8A -The Michigan Daily - Monday, February 5, 2001 ARTS Afro-Caribbean inspired .1 0 k" pop songs rule during MtSs Rackham to. host Dunn. reading By Marie Bernard For the Daily The first time I heard Stephen Dunn read I was 15 years old. At the time, all of my intellectual abilities were held By Chris Kula and Christian Hoard Daily Arts Writers Forget about the synthetic "oonce oonce" of techno: Latin music is the ultimate form of dance music. Some- thing about the combination of layered percussion, bright horns and lively polyrhythms makes for an undeniable and joyous groove - which, we spec- ulate, is exactly the reason why so many well-known artists chose to incorporate these elements into their recorded output during the '80s. The songs on this list comprise the best Reagan-era attempts at mixing mainstream pop music with either Latin or Afro-Caribbean inspired sounds. Some of the artists featured below worked frequently in this hybrid style, while others were simply dyed- in-the-polyester pop stars trying to cash in on a new fad. Either way, these tunes all are equally deserving of heavy, heavy rotation on Ann Arbor radio-stations. 10. "Hot, Hot, Hot" by Buster Poindexter Ole, ole, ole! This salsa-inflected number recently set a Guinness world record by inspiring the highest number of wedding reception conga lines in just one hour (exactly 43). "Hot, [lot, Hot" marked the biggest career hit for Poindexter, a saxman and bandleader best known for his alleged role as the ghost of Christmas past in Bill Mur- ray's "Scrooged" ("Hot, Hot Hot" is not to be confused with "Ho ho ho"). 9. "Pass the Dutchie" by Musical Youth An early anthem in the war for mar- ijuana legalization, "Pass the Dutchie" shocked the world as Musical Youth's five Rastafarian youngsters glorified, through their catchy, kiddie-reggae tune, the smoking -- and subsequent passing to the left - of pot. In 1982, the underage members of Musical Youth were brought before an anti- quated, white-wigged federal court on two counts of possession with intent to sell as well as resisting arrest, but after breaking into a spirited rendition of "Dutchie," all charges were dropped. 8. "The Rhythm of the Night" by DeBarge After polishing their gospel-style vocal chops Sundays at the Fountain Street Church, the DeBarge farmily broke out of the fertile Grand Rapids music scene with "Rhythm of the Night." Well-known pop music critic John Gonzalez called it "the most authentic expression of feel-good Latin energy by a West Michigan group since 'The Freshmen' by The Verve Pipe." Rumor has it that El DeBarge progeny Chico DeBarge still can feel the rhythm of the night, and that he indeed dances until the morn- ing light. 7. "You Can Call Me Al" by Paul Simon As his 1986 Graceland album is the epitome of bastardizing - er, incorpo- rating distinctly African musical ele- ments, it's no surprise that Rhymin' Simon is represented on this list. The hard part, though, is selecting just one song from this excellent collection of slyly appropriated musical collabora- tions. We went with "Al" because we're big Chevy Chase fans. Accord- ing to popular legend, the song's title was inspired by Ladysmith Black Mbambazo member Alangoneyou Dhamshombo who said to Simon, "Mr. Paul, you can call me Al, because you're too fucking lazy to learn my given name." 6. "You Shook Me All Night Long" by AC/DC "Well the walls were shakin'/The earth was quakin'/My mind was achin'/We were makin' it"-- this one speaks for itself. 5. "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel Peter Gabriel was originally the singer for Genesis, an art rock band from England. After being replaced by Phil Collins, Gabriel moved to South Africa, where he lived in a shanty- town for several years, learning local customs and living with a woman who spoke no English. Legend has it that this track was originally called "Flies Are Breeding (In Your Eyes)," and was inspired by Gabriel's memories of the multitude of malnourished corpses preyed on by swarms of mosquitos. When he returned Stateside, a lengthy, half-coherent speech by John Cusack, who for encouragement held aloft a boom-box blasting Collins' "Sussu- dio," convinced Gabriel to change the tune to a more accessible, groove- inflected romantic ode to red-eye syn- drome. 4. "Africa" by Toto Toto was Dorothy's dog; Dorothy was swept up in a tornado and sent to Oz. Speaking of Oz, that place was just as foreign to Dorothy as Africa must have been to Toto the band when they wrote this slice of. new-age cheese, what with their distinctly non- African synthesizers and overwhelm- ing whiteness. "Boys," a Columbia Stephen Dunn Rackhamj Auditorium Today at 5 p.m. captive by the irregularities of adolescence and I wasn't particu- larly interested in poetry. To this kid, the language of poetry was as accessible and comprehendible as Sanskrit. In the four years since that November read- ing, Stephen Dunn's work has vi Courtesy of PGD/Polygram Records Buster Poindexter is not to be confused with Busta Rhymes. Hot! Records exec. must have said, chomp- ing on a cigar and throwing his arm around the shoulders of drummer Jeff Porcaro, "You ain't never been to Africa, have you?" No, sir. "Well, that's alright. With a beguilingly allur- ing chorus like that, each of you shoulk make yourselves enough scratch to fund your very own African rhino safari." 3. "Red, Red Wine" by UB40 "Red, Red Wine" combines a blissed-out tune with immaculate pro- duction, a slick pseudo-reggae sound and one all-important X-factor: An appeal to Americans' weak-kneed longing for vin rouge. Sure, purists might note that while an authentic reg- gae outfit like Third World would rather cruise the streets of Kingston and pass big spleefs back and forth, this inauthentic reggae band from the not-so-mean streets of Birmingham, England, chose to record a Neil Dia- mond song devoted to a drug that you can purchase at any corner liquor store. But guess which band had a hit on VI-l? 2. "Kokomo." by the Beach Boys The Beach Boys rose to fame with songs that were about all the best Cali- fornia had to offer- girls. fast cars and surfing, namely. But by 1986, the Golden State just wasn't cutting it as a source of pop song fodder. For truly faddish subject matter, you had to look to super-exotic locales like those showcased in "Miami Vice." Jimmy Buffett tunes or the Christopher Atkins-vehicle "The Blue Lagoon." This in mind. Beach Boys vocalist Mike Love assembled his remaining beach brethren to record "Kokomo," a tune that name-checked Caribbean provinces like a 7th-grader frantically trying to finish his geography report. It's not brimming with genius like the oldies, but you gotta respect the kitschy "tropical" melody as well as the video, which features TV legend John Stamos on drums and Mr. Love miming the Kenny G-style sax solo. 1. "All Night Long (All Night)" by Lionel Richie Unlike Madonna, Prince and several other pop stars who turned out an arm- load of hits during the '80s, Lionel Richie was never terribly obsessed with "reinventing" himself, not count- ing that one time when he quit the Commodores, grew that wicked jherri- curl and became an introspective ladies' man. But with "All Night Long (All Night)" Richie cast himself as an easy-listening pied piper, summoning anyone who would listen --and especially wearers of pastels, drinkers of wine coolers and your mom, too - to get their lite-funk groove on. This No. I marked the first time since he lent his voice to the 'dores "Brick- house" that Lionel went out of his way to make some feel-good music, and the party-time horns, silky synths and multi-ethnic chants certainly didn't hurt his cause. "lello. Is it me you're looking for?" No, Lionel, we ain't looking for nothin' but a good time, and so long as this tune is on the stereo, we've just called to say thanks for the merriment. Let the music play on ... play on ... play on ... Courte:sy of SM Entrtamnit Lionel Richie likes to sing "All Night Long (All Night)." 'Plant Life' harkens back to Spring with nature By Rosemary Metz Daily Arts Writer first item on display. medicinal purposes as Herbals were used for well as garden plants in "If winter is here, can spring be far behind?" This might be the theme for the Plant Life exhi- bitions currently of the Museum UM Museum of Art Through March 4 on display in the Paper Gallery of Art. This exhibit offers a number of works which are inspired by the world of botany. The natural world is depicted in this collection ranging from herbals from 16th Century Western Europe through modern etchings. Herbalists advised, in 1597 that, "there will be diverse herbs comprehended under the title of Fumitorie, some wilde, some with bul- bous or tuberous rootes." The common, or purple thel5th and 16th Centuries. Groupings include an "Ilodgsonia Heterclita," done in sepia tone by Sir J. Dalton Hooker in 1855. This work bears a similarity to Georgia O'Keefe's sensual renderings of' exploding seed pods and opulent flower petals. An aqua print freesia by Donald Sutton, and Olivia Parker's glorious "Two Cyclamen," complete the spring ensemble. An etching and aquatint of "Apple Blossoms, 20th Century" was done by Leonard Baskin. Baskin was also a noted sculptor. His Holocaust remembrance piece stands at the east corner of the Rackham Building. Next to this piece is "Sunflower III," by Joan Mitchell, a color aquatint. Riotous colors surround the sunflower, an evo- cation of summer heat and nature's palette. Johannes Teyler's "Bowl of Flowers" is a tease, as well. Reds, yellows, purples tumble from a glass bowl, with saucy tendrils toppling along the sides. Ikeda Zuigitsu presents a color woodblock block, entitled "Dendrobrium Wardianum," a minimalist representation of flowered branches, with the often paradoxical least, yet fullest of detail. "Monument Valley, 1982" is William Lemke's gelatin silver print, suggesting Califor- nia and the Sonoran Desert in warm, sunny cli- mates. To further nudge the travel bug, there is a plat- inum palladium print by Lois Connor of Yang- shoo, China. A reach into the past brings the viewer to Palermo-the Botanic Garden, Avenue of the Palms, done on albumen print by Giorgio Sommer, in 1870. Both prints are alluring with their call to far away places. Expressign of the natural world remains an inspiration for the creative and scientific commu- nities. Herbals, seedpods, and flowers are sources of life and study for the botanist and artist. Our physical and social lives are enhanced each day by the presence of plants in all seasons. for this wintry season, with slush, snow, high winds and sleet, a trip into the plant world offers a welcome respite and a sign of the spring days ahead. found its way into every aspect of my thinking. Favorite writer. Period. I am officially obsessed, and I love poetry - or at least, his poetry. Today Dunn is reading from his new collection, "Different Hours," at Rack- ham Auditorium. Dunn, a New Jersey native at the Rackham School of Graduate Studies- faculty-in-residence, has published eleven books of poetry, including "Loosestrife," "Between Angels," "New and Selected Poems: 1974-1994" and "Riffs and Reciprocities (Prose Pairs)." He has also published a book of prose, "Walking Light: Essays and Memoirs" He is the recipient of the Academy Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the Livens and Oscar Blumenthal Prizes from The Journal of Poetry, among other homes. lie has been awarded fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New Jer- sey State Council of the Arts and the Rockefeler and Guggenheim Founda- tions. The New York Times called him "one of the strongest voices of his gen- eration." Dunn's work is compelling by virtue of its brutal honesty. It is compelling by the light he casts on our seemingly rou- tine actions. It is compelling by his uncanny ability to capture the most accurate and revealing details of our lives. "Because finally the personal/is all that matters." he writes in "Essay on the Personal." "We spend years describ- inc stones/chairs, abandoned farmhous- es /until we're ready. Always/it's a matter of precisioniwhat it feels like/to kiss someone or to walk/out the door. Slow good it was/to practice on stones/which were things we could love/without weeping over." To call h-is work simply "accessible" would be to undenine the very com- plexity which makes it function so accurately. It is true that his work is accessible, but he makes it so by reveal- ing the secret functions of what once seemed vague or abstract. lie puts life into words. As writer Richard Wilbur said. "To read a few lines of a Stephen Dunn poem is to feel suddenly in touch with the way things are, and the way we really feel about them." His work focuses on a variety of subjects, but he tends to stray frequent- ly towards the reahn of relationships. In his poem, "After Making Love" Dunn writes: "No one should ask the other, 'what were you thinking?'/No one, that is, who doesn't want to hear about the past/and its inhabitants, or the strange loneliness of the present/filled even as it may be, with pleasure, or those snap- shots/of the future, different heads on different bodies." Often, he is also extremely humorous - perhaps my strongest recollection of that first reading is "Decorum," a poem that sent the captivated room into stitch- es. If you have ever enjoyed a poem. ever enjoyed a word or a sentence made of words, ever hated a poem, ever had a thought, ever had a feeling, ever lived, or ever breathed, see Stephen Dunn today. As Judith Kitchen wrote. "What is at stake in his poetry is more imme- diate and more essential: How to live the one life we're given with integrity, with humor and exuberance, and, yes, grace. DAILY ARTS SEEKS YOUNG, INEXPERIENCED WRITERS WHO ARE WILLING TO LAY THEIR LIVES ON THE LINE 0 6' S Courtesy of Olivia Park~er Olivia Parker's works will be exhibited at the Museum of Art. Fumitorie is drawn alongside the less common, white variety in a hand colored woodcut, the D L G O Experience the power of a forty-foot tall robot in 'Blaze' University of Michigan Business School 0 0 90 " s r7" " fbruarv Q ,ndi 11th New Di rections Asian f"rAsia 0@@ ,O@ Businesst~ ayn buline Business ' and make imorrant Conference . Connections Keynote by Kenneth G. Lieberrhal Senior Director for Asia, National Security Council Panel Sessions: u _R;, . Thk Fnnhled1 Acirn unrcno m By Jeff Dickerson Daily 'T'V/New Media Editor Imagine a world where the A-Team is lead by Optimus Prime rather than George Peppard's classic portrayal as John "Hannibal" Smith. Instead of t motoring the streets Gungriffion Blaze of Los Angeles in Mr. T's van (Why the van? If you had i11 sib- lings you'd be driving a van too), you take control of a forty-foot tall robot with one thing in mind ... Playstation 2, the "Gungriffon" series makes the transition faithful to its pre- decessors while improving the graphics ten-fold. Aside from the meticulously detailed war mechs, the other visual elements are a disappointment. Build- ings consist of several boxes placed together and the rest of the background is filled with dull images of blue sky and grassy terrain. Considering the tremendous power of the Playstation 2, "Gungriffon Blaze" fails to impress in the graphics department. When operating a large metal object or any other form of heavy machinery, control is of utmost importance. Thank- fully the developers took this into con- sideration. When you're "on the jazz," the tight movements make for missions that are fun. not frustrating. Too often in the "giant planet eating robot" genre the complicated controls bog down the fundamentals of gameplay. Wondering what the premise is? In the year 2020 the 501st GriflOn squad was sent to bring about world peace for a war they didn't start. These mecha- nized tanks of destruction promptly escaped from a maximum-security stockade to the Los Angeles under- ground. Today, still wanted by the gov- ernment, they survive as robots of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can fid them, maybe you can hire the 501st Griffon squad. Grade: B- For Playstation 2 Workinn- Designs INJ I , J