Newspaper Page Text
Page 4
THE PANTHER
October 12, 1979
A Group A Mother Could Love
Mother’s Finest Brings Rock To C.C.
BY ROZELL CLARK
Panther Entertainment Editor
They literally light up the
stage with their electrified,
energized, funktified rock.
Spanning a musical spec
trum that has no color lines for
them, Mother’s Finest is one of
the hottest groups to be found
around, and they will be found
in Clark College’s gymnasium
on homecoming night.
But, just as sure as the sun
rises in the east, there are a few
ears around that have not been
pierced by this rock group that
any “mother could be proud
of.”
The six member group calls
Atlanta their home. They do
all their album recordings in a
Doraville (just outside of
Atlanta) recording studio.
One thing that has dis
tinguished Mother’s Finest
from any other rock group of
today, is their ability to tran
slate the magnetic energy they
generate on stage into the
recording studio and finally
into the homes of millions of
fans across the country and
world.
However, success didn’t
come overnight for Mother’s
Finest, here’s how it happened:
Joyce Kennedy (lead
vocalist) and Glen Murdock
(who happens to be her hus
band and the lead male
vocalist for the group) left
Chicago in search of
musicians who wanted to play
their kind of music — not
traditional soul music, but
rock — hard rock.
Their search for the right
musicians to play their music
took them across the country
and finally they settled in
Atlanta. By this time, they had
acquired lead guitarists Gary
“Mo” Moore, lead guitarist,
Barry Borden drums; Mike
Keck on Keyboards; and Jerry
“The Wizard” Seay on guitar
also.
The group wrote their first
songs which appeared on their
debut Epic album “Mother’s
MOTHER’S FINEST
Finest.” Hit singles “Baby
Love” and “Thank You For
Your Love” were among their
earlier successes.
Breaking house records
across the South and soon
afterwards from coast to coast,
they built up a hard-core
following of both black and
white audiences.
With the wailing voice of
Joyce and the grooving and
moving sounds of the rest of
the group, Mother’s Finest has
backed up such greats as
Brothers Johnson and the
Atlanta Rhythm Section.
They finally reached the top
in the music business this
summer when they headlined
the Atlanta Champagne Jam,
which was called the
Woodstock festival of the
South.
Their latest album
“Mother’s Finest Live” was
recorded in part at that Jam.
The latest single from that
album is “Somebody to Love”
which is an old tune recorded
first by Jefferson Airplane.
However, the Finesthas added
their own brand of funky rock
and strong vocals that make
the record unique to them.
Well, there you have them —
Mother’s Finest. Don’t miss
the show,‘cause if you do, you
might miss history in the
making.
Drama Director Highlights Upcoming Play
BY ROZELL CLARK
Panther Entertainment Editor
Joan Lewis is a lady who is
used to giving orders. And, for
most of her six years as the
head of Clark College’s drama
department she has been direc
ting young actors and ac
tresses on what it takes to
make a good production.
However, Ms. Lewis’ up
coming leading role in “Who’s
Afraid of Virginia Wolf?” will
find her “taking the orders
rather than giving them,” as
she so mildly puts it.
Ms. Lewis will play the role
of Martha, the daughter of a
college president in the up
coming play which will take
place in a college situation.
The Grambling College
graduate is known best by
Atlanta audiences for her
directing abilities, but she
confesses that she “never left
acting. I did, however, totally
put it in my side pocket for
about seven years.”
“I was asked by Walter
Dallas, writer, producer and
director for the Proposition
Theatre, if I would be
interested in working with
him. He asked me early
enough so that it wouldn’t
interfere with school, so I took
the job, Ms. Lewis explained.
One aspect of the production
that particularly excites Ms.
Lewis, is that she will get a
chance to work alongside
Department six years ago, Ms.
Lewis has directed such
critically acclaimed produc
tions as “For Colored Girls . .
.”, “Night of the Baker’s End,”
and “Ain’t Supposed to Die a
Natural Death,” just to name a
few.
“I hope I have brought a new
respect for the Clark College
theatre. I am not interested in
just doing pieces. I want to
have a professional theatre
Continued on p.12
many performers who have
worked under her as a director.
“Jonathan Peck, Iris Little
and Willie Woods, all who have
become familiar faces in the
Atlanta University Center
Productions, will be working
beside me,” she said. Ms.
Lewis finds it an interesting
deviation to be able to “stand
on the other side of the stick
with people who I have
taught.”
Since coming to head the
Clark College Drama