmistakable? Which is 98% accurate, as accurate as many hospital and lab tests? Which is portable for convenience and privacy? )0 E .,. .:r:C n) 0 o Quartet serves Beethoven well By Neil Galan ter N THEIR second performance of six of the complete string quartets of Beethoven the Guarneri Quartet gave a stunning concert this past Sunday af- ternoon at Rackham Auditorium. There was little doubt that they were in top form and they played with a consistent quality of the highest musicianship. JOB OPPORTUNITY ca n ps mnormat' center mICI. ion l~fi d ,, ,NI THEL CINFORMA ON CENTER SL KING FOR A FE QUALIFIED NTS T WORK AS NFORMATION ASSISTANTS N MAY AND OR SEPTEMBER 1 85. WE REQUIRE S UDENTS HO INTER- ACT WELL WIT THE PU IC, ARE ENTHUSIASTIC, AND WHO LIKE TO BE INFORMED. APPLICATIONS N BE P CKED UP AT THE CIC DES IN T, MICHIGAN UNION. THE DEADLINEFR APP iCATIONS IS FRIDAY, MA CH 8, 985 CIC IS A NON ISCRI INATORY AFFIRMATIVE CTIO MPLOYER. They come across as extremely professional, most polished and very dignified. At present they are celebrating their twentieth anniversary season with over one-hundred recitals in North America and Europe. The program began with Quartet in D major opus 18 no. 3. This work was ac- tually the first in order of composition of the early quartets. It is a light and spacious work and was played with an even balance of power between parts. The second movement was particularly strong with driving repeated notes alternating with quiet, smooth passages. The third movement Presto came across as vital and vigorous with just the right touch needed to accent the dazzling classical virtuosity so much a part of the earliest quartets. Quartet in F minor, opus 95, "Serioso," was next as the program progressed in order of composition to the middle period. The Serioso quartet is actually the last of the middle quar- tets and figures in some important ways in the last works through its use of chromaticism and unusual chord tex- tures. In this middle period of his live, Beethoven had gained an increased knowledge of his own power, and his suffering had evoked a general com- passion for all men. In 1810 when he finished "SeriosW' Beethoven speaks of his music ag possessing "a truth deeper than all wisdom and philosophy - like the glow of rich red wine, music irradiates in, spiration ... and I, Bacchus incarnate, will give humanity this wine to drink and drown its sorrow . . . No evil fate can touch my music; he who divines its secrets is freed from the unhap= piness that haunts the whole world of men." Rather brave words and with respect to the manner in which the Guarneri Quartet performed this quar- tet, they certainly must be close to "divining its secret." See GUARNERI, Page 7 4 Bluesman Johnson follows the pathway of Chicago blues greats d By Pete Tannenbaum D ON'T HOLD your breath - put your dancing shoes on - Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson is coming to town. "I like to play something that keeps people moving," says Johnson. "A lot of people think the blues is something you go out and go to sleep by. Slow blues purist, y'know. But my blues will get you dancing." Johnson is one of the premier artist of the Chicago music scene and formerly was lead guitarist with Muddy Waters. His west side Chicago style reflect the influences of the bluesmen he has worked with, such as John Lee Hooker, Magic Sam and Howlin wolf. About Magic Sam and Muddy Waters Johnson says, "I used Sam's music, his sound; but the song is mine. I got to give credit to Sam because he gave me ir f . -;TWCPIECE 4 4 Vicky Vaughn gets set for spring, Miss. Designed with a tru .. wit, the rag knit jt t'sweater is roughly w r //f , with strips from thes fabric as the matchin skirt. Pale cotton skirt X 2 ?has easy pleats, side I~f k ~ pockets and elastic waistband. Sizes S,N SIn our Miss J Shop M T my start. As far as Muddy goes, I got deep into his music. He taught me alot. For seven years-and-a-half standing 6y his stage side, looking at him singin and listening to him play his guitar. I don't know what it was but when were off; I just counted the days until we worked again because I wanted to hear that sound. Thatwas in my ear." r Johnson also sings. Don't wait for toe sparrows of spring - his vibrato is put- ting the birds out of business. "Utilizing a variety of styles, from fluid Hendrix- 4 like leads to piercing excursions on his Fender Strat, he got the crowd up and dancing," notes the Alternative Press about a recent concert. Luther, who sometimes composes in the morning, says of his songwriting,,"I could have an ordinary dream, I'll be sleeping and somthing will come to me in music. Different arrangements. And I get up and grab my guitar and try to relate to what I dreamed. Luthers lyrics reflect his Chicago blues style. Lines like Shake it baby, but don't break it, and I'm just a bead boy a long way from home. His wor- ds express the spirit of the south side of Chicago and might jiggle your gizard. Luther Guitar Jr. and the Magic Rockers will be playing at the Blind Pig Tuesday February 12 starting at 9 p.m. . Johnson ...call him "Guitar Jr." kinkoi's The Campus Copy Shop PINK PAPER ONLY 440 RED PAPER ONLY 5o through February 14th Open 7 days a week/Mon.-Thur. fill midnight. 540 E. LIBERTY ST. 761-4539 Corner of Maynard and Liberty you J. ue voven same ng Going somewhere out-of-the-ordinary this summer? Going somewhere ordinary in an unordinary way? MAKE YOUR PLANS NOW: The Travel Supplement of can help you! LOOK FOR IT ... Ml, $64. for young women. 1 !'1 L''1 !'1'Y7 J