10 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, April 18, 1994 RECORDS Continued from page 9 America. But, because of their muta- tion and mixing with indigenous, Spanish and English lyricism, these Africanisms are easy to overlook. It takes a comprehensive collection like "Africa in America" to prove the prevalence of African traditions in all varieties of American music. The first of the three CDs high- lights the syncretic music of the nu- merous polytheistic religions in the Americas. These excerpts range through the subdued rhythms of a Cuban Santeria ceremony invoking the Yoruban god Ogun, the intense three-drum polyphony of Haitian Vodun, and a Honduran Canto from a Dugu possession ceremony. This first CD also includes a strangely familiar gospel song from Belize. "Walk in Jerusalem's" En- glish lyrics, guitar accompaniment and docile harmony allude to its 19th century Protestant roots. As if added as a counterweight, an Afro-Brazilian candomble song, with its complex percussive drive and call and response singing characteristic of African retentions, follows the gos- pel ballad. Disc two highlights the strong Hispanic influences that mixed with Africanisms in Mexico, the Carib- bean, and Central America. Begin- ning with the dense guitar raucous of regional sones, the recording progresses through brodown's gui- tars, banjo, and accordion melodies, and merengi's drum and scrape. One son from Costa Chica is a rootsy revi- sion of "La Cucaracha" done in local chilena style. Volume three takes the compila- tion up to date with contemporary popular styles. From here on, the musical territory becomes more fa- miliar, covering salsa from the Do- minican Republic, Big Mama Thorton's West Coast blues, Antigua's Cable Wireless Hell's Gate Pan Band doing the international soca hit "Hot Hot Hot" and Clifton Chenier's rollicking zydeco that dunks Arcadia in the bayou. As if that weren't enough, Carib- bean guitarist Brad Pattico sings "Nobody's Business,"a song that was part of bluesman Mississippi John Hurt's repertoire in 1928! The con- nections in this collection make you wonder at the depth and vivacity of tradition through subjugationand over miles and years. - Chris Wyrod Kirsty MacColl Titanic Days IRS Records Kirsty MacColl's third album, "Titanic Days," is all one could ask for from an album. The English singer /songwriter with the unusually clever, poetic lyrics and a voice that manages to be simultaneously sweet and raspy has, hands down, put together one of the best (and unfortunately, one of the most overlooked) albums of recent months. As far as lyricists go, MacColl is definitely among the best, taking on a wide number of roles and opponents. As a singer, she knows how to twist the conventions of the art and deliver new takes on themes that have been traditionally treated only one way in the past. MacColl opts for subversion rather than gang-busting vocal as- saults. "I've been a token woman all my life / The token daughter and the token wife / Now I collected tokens one by one /'Til I've saved enough to buy a gun..." she half-sings, half- whispers over the cool jazz of "Bad." The majority of songs on "Titanic Days" were co-written with Mark E. Nevin, of the Fairground Attraction, who is probably better known for his work with MacColl's Brit-rock fa- miliar Morrissey on his post-Smiths efforts. The MacColl-Nevin collabo- rations, musically, are Nevin's stron- gest compositions ever and MacColl, as usual, delivers her poignant rhymes with an overwhelmingly capable vo- cal ability, turning on a dime from a lullaby in "Angel" to an aggressive anthem in "Big Boy on a Saturday Night," a rockabilly romp with a rag- ing chorus. Only one song on the album was co-written with MacColl's otherlong- time working partner and crony - Morrissey's other affiliate, the mar- velous Johnny Marr. His single con- tribution to the album, the music for "Can't Stop Killing You," is a phe- nomenal one, complete with a funk- bluesy intro and series of dazzling guitar parts that reaffirm his status as one of rock 'n' roll's most treasured figures. MacColl often dispenses with the single chorus and instead engages the listener with a whole slew of melodic hooks. Her use of tempo-changes and string accompaniment adds a sense of excitement to her songs that has been conspicuously absent from other pop music of late. Every song is a memo- rable one; whether it be the graceful, acoustic "Last Day of Summer," the brisk, emotional "Soho Square", or 0 Kirsty MacColl leaves anything "substandard" off her latest album, "Titanic Days." A true pop creation, it'll have you sh any other track on the album, there is not a hint of the substandard on "Ti- tanic Days." - Thomas Crowley Various Artists The Doo Wop Box Rhino Traditionally, most rock critics and historians don't take doo wop seri- ously. For most, doo wop is only seen as a nostalgic relic from the early days of rock 'n' roll, when the music was simple. Thankfully, "The Doo Wop Box" proves these critics to be wrong. With its 101 tracks, the collection shows that doo wop is just as vital and important as any of the other rock subgenres. It will also silence anyone who believes that Sha-Na-Na is what doo wop is all about. Doo Wop evolved from the gospel and pop vocal groups of the '40s and early '50s and the box appropriately begins with "It's Too Soon to Know" from the seminal R&B vocal group, the Orioles. From there, the set traces the history of black vocal groups and how R&B became rock 'n' roll's doo wop, as well as how white groups picked up on the style during the '50s. While it functions as a thorough history lesson, "The Doo Wqp Box" is also filled with brilliant, breath- taking music. Although the music is clearly from a specific era, it doesn't hurt its impact in the slightest; the strength of the singing and the mar- velous vocal arrangements are time- less. And all of the major hits are here - "Sh-Boom," "Earth Angel," "Speedoo," "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," "Devil or Angel," "In the Still of the Nite," "Come Go With Me," "Get A Job," "Tears on My Pillow," "Book of Love," "Maybe," "A Teen- ager in Love," "I Only Have Eyes for You," "Stay," "Since I Don't Have You," "There's A Moon Out Tonight" and "Blue Moon,"just to name a few - as well as many forgotten favor- ites, known only to hard-core vocal group collectors. "The Doo Wop Box" is an all- encompassing, definitive box set; for most, these four discs are all the doo wop would ever need. Not only is the song selection flawless, the liner notes explore each song in detail and pro- vides a time-line of the genre's his- tory, as well as several essays by prominent R&B historians. Although the set claims it covers 1948 to 1987, there are no tracks from the 1965 through 1982 and there are only two tracks from the '80s. The first, "Morse Code of Love" by the Capris, is a surprising delight - it shows that the group had not aged at all since "There's A Moon Out To- night," as well as dispelling the myth that the music is only for teen-agers or people who were teen-agers during the'50s and early '60s. But it is Johnny Maestros & the Brooklyn Bridge's live version of "My Juanita" that re- ally pulls the heart-strings. During the performance, Maestro proudly jokes that he was one of the only artists to receive any royalties during those days -a check for $17.50. And then you realize that most of the art- ists that made the past 100 stunning tracks were never properly compen- sated while they were performing; almost all of them were cheated out of record companies when they were recording. "The Doo Wop Box" stands as a tribute to these under-appreci- ated artists' wonderful, timeless achievements; box sets don't come any better than this. - Tom Erlewine Primal Scream Give Out But Don't Give Up Sire / Warner Many people claim that Primal Scream's 1991 record, "Screamadelica" is a brilliant work that seamlessly combines the classic raunch of the Stones and Who with the throbbing beats of the modern- day dance floor. Well, that may be true - some of the songs from the album were unde- niably catchy. But even if "Screamadelica" is terrific, the ea- gerly anticipated follow-up, "Give Out But Don't Give Up" is truly, undeni-. ably, awful. Stripping away all of the dance elements that made their previous al- bum unique, Primal Scream refash- aking your butt. ions themselves as the Rolling Stones for the '90s, apparently oblivious tp the fact that the Black Crowes have been doing quite nicely in that role themselves. So, the boys from Scotland trav- eled down to the deep south of Metri- phis to find that serious, gritty blues that theyjust knew was always hound- ing their souls. They hankered down in the seminal Ardent Studios (home of everyone from Big Star to Afghan Whigs) with legendary producer Tom Dowd, called in the Memphis Horns and had George Clinton drop by, all in an attempt to make a "classic" album in the vein of "Sticky Fingers' or "A Nod is As Good As A Wink." But from the very beginning of the record, it is clear that the whole thing will sink from the weight of its own ambitions. Notonly are Primal Scream incapable of writing a riff that can rival "Jealous Again," let alone "Brown Sugar," they can not come up with enough energy to propel them- selves through a single song. Bobby Gillespie sounds bored whenever he's singing, which is not surprising considering how utterly banal his never-ending string of lyri- cal cliches are. Gillespie's listless performance wouldn't have mattered if the guitar ists had managed to come up with one or two hooks; similarly, if Gillespie had the charisma of a Mick Jagger or Rod Stewart, the lack of strong riffs wouldn't have been so glaring. As it is, "Give Out But Don't Give Up" is S an ambitious album by a band that is blissfully unaware of the limits of their ordinary talent; consequently, it is mind-numbingly boring. - Tom Erlewine SO, YOU'VE BEEN CRITIQUING OUR * CRITIQUES? DO SOMETHING MORE. WRITE FOR DAILY ARTS THIS SUMMER. CALL 763-0379 FOR FURTHER INFO. Th ETPIE nTw!TeB RCS InTw!TeB S PICSjnow ergruse R RECORDS 1140 OOM tUnivesity .5 (AbM eGoad-Irne Chantey's) AM Arbor, M148104~ Pkb63.580 im Houms Mon-Thum .9 a.m.- 1oP L to ~ Fit:Sa. 9ajL-ll1piL. =~~~M IDEAIlan-pm IrCM CNa I I THE WORLD'S BIGGEST TRAVEL COMPANY FOR 18-35 YEAR OLDS THE FUN WAY FOR YOUNG ADULTS TO TOUR EURiOPE DISCOVER EUROPE from per day includes: accommodation, most meals, sightseeing, luxury air-conditioned coach and all the fun you can handle! Lecture by GEOFFREY WOLFF author of: Black Sun, The Duke of Deception, Providence, The Final Club, A Day at the Beach Open to the public opwood awars The 1994 Hopwood Awards will be announced Tuesday, 0 I