Newspaper Page Text
Page Four PANTHER October, 1974
KUUMBA
AlAQ GUajzeJ,
^lo- tyeatu/ie
7*^ MgAA,'
Howard Nicholson, tenor saxophonist for the Life Force
Ensemble, blows away as the group practices for its
first “Jazz Mass” which was held Sept. 29, 1974 in the
Episcopal Chapel at AU.
DuBois Conference
By Harry Gibson
Atlanta University and
W. E. B. DuBois Institute
will celebrate the 75th
anniversary of Dr. BuBois’
study, The Philadelphia Ne
gro, by holding the first
W.E.B. DuBois Conference
on the American Black.
The conference will be
held at Atlanta University
and the Sheraton Biltmore
Hotel, beginning Thursday,
October 3, through Satur
day, Oct. 5.
The conference plans to
explore the political, so
cial, cultural and economic
future of Black People
in America. There
will be assembly sessions,
panel discussions and
workshops. Distinguished
scholars such as Kenneth
Clark, Paul Glick, Allison
Davis and Vivian Hender
son will be present. There
will be an opportunity to
meet and talk with friends
and students of Dr. DuBois.
The conference fee is
$25.00 in advance and
$35.00 at the registration
desk.
On Sept. 29, the Episco
pal Chapel in the Atlanta
University Center began
it’s services with a “Jazz
Mass” written by Joseph
Jennings, a Clark College
music instructor.
The “mass” was per
formed by the Life Force
Ensemble, a professional
group that performs
throughout the city. The
group consists of Joe Jenn
ings on alto and soprano
saxophones, Howard Ni
cholson, tenor saxophone,
Eddie Edwardson, bass,
Ojeda Penn, piano, Darwin
Strickland, drums and
Terry Smith (Odeg) on
conga percussion.
Susan Watts, Doris Jack-
son and Vanessa Rucker,
voice majors from Clark
College, sang the vocal
parts.
The mass followed the
regular structure of Epis
copalian mass text taken
from the Book of Common
Prayer of the Episcopalian
Church of America. The
mass also followed in the
tradition of “jazz” Black
improvised music. In all
of the compositions per
formed the musicians were
able to improvise, create
or impose their interpre
tations on certain parts of
the music.
Some of the selections
included in the mass were
Kyrie, Lord Have Mercy,
Sanctus-Holy, Holy, Holy,
Holy and Benedictus -
Blessed is He that
Commeth.
The mass will be per
formed every other Sunday
at Danforth Chapel located
on Morehouse campus.
CLARK SENIOR
SPONSORS CLUB
By Eva L. Watts
Atlanta has a new dis
cotheque which promises
to be a tremendous suc
cess, according to the
owners The Flame, locat
ed in the Greenbriar Shopp
ing Center, operates as a
restaurant most of the
time. But on Friday and
Saturday nights, from 10
10 p.m. until 4 a.m., the
place takes on a party
atmosphere.
In its first week-end open
Sept. 20, the club drew an
estimated 1,000people, ac
cording to one of the mana
ger owners, Reggie Mit
chell, a Clark College sen
ior
The ‘ discotheque offers
a large dance floor, a buf
fet of delicious hors d’-
oeuvres, plus one drink on
the house, Mitchell said.
The cover charge is $3.
Mitchell said the 19-to-
35-year-old patrons set a
high fashion trend during
the opening festivities.
Black business is grow
ing in Atlanta, Mitchell
said, and he plans to be a
part of the trend.
The Flame is striving to
be something new and diff
erent, something everyone
can enjoy, in the Atlanta
entertainment field, Mit
chell said.
As Mitchell says, “The
Flame is a big ‘house-
party’.”
Announce me nt
Groove Phi Groove an
nounced it has established
a chartered chapter in the
Atlanta University Center.
Groove, which began 12
years ago, has more than
38 chapters throughout the
nation.
For information con
cerning Groove Phi Groove
contact Fred Bryant,
Brawley Hall, room 326
Clark College, Robert
Russell, Border Tower,
Morris Brown College, or
Kevin Rhodes, Hubert Hall,
room 318, Morehouse.
BLACK
Small Talk: A Critical Re-
Sylvester Stewart, a.k.a.
Sly Stone, is a musical
genius as well as gifted
poet and charismatic
showman whose influence
on Black pop music has
been all but pervasive . .
Sly/Syl is an Afrikan rhy
thm/master in sequinned
suit flashing quik changes
slung juju style from his
‘lectric organ. A breath of
clean air sucked way down
to fill hollow elbows &
sunken kneecaps taking us
all high/er....HIGH-A!!! A
bold Black buck strut/
dancing, grinning reck
lessly side to side super
starring up & down like
some dark minstrel of old
taking us all high/er...
HIGH-A!!!
Sly and his Stone Fami
ly’s latest release, Small
Talk (Epic # PE 32390),
is small in a number of
ways. Let us examine the
components.
Side One commences
with the title cut and
features the voice of Sly’s
son (and Family) making
his debut “wailing” up a
storm as the background
“vocalist”. The next tune,
“Say You Will” is stamped
in the social protest vein
and asks for a commit
ment from all of us. Really
nothing to stand and shout
about. The third cut,
“Mother Beautiful” is a
moving tribute to woman/
motherhood beautifully
written and performed,
perhaps for mama and/or
Mrs. Stewart, in the tra
ditional ballad mode. Here
Sly reveals to us his sen
sitive side: Sly the artist,
the husband and father.
The final cut on Side One,
“Can’t Strain My Brain”
(something no one did in
cutting this disc) sounds,
instrumentally and lyric
ally, like an extension of
the cut which preceeded
it, “Time For Livin’”;
both can succinctly be
summed up as repetitive
and oppressively weary.
Side Two kicks off with
a li’ “Loose Booty” --
Shadrack, Meshack &
Abednego. Is this fo’ real?
Forced movements, trite
lyrics and Sly puttin’ us
on. Tryin’ to take our
money? The second tune,
“Hold On” bees the best
gettin’ down jammin’ cut
on the entire LP. Here Sly
& the Family stretches out
and, in fact, gets down...
for a hot minute with
Rusty Allen providing
some kinky compact bass
that is way solid, even
bad... a bit like the Sly of
Stand times. “Wishful
Thinkin’” is worst than
corny, like a Beach Boy
lullaby in Black face-very,
very tired. Little Sister
works to provide some
fluid background voices
that blend well together
and salvages the cut from
VIBES
a. newton
being a total loss. “Better
Thee Than Me” is an up
tempo piece that never
manages to get really up
due to a lack of serious in
volvement on the part of
the musicians, though
Jerry Martini manages to
sneak in a few stirring but
standard sax riffs blown
off the top of his head. We
are even treated to a
taste--a wee taste--of
Sly’s organ. “Livin’ While
I’m Livin’” is so slack
that it doesn’t even de
serve a comment. Side
Two, and the album, closes
with a phony nostalgia
trip, “This Is Love”,
which tries, unsuccessful
ly, to take us back in time
and space to the mid 50’s
of the Moonglows, Plat
ters and Penguins, again
most weary.
Small Talk doesn’t have
the Intoxicating vitality of
Fresh or the finga poppin’,
foot stompin’, head shak-
in’, muscular rhythms of
Riot. No hi-keyed, multi
layered horns, no slick
catchy Sly phrasing, no
fragmented and jerky bass
lines, one of Sly’s most
genuine and widely
imitated innovations. In a
word, no fusion, no syn
thesis of form and content.
Like the entire LP sounds
as if it were hastily re
corded at an informalk
practice session held in
someone ’ s rec or bedroom.
Grunts, giggles, groans,
gurgles and other body
sounds are in evidence on
all the tracks and thereby
puts additional stress and
strain on the distinctly
mediocre quality of the
recorded sound. Even
though some well-balanced
ideas are there, if only
half-heartedly developed,
the musicians never really
seem to get loose and
space out with the
material; something ex
ceedingly difficult to do on
a four minute track. An
amateurish violinist and
superfluous string ar
rangements sap what ling
ering vigor the tunes
might have otherwise
protrayed.
Small Talk is definitely
not Sly doin’ it at his best.
I wish I could say that it
is...but it ain’t. There is
so very little that is cre
ative here, even less that
is truly original. Nothing
at all is memorable about
this album; nothing really
stands out. Not one of the
songs sticks in the mind
even after repeated play
ings. To put it mildly, the
album is a rip off! Why,
even the cover is jive:
check him between the
sheets frontin’ Tom Jones
fashion. No, the best thing
that can be said about
Small Talk is to leave it
where it lay... on the
record stands at $5.98.