The Michigan Daily, Thursday, October 30, 1986 - Page 9
Books
The Blue Front Persuaders can be seen this weekend at Ricks'. Pictured above (left to right) are
bandmembers Dan Covret, Jake Lewandowski, Marc Russell, Pat Lewandowski, Karl Dyke, and
Steve Wethy.
Blue Front Persuaders pro vide a
formula for enduring success
to persuade people to listen to our Joe's Star Lounge. As their
By Carol Kuzdek sound." The Blue Front Persuaders popularity increased, so did
were born. bookings. A manager and sound
By day they are electricians, Fifteen musicians have been a man were hired.
students, and custodians. By night, part of the Persuaders since 1978, On stage, the Persuader's
they are the Blue Front Persuaders, and four of the current six members playing is intense. Their sets are
one of Ann Arbor's most durable are veterans of five years. filled with mix-and-match diversity.
bands. Considering the average two and a Covret switches from sax to drums
They bop, they swing. Their half year lifespan of most as Russell growls, "When I get
audiences dance, and dance, and (unsigned) bands, the Persuaders are lucky I'm gonna buy me a fish-tail
dance. But what do you call their a rare commodity. Cadillac car..." Wethy uses broad
music? Upright bass player Jake hand gestures on stage, which he
"It's jump, swing, '40s and '50s Lewandowski and sax man Karl calls "barrier free" rhythm and blues
rhythm and blues," says Marc Dyke are also two of the original when accompanying Dyke's
Russell, drummer and one of the band members. Lewandowski's rendition of "Hound Dog."
original Persuaders. brother Pat joined on guitar a year Underneath their brash exterior
"We play Louie Jordan tunes, ago, and Dan Covert followed this the Persuaders are six musicians
Ray Charles, B. B. King, Wynonie summer on tenor sax. who are truly dedicated to their art.
Harris, and a few others," explains The Persuaders' style strays from Rehearsals are now spent recording
pianist Steve Wethy, another the mainstream which maximized with the hope of finding an
original band member, "Add to that the band's popularity. Vintage suits interested record company. This
seven original tunes and that's our and loud shoes recreate the era from past summer the band auditioned for
show." which they play, although in the the weekly Ed McMahon-hosted
During the band's inception beginning, buying used clothing for Star Search.
period in 1978, their practice shows was a necessity. Early gigs With the closing of Joe's Star
"studio" was a room in Barton Hills were infrequent and Persuaders Lounge and Mr. Flood's Party, the
home overlooking the Huron River. began their career with many free Persuaders are rarely booked in Ann
The accommodations were small concerts. Says Russell, in Arbor. Most weekends are spent on
and the music loud; they soon retrospect, "We played for the the road, playing clubs in Petoskey,
moved into a house down the street Children's Burn Center, PIRGIM Flint, Kalamazoo, and Grand
from the Blue Front. benefits, anti-draft rallies, and lots Rapids. But they love Halloween
"The Blue Front during those of outdoor park festivals." weekend in Ann Arbor, and
years was a musty, antiquated, Their tenacity worked, and they tomorrow and Saturday nights
funky store, just like our music," were the first band to play on a they'll be performing at Rick's,
says Wethy, "And we were trying Saturday night at the legendary
E. Fuller Torrey,
M.D.
Witchdoctors and
Psychiatrists
Harper & Row
234 pp.
$8.95
In 1984, Dr. Torrey wrote a
wonderful book called Surviving
Schizophrenia: A Family Manual.
It was a comprehensive, honest
book exposing a taboo issue.
Having read that book, one's
inflated expectations of Torrey's
latest book were quickly punc -
tured.Witchdoctors & Psychiatrists
is not a failure, it is merely a
major disappointment.
The subject is a comparative
analysis of various forms of
witchcraft to the practice of
psychiatry. A novel idea, it is
bound to fascinate anthropologists
more than layman. The book is
organized in three parts. In Part I,
"The Components of
Psychotherapy," he discusses the
personal qualities of both the
therapist and patient (i.e., "The
criterion for the best therapy
candidate is well known as the
YAV I$ individual - young,
attractive, verbal, intelligent, and
successful."); client expectations;
techniques of therapy, and so forth.
Part II is devoted to
psychotherapists in action, in other
countries as well as other cultures.
Finally, Part III discusses the future
of psychotherapy. The whole
book is basicallycommittedato
arguing that witchcraft and
psychiatry serve the same function
and have many other similarities.
Torrey's research appears
thorough but is at most times
uninteresting, such aas the chapter
comparing "therapists" in Ethiopia,
Borneo, and the United States. The
discussion of all aspects of
psychotherapy is also thorough.
Yet, sophisticated research itself
cannot hold a reader's interest.
Torrey's witty style often
catches one's attention and
generates an easier flow of
information. For example, he
begins the book with
"Psychotherapy, the world's second
oldest profession, is remarkably
similar to the first." He develops
the analogy in a creative manner
and threads it through the book.
Torrey's humor is refreshing in
such an anthropological work: "The
original sin was probably
ethnocentricism, which may be
defined as revolving around one's
own navel. We must learn to look
ri- H iL
IEMiTH
out on the world not through th
cord but with a broader view."
Overall, this book has little
fascination for the average reader.
For recreational psychiatrists and
avid anthropologists however,
Torrey may have scored.
-Gloria Sanak
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THE BIG PICTURE TOUR
WMUZ welcomes
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 8
FOX THEATER
Tickets on sale now at
all Ticket World outlets and area Christian bookstores.
charge by phone 423-6666
i
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Read and. Use
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Doube Creaturel
STRATEGIC PLANNING ASSOCIATES, INC..
OPPORTUNITIES
IN MANAGEMENT CONSULTING
Strategic Planning Associates, Inc. (SPA) is a
management consulting firm that develops corporate
and business strategies for a Fortune 500 client base.
SPA, based in Washington, D.C., London, Geneva, and
Singapore, offers a broad range of services which include
corporate strategy studies, individual business studies,
acquisition analyses, analyses of competitors and
industry structure, and operational and
implementation studies.
We are seeking talented undergraduates to join the firm
in our Washington office as Research Analysts who
will work closely with other professionals on client
case studies. The two-year position provides extensive
experience and excellent preparation for graduate work.
Mr. Jeffrey Totten, Manager, along with other members
of SPA's professional staff will speak on campus
at Michigan:
Thursday, October 30th
Michigan Union Kuenzel Room
4:30 p.m.