4B - The Michigan Daily - Wets., eU. - Thursday, Marcn 28, 1996 II oo" Eazy's legacy remains, from Compton to NYC By Eugene Bowen Daily Arts Writer "It's still hard to believe. It's hard to believe from seeing him in that club to one month later, he's dying and dead from AIDS. " - Ice Cube Eleven thousand, five hundred and twenty-three days. A lot can happen in that time. A person can be born with a mnission to shake the "establishment," to reshape opinions andinfluence count- less numbers. That person can over- come mountains of adversity and earn equal amounts of respect and scorn, only in the end to succumb to death's unavoidable grasp. Even if you've never listened to a single rap song, it's highly unlikely that you've never before come across the name Eazy-E. He is the man who took rap music to another plateau and legiti- mized gangsta rap. His formation of the immortalized group Niggaz With Atti- tude (NWA), which simultaneously put West Coast rap and the city of Compton on the map and propelled the future solo careers of then-members Ice Cube and Dr. Dre, will forever garner him a special place in the hearts of rap histo- rians - even those who cared little for him and his music. Make no mistake, long before the tat- tooed twins Dennis Rodman and Tupac Shakurbegan to publicly losetheirminds, Eazy-E was already the center of a swirl- ing mess ofself-contradictions and exter- nal allegations. Here was aman who once soldcracktomake aliving,yet eventually became an avid Republican who, in 1991, paid $2,490 to attend aGOPbrunch where former President Bush was speaking. Here was a man who, along with the other four members of NWA, evoked swarms of controversy, protest and even fiery de- bates on Capitol Hill with their 1991 mega-smash single "Fuck the Police," and defended officer Timothy Bruseno, one of the Los Angeles policemen video- taped beating Rodney King. Here was a man who gloated about drive-bys and his general disrespect for human life, but invested heavily in his hometown. As his Ruthless Records label grew, Eazy-E hired many Compton na- tives. His large donations have benefited a Who's Who list of charities including the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Athletes & Entertainers forKids, The City of Hope and United Colors. His dying wish forthe formationofasafe-sex outreach program for black children prompted Motown president Andre Harrell to establish Ur- ban Aid 4 LIFEbeat. Eazy-E, after only 31 years -11, 523 days - of hell-raising and eye-opening, is no more. Exactly one year ago last Tuesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at exactly 9:35 p.m. EST, the invincible Eazy "Muthafuckin"' E dropped his protective robes of immortal- ity, became the very human Eric Wright and breathedhis final farewell tohis fans. Actually, we'd already witnessed Eazy's self-strippingamonth earl ier when he first released a statement confirming his being HIV-positive. But it was his death that solidified that realization. No more would we see his Napoleon-esque stature decked with dried-out jheri curls and a black Compton or Raiders baseball cap in person. Eazy-E was dead. Eazy-E was indeed the grandfather of gangsta (now "hardcore") rap music. Throw in some Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, some lee Cube, some Dogg Pound;therein lies E's essence. He helped open the floodgates for a continuing hip-hop revo- lution. Yet, he is also an ideal representa- tive for much that is wrong within the rap community. His underhanded financial dealings eventually led Ice Cube, and later Dr. Dre, to leave NWA in disgust. To treat those who were supposed to be his boyz this way was a most unforgiv- able act. The years of pot shots the mem- bers of the now-defunct NWA took at each other on their solo albums and vid- eos can be viewed as an impetus for the more publicized rap music rivalries of today (DJ Quik vs. MC Eiht, 2PAC vs. Notorious B.I.G., Suge Knight vs. Shawn "Puffy" Combs). Nevertheless, I write about him. I write not because I'm one of Eazy-E's most die-hard fans. He never struck me as an overwhelming, creative force on NWA; Dre and Cube easily outshined him there. He rarely even wrote the lyrics he rapped, and his voice, a unique blend between that of some random cow-farmer named Bud and Gary Coleman's, never quite seemed to fit the gangsta persona he worked so hard to maintain. I'm not out to give the usual "he was a good man" speech that even Hitler would have re- ceived at a funeral because it's the PC thing to do. I write because, regardless ofhis faults, Eazy-E was a brave man. He faced soci- etal pressure, government and legal at- tacks, even an assassination attempt, just to"kick thereal."Asaperson,perhapshis success was limited. But the reverbera- tions of his ground-breaking entrepre- neurial work can be felt to this day. Such names as JJ Fad, Michel' le, D.O.C and, of course, Bone firstcamethrough E's Ruth- less Records label. Not bad for aman who dropped out of high school in the 1Oh grade (he earned his GED later). Eazy-E was raised in a neighborhood festering with dangerous elements, jacked-up cops and never-to-be-fulfilled dreams. This "uneducated" man full of street savvy pulled out and abovethis life, and he never held any ill-will. He instead inspired rebellion, constructive rage and thoughtful radicalism. Yet,heisalsowell- remembered for his never-ending sense of humor. To simply demonize his "bitches and ho's" lyrics without consid- ering the total, revolutionary Eazy-E is sadly shortsighted. One mustn't take the way in which Eazy-E died - complications resulting from the AIDS virus he acquired through unprotected sex with untold numbers - and use it as ammunition against his legacy. As Public Enemy's Chuck D told Rap Sheet magazine last year, "Eazy-E wasn't a bad person because he died of AIDS. We have to get that out of the formula." AIDS is a horrible disease that nobody deserves. Eazy E's life was tumultuous, and the lawsuits that were filed after his death will undoubtedly bringout moreofEazy's background than many ofus care to know. Yet, one must always remember to sepa- rate Eazy-E the rapper from Eric Wright the person. Maybe E was a far cry from being perfect, but he wasn't a bad person. He was both aproduct ofhis environment and a defiant bulwark against blind ac- ceptance of the status quo. He pushed limits that no one else had the guts to push. He deserves our understanding for that. Maybe what he did wasn't as great as finding a cure for cancer or writing a masterpiece novel, but E made a contri- bution to American society that will hope- fully remain even after we have all gone to meet at the crossroads on the other side. He deserves our respect for that. Maybe he did hurt others, but E also tried to help people, especially kids. Maybe he hoped to make up for his earlier wrongs; maybe he just wanted to quit centributing to the problems and become part of the solution. Regardless of his reasons, he cared when many choose not to. He deserves our admiration for that. Maybe he made more than his fair share of mistakes, but E was a black man trying to make a life for himself when all the odds were stacked against him. He died aterrible death, yet from the moment of his revelation until the second some random doctor pronounced him dead, Eazy-E had already begun to set into motion a game plan to teach the children, whom he so greatly loved, to avoid the death trap he had jumped into. Sadly, he didn't live long enough to do it all, but in his short time he seems to have done more in terms of AIDS awareness than even Magic Johnson, who is a far cry from impending demise, has since mak- ing. that shocking announcement some time ago. Sadly, Eazy-E wasn't given the time to complete this mission, but at least he tried with all his heart. He deserves our love for that. We prayed for Liberacci, Criedfor Rock Hudson, 7 Easy-E was "the grandfather of gangsta." , And held hands with Ryan White, But when you died we laughed, ridi- culed, and let you go, alone. Was it fear of reality that you were our friend, our brother, uncle, and father? Or do we really just not care? The pain of knowing that itfinally hit home, none of us are invincible. Nobody argued for a memorial, no- body shed a tear, nobody donated money. ejust laughed, shrugged our shoul- tiers, turned our backs from the example, and moved on, continuing with our careless lives. But, with Al Y opened eyes 1 say to you GOOD NIGHT, GOOD BYE, and REST IN PEACE Eazy-E, my beautiful Blac man. - "Ode To E-Z, Just Another Man," Ebony Dawn Howard Earle roars through gtar rock with uncomimo By Jennifer Buckley to the fanzine No Depression. So his to"FtarlessHeart.""Someday"and"Gui- much of the set, the soulful slide guitar Daily Arts Writer sold-out performance Sunday atPontiac's tar Town" benefited from noisier, work of David Steel (the youngest and Chances are that the proverb "all 7th House couldn't merely entertain-it anthemic guitar work and the prominent newest Duke) made ferocious jams of things in moderation" is entirely for- had to rock harder than any live set in baclging vocals of Looney and Stewart. "The Unrepentant,""PoorBoy"and"My eign to Steve Earle. The singer/song- writer seems incapable of doing any- thinghalfway. Forexample, he couldn't have made a decent debut record back in 1986 -he had to- hit Nashville with anj instant country-rock f classic, "Guitar ( Town." And he couldn't just get and married and settle 7th I down - Earle had to try it with five dif-_ ferent women. He couldn't merely dabble in drugs, either - he had to develop an all-consuming heroin addiction that nearly killed him (and his career) and eventually landed him in jail. It follows, then, that Steve Earle wouldn't make just any old comeback. True to form, he's returned to the indus- try scene with a vengeance. His new album "I Feel Alright" has garnered breathlessly enthusiastic reviews in every publication from Rolling Stone Ho recent memory. It did. Reunited with his long-time band the Dukes (including long-time bassist Kelly Looney and guitarist/ keyboardist Marty Stewart), Earle teve Earle roared through over two hours of some of the Dukes the finest guitar rock rouse, Pontiac ever to come out of Nashville, or any- March 25, 1996 where else in this country, for that mat- ter. The group faithfully recreated most of the tracks from the new record, including the fiery folk-rock song"H ard-Core Trou- badour," the gorgeous, Beatlesque pop tune"More Than I Can Do,"therockabilly "Poor Boy," and a speeded-up version of the story-song "Billy and Bonnie." The Dukes, however, were at their best when reinventing Earle's older, more country-oriented songs. Drummer Custer (who couldn't keep his shirt onto save his life) added massive, booming bass beats "Exit 0" and "Sweet Little '66" (the con- cert was in Pontiac, but must every male rockel sing an ode to his automobile?) rocked harder than ever. Unfortunately buried in the mix for Baby Worships Me." A mid-show solo acoustic set allowed Earle to focus on quieter, more affecting songs like "My Old Friend the Blues," "Valentine's Day," "Goodbye" (Earle's U U sq Entire Inventory! n bravado lone choice from his much-heralded 1995 record"Train aComin"'). Earlepreceded the wrenching "Ellis Unit One" (f Tim. Robbins' recent film "Dead Man Walking") with a lengthy argument against capital punishment, deploring his former home state of Texas for leading the nation in executions. On stage, Earle exhibited his trade- mark badass bravado (his black aviator shades never left his face), but also a real emotional vulnerability. Thesingerintro- duced the bittersweet "Valentine's Day" by describing his desperate situation Feb. 13, 1995: "1 can't get no kind license ... well, I got a fishin' license Im real proud of... but at 11 p.m. it was real clear I wasn't goin' anywhere." Giftless and cardless, Earle wrote the song for his current wife Lou Anne (also wife No. 4), he said, "out of sheer desperation. Truth is, I ain't afraid of nothin' but that red- headed gal. I'm afraid she'll leave me." Earle's encore choices were surpris- ing, but right on: a tanked-up versio4 "State Trooper" by Bruce Springsteen ("that hillbilly singer from New Jersey," as Earle called him) and a relevatoy jam on the Rolling Stones' "Dead Flowers." As Earle sang during the Dukes' spit- fire rendition of the new album's title track, "I've been to hell and now I'm back again/And I feel alright tonight." Judging from the hollers that followed those lyr- ics, no one in attendance could have been happier about it. Although Earle'sperfor- mance was, in a sense, a sermon to converted (a large portion of the audience sang along with every word of the older songs "I Ain't Ever Satisfied," "Angry Young Man" and "My Baby Worships Me"), the rapt crowd all but genuflected to the man. Earle acknowledged shoutsof "glad to see you" with a humble, "Glad to be seen. It was close, believe me." How- ever, some audience members got a little too enthusiastic for his liking. To persistent fan who howled, "STEW EARLE ROCKS!" during the acoustic set, the singer replied,"Man, I remember my first beer, too." While he acknowledged, "I ain't that well yet," Earle has certainlysettled down since his younger days. These days, he reserves his attitude forhismusic, though he's still prone to an occasional walk on the wild side: as the Dukes left the stage after the second and final encore, a fan handed Earle a black T-shirt, whicl* accepted with a wicked smile. It read "Harley FUCKIN' Davidson." DOLLS Continued from Page 13 dollars, Nathan bets his cohort, Sky Masterson (Andy Sievers), that Sky can't convince the next girl he sees tc go to Cuba with him. To Sky's disn@ the next girl he sees is Sarah Brown, the bible-beating, soul-saving missionary. Sky knows he's slick enough to get hei to Havana, but he doesn't realize hc may lose his heart in the deal. Thi dynamic musical speaks to all lovers nhnir rwmrnni-veInngevit. an1 irri Steve Earle put on an amazing show at 7th House on Monday. OFF regular price * Lowest Prices in Town - Largest selection of Men's & Women's styles in Michigan ,., ..., ..«,v...w:::.. .......... P, .