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Page 7 COUNTERCULTURE Review Shadows of Love: American Gay Fiction Edited by Charles Jurrist, Alyson Publications, 1989, Paperback $7.95 Shadows of Love is quite fittingly subtitled "American Gay Fiction," though "American Gay Male Fiction" might have been a bit more accurate, as all the authors here are men. Seldom if ever before has an anthology of short fiction better represented the ethnic and cultural diversity of the gay man in America. Rather than present yet another compilation of reflections on gay life and concerns in New York and San Francisco, publisher Sasha Alyson and editor Charles Jurrist have assembled sixteen stories comprising, if not a representative cross section, then at least an intriguing sampling of-to quote Mr. Jurrist's "Introduction"-"what else is out there." Judging from this anthology, what's "out there" are a lot of very good writers. The authors included here hail from New Jersey, Washington State, Texas, Georgia, Toronto, and yes-even New York and San Francisco. They are white and black and Chicano, and their characters are all these and then some. This is definitely not the same old thing. The stories in Shadows of Love are uniformly fine, but there are standouts. These include "First Blood," Robert Trent's oddly titled tale of sexual obsession involving two BMOC's in the late 1960s; the acutely sensitive "A Faustian Bargain" SHADOWS OF LOVE AMERICAN GAT FICTION by Richard Hall, the story of a concert pianist, married with children, teetering on the brink of gay life; and Lee Rosario Kincaid's "Coloring Inside the Lines," a delicately wrought story told from the point of view of a little boy of four or five. Altogether, Shadows of Love is an important and wholly enjoyable contribution to the canon of gay literature, and for what it's worth, I wholeheartedly recommend it. - Larry Duplechan K.C.'s Top Ten When Southern Voice asked me to do a “KC’s Top Ten Albums” article, my first response was “k.d. (lang) doesn’t have that many.” My second response was “Who cares?” But here they are, my all-time Top 10. Remember this is all personal opinion, and subject to whimsical change. 10. The Koln Concerts. Keith Jarrett. This guy did a series of improv concerts, and this is my favorite, probably because of where I heard it, but that's another story. Solo piano like you’ve never heard it before. 9. Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town. Emilou Harris. Classic. Brought me out of the closet as a country-western fan. 8. Twister. Last Roundup. Lene Lovich meets the B-52s and does country. Vocalist Angel must make Kitty Wells proud. 7. Lone Star State of Mind. Nanci Griffith. Hard to pick a favorite from Nanci’s stuff, but this one does it, largely on the strength of the title cut and “There’s a Light Beyond These Woods (Mary Margaret).” 6. Shoy Some Emotion. Joan Armatrading. (pictured at right) The last of what I consider Joan’s “real” music. Acoustic based, pure emotion, without the over-production that has marred her albums since. 5. Tracy Chapman. Tracy Chapman. Picks up where Joan left off and flies. Political/social commentary unparalleled in contemporary mainstream music, and that voice... 4. The Dreaming. Kate Bush. The liner notes say “This album was meant to be played loud.” So true. Incredible layering of rhythms and vocals, something new comes to the forefront with each listen. 3. Breaths (Compact Disc). Sweet Honey in the Rock. Sixty-seven minutes of these women’s voices on a crystal clear compact disc. Heaven. Almost as good as being there. 2. Looking for Trouble. Ellen Mcllwaine. Former Atlantan, now resides in Toronto, where she’s better appreciated. Too bad. Ellen has two excellent acoustic albums, but this is the first electric album I’ve liked. And it is impressive. Playing with a reggae band, doing covers and originals, Ellen is the premier woman guitar player. Couple that with a voice that soars like the Z-Force at 6 Flags, and you’ve found trouble of the best kind. After a solo concert earlier this year, Ellen promised to return to Atlanta with the band this fall. Keep on the lookout. 1. Shadowland. k.d. lang. After ignoring her for months, WKHX ran promotional spots for her recent concert touting her as the “future of country music.” We knew that long ago. The future is now. k.d. says she’s an incarnation of Patsy Cline, and af ter hearing this album, and seeing the afore mentioned recent concert (twice), I believe her. Stay tuned for a new k.d. lang and the reclines album, due out in March ’89. The second ten, in no particular order: So, Peter Gabriel; Guitars, Cadillacs, Dwight Yoakam; Storms of Life, Randy Travis; Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen; Trio, Emilou Harris, Dolly Parton, and Linda Ronstadt; Surrealistic Pillow, Jefferson Airplane; Pearl; Janis Joplin; Horses and Easter, Patti Smith; Angel with a Lariat, k.d. lang and the reclines. —KCWildmoon Reprinted in its entirety from THE CHICAGO READER December 22,1988 TORCH SONG TRILOGY The long- awaited film adaptation of Harvey Fier- stein's play has proved to be one of the strongest and best made dramatic films of the year. Starring Fierstein himself as a professional female impersonator, and directed by veteran Paul Bogart, known mainly for his TV work, the film master fully mixes comedy, tragedy, and music into a first-rate entertainment. Chroni cling two of the hero's love affairs with men (Brian Kerwin and Matthew Brod erick) and his troubled relationship with his strong-willed mother (Anne Bancroft) in the 70s and early 80s, the movie is never preachy or moralistic in its depiction of gay life. Much of its power can be attributed to the high- voltage performances of Fierstein and Bancroft, as well as to a superb use of jazz and popular music. (Woody Allen could learn a lot from this movie.) Al though the material shows some of its theatrical origins, the transfer to film is intelligent and effective. One would hate to find this film treated as a "special interest" picture because of its gay characters; its superb theatricality deserves to be enjoyed by everyone. K NEW LINE CINEMA AIXKKiirrS RBSKRVKD j ^ * ** 9m ** Mim 'MUlitMlkUMI i*> NOW PLAYING AT CHESHIRE BRIDGE RD. AT 1-85 634-6288