Denver album oolish olus
Review by David Ware
I have been known to make uncomplimentary
remarks on the subject of John Denver and his
peculiar brand of smooth, generally gutless
middle-of-the-road pop music.
His recent studio albums have been marked by
an almost disheartening polish. No matter how
much rustic charm is larded into the cover or the
lyrics, the excellent, rich sound cries "STUDIO!"
at every turn, and spoils any chance for
atmosphere.
strike up the band
Happily, Young Goodman Denver puts out an
excellent offering in An Evening with. . ., a
two-volume live album that presents Denver in a
more palatable form.
Part of the album's charm lies in its
comparative austerity. The large orchestra
backing Denver is kept in its place for the most
part, allowing Denver's clear voice to guide the
proceedings. He even manages to take the
over-played "Rocky Mountain Iligh" and make it
the same scintillating anthem that once raised
tears in the eyes and lumps in the throats of
thousands.
Also resurrected is the unfortunate "Annie's
"Song," here given a chance to live by the
subtraction of a hundredweight's worth of
orchestration and the addition of a receptive
audience. A similar salvation is performed for
"Farewell Andromeda (Welcome to My
Morning)," which is a lot less cloying with the
children's chorus removed.
My own choice for best cut of the album is
the last song, a short acoustic piece entitled
"This Old Guitar." The song is a simple number
that exemplifies the best of John Denver: able
guitar work, on-key voice, decent lyrics and a
strong feeling of sincerity and earnestness that is
almost impossible to resist.
Recorded with care (though not always
satisfactorily mixed), and generally eschewing
the worst of the overpolishing that has marred
his latest effoits,4i Evening with John Denver is
a good album, and one that should meet with a
fair share of success.
Review by Steve Cogley
If someone were to invent a compass to point
to rock-musical talent, the pole with pull would
undoubtedly be the South. "
In the last several years, a multitude of groups
and performers have appeared from Dixie. The
list is nearly endless, but among the most popular
are The Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd,
Marshall Tucker, Z Z Top, The Elvin Bishop
Group, Grinder Switch and Wet Willie. I
wouldn't even have to mention The Charlie
Daniels Band, but they deserve mentioning.
Their new album, Fire On The Mountain,
continues the stream of amazingly worthwhile
material coming from the South. "C.D.B.," as
they refer to themselves, plays everything from
country western right up to some bluesy-rock
numbers.
The group features Charlie Daniels on slide
and acoustic guitars, banjo, fiddle and vocals.
Barry Barnes on guitar can either strum along
with Daniels or really burn, as in "No Place To
Go." The rest of the members are capable, but
not dynamic, musicians. They seem content to
let each other take turns adding their own flavor.
"Caballo Diablo," the first song on the album,
struck me because it's so bad. But help comes
quickly from "Long Haired Country Boy,"
which follows. The two best songs are "Trudy,"
which sounds like something Jerry Lee Lewis
would do, and "The South's Gonna Do It." This
song is number one in the south (surprise) but it
also has been receiving airplay on Lincoln's Top
30 station.
Included with the album is a 45 rpm live
recording of "The Volunteer Jam." The first side
features Daniels and Dicky Betts of The Allman
Brothers, and it's not too bad. However, the
second side is poor and could have been left out
(along with "Caballo Diablo.").
Those of you who thought the South would
rise again are wrong. It's already back, and in a
big way.
First Presbyterian
organist to perform
Today at 12: 10 p.m., First Plymouth Church,
20th and D streets, will present the third in their
series of noon-time Lenten organ recitals
featuring prominent Lincoln organists. Entitled
"Eine Kleine Noonmusik", the scries will present
today Russell Biackmcr, organist of the First
Presbyterian Church.
The concert will last approximately one-half
hour, with a light lunch served afterwards for $1 .
Admission to the concert is free.
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Wednesday, march 5, 1975
daily nebraskan
page 13