ARTS
Tuesday, July 19, 1983
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Page 10
The Michigan Daily
Armatrading finds 'key'
to good performance
By Bill Hanson
IT PROBABLY WON'T make Bob
Talbert's column, but Joan Ar-
matrading's concert last Friday night
at the Royal Oak Music Theater had to
be one of the best concerts in the area
this summer. From the moment the
house lights were dimmed for the en-
trance of Ms. Armatrading and band, to
the final song of the two-hour show, the
atmosphere inside the old hall could be
described as nothing short of fever-
pitch.
Armatrading, a star in Britain, main-
tains a sizable cult following in the
States - and they were there in force
Friday night.
Before she could strum one chord on
her guitar or utter even a polite hello,
Armatrading was greeted with a loud
and lengthy welcoming ovation. She
was obviously quite pleased and just
stood back and smiled as her fans let
her know she's been sorely missed (she
hadn't played in the area for several
years).
Then, feeling right at home, she
talked to the audience recalling her last
apearance at the theater when she
backed up Jesse Colin Young. But
tonight, she said, "I've got you all to
myself." Ready to kick into her set,
Armatrading had to wait another
couple of minutes while one of her
followers presented her with roses - an
event that would recur several times
during the evening.
F IVIDUAL THEATRES
$1.50 TUESDAY ALL DAY
4 GREAT DIRECTORS
John 'Animal House' Landis
Steven 'ET' Spielberg
Joe 'The Howling' Dante
George 'Road Warrior' Miller
Enter a
new dimension.
TWIGHg9NE
THE MOVIE (PG)
DAILY: 1:00 3:00 5:00 7:00 9:00
A STORY OF A MARRIED
WOMAN COMING TO GRIPS WITH
HER LATE BLOOMING LESBIANISM
A -
A Provocative New Film From
The Director Of "Return Of
The Secaucus Seven"
A Film By John Sayles (R)
DAILY: 1:30 3:30 5:30 7:30 9:30
Opening accolades completed, Ar-
matrading and her five-piece band
cruised through "I'm lucky," a snappy
little tune with a slight hint of reggae.
Speaking of the band, the British
quintet sounded great - as versatile
and talented as the E Street Band or
Graham Parker's old group, The
Rumor.
Not to overplay the Springsteen/E
Street Band thing, but Armatrading
herself, shares similar qualities with
Bruce. The way she handles an audien-
ce - answering questions, accepting
gifts, tapping into their energy, and
making them feel as though they were
part of the show - and her presence on
stage are very much like the New Jer-
sey rocker. Like Springsteen, Ms. Ar-
matrading exudes a charismatic,
friendly - albeit shy - air about her.
Confident, but never cocky.
"Call Me Names," a rollicking rave-
up from Armatrading's latest album
The Key, sounded so close to
Springsteen, in fact, that if you closed
your eyes you might think it was him.
Looking sharp and snappy in her
orange sweatshirt, blue pedal-pushers
and white, double-strapped tennis
shoes, Armatrading played mostly up-
tempo songs that had many members
of the audience dancing in the aisles for
much of the show.
During a lengthy set of dance num-
bers, Armatrading joked with the
crowd that those who don't want to dan-
ce "will be shot" - a sometimes
necessary measure, as people in
Americarare still somewhat reluctant
to dance without urging from the per-
former.
Best among the fast songs were,
"Bad Habits," (pronounced Bahd Hah-
bits - she's British you know) a hard-
driving rhythm and bluesy number;
"the Key," a funky, heavy-on-the-bass
reggae tune; and "Drop the Pilot,"
Armatrading's popular single.
Her dynamic vocal range was
demonstrated during the few slow
songs she did. " 'm Not In Love," "The
Weakness In Me," and "I Love My
Baby," stood out among them.
Visually, the show was also im-
pressive - white risers, bright red and
white striped back drop, and flashing
purple floor lights combined to make
the evening memorable.
Armatrading's band also contributed
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For further Information
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Daily photo by BILL MANSON
Joan Armatrading dropped little but picked up a happy crowd at the Royal
Oak Theater Friday night.
a great deal to the special atmosphere,
including:
- Percussionist Julian Diggle's
bouncing around the stage.
Reminiscent of the English Beat's
Ranking Roger.
- The solid bass playing of Ian
Maidman (who doesn't look a day over
15), and his continuous two-step shuffle
dance.
- Mike Simmons' lively piano and
organ fills.
- Justin Hildreth's Swiss-watch
Records -
The Blasters - 'Non Fiction'
(Slash)
Revivalists need ritual to preserve a
sense of continuity. They also need to
keep things interesting, though. It's not
easy.
The Blasters following harks back to .
the good old days, complete with greasy
hair, true romance, and driving
guitars. The group's first Slash work
struck a few close chords, especially on
songs like "So Long Baby Goodbye".
Non Fiction returns the Blasters to
primeval inspirations: rockabilly a la
Elvis, Chuck Berry with a bit of Hank
Williams mixed in. But where the
Presley pelvic thrust was (at its leather
best) no holds barred, the Blasters
sound a little restrained - the dreaded
fate of a revival group.
The first side is fairly dull, except for
"Red Rose," the opening cut dedicated
to the San Gabriel River Bed (don't ask
me). Skip to the flip tracks, wherein
drumming. He was also the only band
member brave enough to wear shorts
(it was about 120* in the unaircon-
ditioned hall).
- Guitarist Philip Palmer's crisp
guitar solos. He caught quite a few of
the young girls' eyes, as well.
Ms. Armatrading ended things with a
multi-song encore that featured a
moving sing along version of the hymn-
like "Sheltering a Storm." It was a fit-
ting end to a splendid evening.
lead singer Phil Alvin and friends seem
to wake up.
"Boomtown" follows a train track
rhythm through a lesson in American
dearth amidst plenty, with Alvin's
obligatory harmonica wailing away. A
depression tale gone West, or
somewhere in Reaganville.
More tradition. The more leisurely
paced "Leaving" is a classic "I can't
leave you 'cause I love you too much"
ballad that sounds like a hundred
others, only better. Finally, there's the
album closer "Tag Along", a Presley
tribute, sort of a "Treat Me
Nice"/"Blue Suede Shoes" hybrid.
Have to waggle the head to that Dave
Allen guitar.
The Blastersare a pretty fun group of
overgrown kids (like the best of them
musician types); take a track or two to
a party. They won't provoke a whole
lotts shakin', but there's enough rattle
and roll for any Steve Nardella/George
Bedard/David Swain fan to twitch to.
- Ben Ticho
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