12A -The Michigan Daily - Monday, September 18, 2000 ARTS Little Jimmy drove- ladies crazy at the Bird S OTT Continued from Page 8 At seventy-five years old with wrinkled skin, thin hair and loooong arms, which he waved emphatically to suit the mood of his verse, he evoked the image of Ellen Dow (the rapping grandma in "The Wedding Singer"). And stand- ing little more than five feet tall in dapper attire, I thought Little Jimmy looked like Jimmy Cricket. In a high-pitched wail, Scott soared through a set of standards, his high-pitched reinterpreta- tions of the American songbook sounding more like the work of Billie Holiday than Frank Sina- tra. Unlike most male singers grounded in the post-Depression jazz-style performance of popu- lar songs, Scott is not a crooner: he sings in a glo- riously shrill, full-throated voice. Also like Holiday, Little Jimmy pays no heed to the song's original form: he sailed over barlines and through rests, placing the notes and syllables only where he wanted them to go, making each song belong to no one but him. Above all, a singer is an actor, conveying the story of his or her lyrics. Fly departing from the traditional map of a standard song, both singer and listener are exhiliratingly liberated. This freedom was particularly satisfying in the case of Little Jimmy, who executed his reinventions with an intricate precision. On an ironic note, it was peculiar to see such a bright and cheerful personality sing such sad, sad songs. Sam Hollenshead/DAILY Those not at the Bird of Paradise crowded Gallup Park on Saturday afternoon. Travis plays at their crowd-pleasing best By Jon Schwartz Daily Arts Writer PONTIAC - Thursday night at Clutch Cargo's, the Scottish rock band Travis proved that first and fore- most they exist for their fans. Throughout the short one hour and 20 minute set, the group, led by lead singer and songwriter Fran Healy, Travis Clutch Cargo's September 14, 2000 entranced the small venue, often alluding to the quick rags- to-riches pro- gression that advanced the band into popu- larity across the ocean. After opening with a slightly slower version of "All I Want to Do is Rock," the band rocked into cally-acclaimed second album, "The Man Who," the group has already acquired a loyal fan base. Onstage, Healy spent the evening playing to the crowd, often inviting the fans into the performance, whether it was by talking between songs with the light on so that he could see people or by asking for an opinion of "Flowers in the Window," a new song, by requesting a gladiator style thumbs-up or thumbs-down at its conclusion. But in the show's final number, "Happy," the band unveiled yet anoth- er surprise for the crowd. When a girl in her late teens jumped onto the stage and was quick- ly followed by a security guard, gui- tarist Andy Dunlop waved him off and allowed the girl to remain. The band proceeded to dance with her, sing with her, and even walk back- stage with her at the song's conclu- sion. Above all else, what made the show, great was the emotion the band mem- bers showed. Healy looked at times as though he was about to cry while going through his songs. At no time could Travis have been accused of simply going through the motions, instead injecting into every song a deep sense of feeling that makes, artists great. Musically, the highlight of the show came towards the end, with three songs, "Blue Flashing Light," "Twenty" and "Just the Faces Change." For three songs that could not be more different, they combined to show the variety that Travis is capable of. "Blue Flashing Light" was accom- panied onstage with police lights spinning around. The band rocked the song out, with Dougie Payne's bass line reverberating even in the venue's balcony. Then, after the encore break, Healy came out alone and beautifully rang out "Twenty," an intimate ballad about teenage years. While a good number of the fans seemed not to know the song, Healy's emotion-filled depiction of growing up seemed to leave an impact on all who were there. Even when Healy mistakenly sang a verse at the wrong time, both singer and audience simply laughed and shrugged it off. After that, Healy ran off stage and was replaced by Payne doing his. own solo number. "Just the Faces Change." While the song has yet to be released on an album, nearly the entire crowd was moved by Payne's often-unheard solo voice and his enthusiasm at performing on stage. The set was mixed up nicely with four songs from "Good Feeling" eight off "The P/an Who," and four new tracks, including a well done cover of 0 two more songs off the widely unher- aided first album. "We're called Travis," Healy said while introducing the song "Good Feeling," the title track of the first album. His straight face while mak- ing the comment showed a man that never could have imagined such an introduction inviting raucous cheers. But less than six months after the American release of the band's criti- UCotsy of Sony/Epic The men of Travis are indeed madcap Scottish lads. The Band's ballad "The Weight." In the end, Travis left the crowd thirsting for more. The set was entire- ly too short for a band that has enough material to play at least three or four more songs per show. But perhaps it was the George Costanza approach to showmanship that overcame the band, the idea of leaving on a high so that people want more. They succeeded and though they won't be back until after the new album "Afterglow" is released next year, they can be sure that the fans will be anx- iousiy waiting. WANT TO SEE "ALMOST FAmous" FOR FREE? BE SURE TO READ DAI Y ARTS THIS WEEK TO FIND OUT HOW. 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