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The Ked and Black. Tuesday, May I. 1979
MinirtvieWs
Ralph McTell
Ralph McTell
Live
Fantasy
By ROBERT HOLLAND
Staff writer
Ralph McTell Live is an
album infused with a great
combination of warmth, hu
mor and passion that makes
it instantly likeable McTell
is a gifted songwriter who
can sing of his first childhood
love one moment, and switch
the next to the secret world
of a distrubed child, doing
each equally convincingly.
By BOBBY BYRD
Assistant campus editor
everybody knows by
now. we live in a rock and
roll wasteland Top 40 has
ceased to be a force in the
marketplace, and nobody
does the joyous, bouncy stuff
that we grew up listening to.
Well, almost nobody The
Rubinoos harken back to the
days when LBJ was presi
dent. the Green Bay Packers
were dominating the Super
Bowl and you could stand to
turn up the AM radio in the
Mustang
The kind of music the
Rubinoos do used to be called
bubblegum, but in retrospect,
that isn't necessarily a
derisive term
Back To The Drawing
Board! is the second album
from the Rubinoos. an
obscure band of four clean-
His self-deprecating wit
endears him to the listener in
songs such as “Sweet Mys
tery." his wistful wish to be
able to “do it right just once
with the ladies “
McTell deals with more
than one American folk hero
including “Zimmerman
Blues' and “When I Was a
Cowboy," a fond tribute to
that American movie idol
The Rubinoos
Back to the
Drawing Board!
Beserkley
Records
looking types from California
blessed with a sense of
humor and a feel for good
rock and roll.
The 11 songs included here
are anthems all—paeans to
the wonders of teenage love.
The effect is delightful-the
songs may be silly on the
surface, but they’re so
damned much fun that it
doesn't matter
The titles alone can give
you an indication of what lies
within: "Fallin In Love.”
“Promise Me." "1, 2, 3 For
ever "...you get the idea It's
young romance we're talking
about here, and it’s serious
business
The LP’s undisputed high
light is "I Wanna Be Your
Boyfriend,’’ a song with
obvious lyrics and a wonder
ful melody. The message is,
of course, pretentious, but it
all works on the strength of
BSBSaSBB
The most memorable
songs, though, are the quietly
touching tales of sadness
“Michael In The Garden”
and “Streets ol London"—in
which McTell paints his most
vivid character images
McTell* production of his
studio albums have always
been relatively sparse, with
as little accompaniment as
possible But on the live
album, McTell is the sole
player on guitar and occa
sionally piano, and he proves
to be an excellent musician
His guitar work is perfectly
suited to his songs, weaving
intricate patterns around the
lyrics, always for the proper
effect.
He also shows off his
ability on brief instrumentals
such as "Waltzing Matilda"
which he threw in as a final
encore for an appreciative
crowd demanding one more.
• • • • •
Jon Rubin's boy-next-door
harmonies and Tommy Dun
bar's crisp, singing guitar
But there isn't really a
weak cut on the album. The
whole thing pervaded with a
happiness and a spirit that
you'll find from no other new
artists these days.
The opening verse from
Bovfriend” is indicative of
that spirit. "Am I just
imagining—Or do you really
have a thing—For me. like I
think I see when I see you
smile—And the smile's for
me?—I gotta tell you—Hey!
You! I wanna be your boy
friend!..."
It isn’t always easy to get
away with stuff like that, but
these guys do it with ease
Their music sounds, if
comparisons are necessary,
like a cross between the early
Beatles and the Raspberries
In short, it’s great rock and
roll
The value of the Rubinoos
is that they remind us of the
time when Top 40 music had,
at least, some feeling to it.
The band tore the house
apart in Atlanta two months
ago opening for Elvis Costel
lo, and for good reason. The
power of rock and roll isn’t
dead—you just have to look
a little harder to find it. The
Rubinoos are worth taking
a chance on.
saves Collins’ Fox concert
B\ C ATHY M. LEWIS
Executive editor
The house was filled to
capacity with fans of the pretty
blue-eyed lady with the ex
pressive voice, but without the
help ot the lighting man it
would have been just another
concert Saturday night when
Judy Collins played at the Fox
Theatre in Atlanta
Backed by a finely orches
trated band. Collins put the
acoustical quality of the
theatre to good use as her
voice climbed up and down the
musical scale: an entertaining
feat considering the over
powering arrangements and
her poor choice of songs at the
beginning of the first set.
With one exception—Arlo
Gurthrie’s classic "City of New
Orleans" which she opened
with—the arrangements were
too commercially accurate to
involve the audience to any
extent.
But when the band left the
stage and Collins stepped to
the piano, the singer brought
the first six rows to its feet
with the wistful “My Father"
which she wrote and recorded
in 1968 as a tribute to her
father.
She lost them again, how
ever, when she followed with a
sing-song version of the
Eagles’ “Desperado." Her fans
waited patiently for Collins to
finish the rendition that was
more than pale compared to
the gutsy version recorded bv
Linda Ronstadt.
When Collins came back for
the second set in a sexy red
dress that set the cameras
clicking near the stage, the
lighting man decided it was
time to put the audience firmly
in his boss’ hands
And he did it in fine style
After opening with McCart
ney and Lennon’s “In My Life"
and a robust folk song from
her protest days, the lights
went down and Collins broke
into "Starmaker." a song from
her new album
Three beam lights from the
ceiling put a halo around the
singer's head and she seemed
to float above the stage
Combined with the superb
quality of her voice, the effect
was absolutely awe-inspiring
Onstage
As the song ended the
lighting man pulled one light at
a time from Collins’ face and
her voice followed his lead
until all that was left was a
fading echo on the dark stage.
No one moved for seconds
after the song was over and by
the time the audience came out
of its trance, Collins had begun
“Send in the Clowns.”
She received her second
standing ovation of the evening
and this time the whole theater
joined in.
She kept the audience with
her through the folksy and
haunting narrative of “Pretty
Polly" followed by the title cut
from her new album. "A Hard
Time for Lovers ’’
When she left the stage the
audience begged her back for
an encore They still weren t
satisfied after another song but
after two bows they gave up
and filed, disappointed but
content, out of the theatre.
Despite a long history of
entertaining, beginning with
the days when she was pushed
on stage behind her father.
Collins biggest fault is.
surprisingly enough, an inabil
ity to talk with the audience
She was barely able to get
through the introduction of her
band Saturday, and the breaks
between songs were mere
announcements of the next
number.
But the lack of conversation,
which seems to takeaway from
her personableness and stage
presence, didn’t seem to bother
the audience at the Fox
For those who have loved
her strong soprano since her
activist travelings in the
sixties, her performance was
enough.
Haven’s versatile performance pleases crowd
By JOHN BAILEY
Powerful, rhythmic guitar
strumming and gentle ballads
characterized Richie Havens’
performance Saturday night at
the Capri Theatre in Atlanta
Havens, best known for his
performance at the Woodstock
and Isle of Wight concerts, is
one of the most distinctive
performers in modem music.
His throaty singing style and
particular kind of guitar work
are not only easily recogniz
able, but equally effective on
both his own music and his
renditions of other performers'
songs
During Havens' two set
performance Saturday night,
he switched back and forth
between his own works and
sensitive interpretations of
songs by such artists as James
Taylor, Fleetwood Mac, The
Beatles and Dylan
Havens opened the first set
with his own "On Our Way
Down.” He then surprised
many by going to the piano to
play his lovely ballad, “Edu
cated Bv Ourselves "
Also included in the first set
were two of Havens classic
works. "Here Comes the Sun"
and "Freedom.” Havens’ own
work, "Freedom." is his
battlecry to keep fighting until
the final victory is won
After intermisison. Havens
took the stage again and
started his second set doing
primarily other artists' works
He performed an upbeat
version of Van Morrison's
"Tupelo Honey." then went
into a soft, mellow rendition of
Dylan's “Just Like A Woman "
Havens is at his best,
however, on songs where he
can flail away at his guitar
with violent rhythms and let
his voice express anger and
pain. He displayed this talent
on “Handsome Johnny.” Ha
vens’ blistering attack on the
senselessness of war.
The crowd responded with an
enthusiasm that remained at a
high level through the rest of
the set. especially Havens’
lament for youth. "Younger
Men Grow Old."
When Havens left the stage,
the crowd immediately set up
a chant for him to return and
sing “Freedom" once more
When Havens complied with
the crowd’s wish, a mass rush
began towards the stage.
The crowd was not willing to
finish when Havens ended the
song, and they continued to
sing “Freedom" for 15 minutes
after Havens was finished
Though it was 2 a m. by the
end of the show, the crowd
seemed disappointed when
Havens would go on no longer
You can help
this dog.
His roommate graduates this quarter. He’s going home for the summer but
wants to keep his house for fall quarter. He will also need a new roomie for fall...
and a new place if he can’t find the right person to sublet for summer.
You can tell him about the UGA Housing Guide, summer/fall ’79!
May 22 and 23 the Red and Black will distribute 10,000 housing guides along with our
regular papers. The UGA Housing Guide will contain ads from students and
landlords with information on housing availabilities or situations wanted for both
summer and fall quarters.
3,000 extra copies will be available during the summer at orientation and the
Red and Black offices. If you need housing help for summer or fall this is the place
to find it.
To get your ad in this issue, you can pick up order forms at room 309 Journalism
or 698 South Milledge, or look in the Red and Black in the next two weeks for
handy clip-out mail-in blanks.
DEADLINE: All ads must be in by 5:00 pm, Friday, May 18,1979.
COSTS: *3.00 for an ad this size (maximum 50 words)
ADDITIONAL INFO: Contact Ed Stamper, 543-3414.
UGA
‘Housing
Guides
Summer/Fall 79 THE place to find space.
SUMMER SUBLET!
Just a couple of craiy guys looking to
give someone a great deal 4 BR, ac,
dishwasher, disposal, balcony. Just 2
blocks from campus S42-34I4