Rock Garden: Roberta Flack

by Ron Medvin

Roberta Flack this been around
quite awhile. Her first album came
out ill 1969, and had fair success,
The amazing thing is that she keeps
getting rave reviews but she still
remains the background, She is
detliiitely an underrated singer who
should be heard a great deal more.

I have hear-d her ﬁrst alhuirr,
First Take, and parts of her new
album Quiet Fire. (I would have
heard more of Quiet Fire but those
“goddamn thieves” Chief Peters
spoke at last ..ue have stolen that
album from KDIC) First Take
stiould instantly prove to anyone
that Roberta Flack is the best fe-
male vocalist since Aretha Frank-
lili. She often sollnds like Aretha, as
in “Tryin' Times”, but she is no
doubt a quieter vocalist. She does
not sing with the power or Miss
Franklin, bllt the beauty or her
voice makes up for this lack of
force “I Told JeSuS'liS a tl‘adis
tional gospel song which Roberta
handles with a powerful and sweet
voice. She is backed by :t vibrant
horn sectroir which wisely stays in
the background and never covers her
vocals,

Ii one was to label her music, it
would probably just be called "quiet
soul," “Compared to What” and
“Our Ages 01‘ Our llearts” fits this
category And not only does she sing.
She accompanies herselr on the
piano, and her emotion tor each
song is reflected on the keyboards,
She can play anything ironi a soit,
sad lament to a loud soul rocker.

There are two songs or special
merit on her first album. One is
Leonol'd Cullen’s "Hey, That's No
Way to Say Goodbye .. Now i never
thought loo much of the way Cohen
sang his Own songs, he made this
one sound like a bland dirge, and it
was generally boring But when
Roberta sings the same song...

Smgemo
Oscar Awards:

by Robert Simmons

In the tradition or the sophisticated
English comedy of Alec Guincss
comes a rather inferior piece called
Nothing but the Best. Alan Bates
tries hard and is orten funny, buttlie
whole is only a mediocre iilm. Luckr
ily, nevi should be quite good.
Satyajit Ray is the only indian filmr
maker known in the West ilis him
are characterized by a sensitive un-
derstanding and a dedicated beauty
that I hope are present in this Work.
The great tilins of the "Man of a
Thousand races", Lon Chaney are
rarely seen today, so this look at his
The Hunchback otuotre Danie should
not be missed.

Some people have objected to my
recommending films on the tube, but
when a movie is worthwhile I don't
think it should be ignored The Cabir
net of Dr. Caligari, the uttering on
Film Odyssey tonight, is quite an
important and inilnential movie.

This eerie German expressionist l

fllln is a true masterpiece ot the
silent era. Tomorrow night's late
shows include Hitchcock’s To Catch
a Thier. Gary Grant was never
suaver and Hitchcock's direction
was never better

The "Oscars” deserve a brrei
look Surprisingly the acting and
technical awards seemed all to have
gone to the best perlorruances. For
once politics and emotion did not
rule over reason. In the direction
and best picture categories, howe
ever, i think a mistake was made.

magic: it changes from the mailer
tonous to the enchanting. Her voice
hypnotizes you and [or the tirst time
the wordsoi the song take on mean-
ing. The other song is now being
played occasionally on AM top 40;
not enough I’m afraid. it’s called
“The First Time I Ever Saw Your
face" and it is by iar the best song
on tile album I have never heard
a sweeter, clearer voice as is heard
on this cut. There is really no way
to describe it except say it’s un-
believable. KDIC still has this al-
bum, Call up your iriendly DJ’s and
demand that they play this cut

I haven't heard all of “Quiet Fire”,
her new album, But What I have
heard proves that the album’s title
is wellrfuunded. She sings aorurna—
tic sevenrminute version of “Bridge
Over Troubled Water" It is softer
than Aretha’s Version, but Still nor
thing like the Simon and Gorfunkle
version. It is all her own, and it also
proves that a song can be sung in
many different ways and still be
great.

“To Love Somebody" is that great
Bee Gees song done by everyone.
Roberta’s is the best that I’ve heard.
There’s a soft and fitting orchestral
arrangement, and her own piano
gently accompanies the rousing var
cal. She also does a great thing with
Carol King‘s "Will You Love Me
Tomorrow” and a song called ”See
You Then" which has a deeply mov-
ing string and ilute arrangement,
Every song that I've heard is filled
with melodic arrangements and
strong keyboard. There is no doubt
about it; her voice is quiet tire, a
great perrcrmer indeed.

Wrong Winner

The French Connection is a good
movie, but not a great movie. it is
entertaining, well produced, well
acted, and well paced. However,
the direction appears sun and in a
style that might best be called func-
tional; the action or the story is
recorded on film with little concern
for the how and why of cinema tech-
nique. it works well in this film, but
it is not of enough importance to
iustiiy the award. That The Last
Picture Show, is made by a person
who knows how most of history’s
good movies have been made and
can use that knowledge is the film’s
major asset, it may not have the
slick appeal of The French Connec—
tinn, but it is a better movie in terms
or its use and understanding or
cinema art,

There is also an abundance of
cinematic artistry in Clockwork
Orange, but it Is of a different kind,
Where Bogdanovich, former film
critic nnd historian, uses classical
cinema techniques. Kubrick, master
of “future shock", invents new ones
llis art is a concerted attempt to
explore new possibilities oi the film.
More importantly it is as conscious-
ly tied to his subiect matter as
Bogdanovich’s technique is to his
material The technique of The
French Connection is not matched
to the action, it merely records it.
It lacks the unique vision that the
pertectly matched elements of the
other two exhibit.

in. cumin smn. um and i. in. snowmen,“ iiiGrmntll

The Gr‘innell
Scarlet and Black

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The Gale Effect

The Scarlet and Black

April it, 1972

Galeisms

by Jack Doppelt

Grant Gale is a man of extraordi-

nary mcans and 1 mean extraordir
nary. Not only does he teach
Physics with an inextinguishable
enthusiasm for the field and for
his students but he does it with :In
eagerness that can not help but
rub off on those in Ills class,

With his retirement at the end of
this semester, Mr, Gale takes with
him a chunk of the Grinnell exper-
iencena distinguished one.

He also takes with him a spontan—
eity and wit that makes Physics
enlightening tor even the most
ascientific mindsv-mlne,

He takes with him the matches that
he extinguishes in his mouth.

He also takes witll him the chalk
that he can screech against the
blackboard at will

But there is one thing I won’t let
him get away with. And that is the
rash ot puns which nonrphysics
students have yet to be graced with.

it is difficult to present the puns
and still preserve the nonchalant
Gale style, “It was essentially this
kind of a problem ”

With all respect for the art of malar
propism, I present Mr. Grant Gale
an naturel in Physics class:

On the historical and biblical re-

occurrence of the number “seven”:
“There are seven wonders of the
ancient world, seven musical notes,
seven days ot the week, seventh
heaven; but then it gets a little
foggy.”

“Galileo had to measure how fast
something was falling. He didn’t have
an egg timer so what did he do? He
used his pulse but that didn't work,
He got all excited and his pulse got
faster.”

An example of inertia'

“The Army has a lot or inertia.
That is the opposition to change “

On his experience with a US.
satellite project:

“The 11.5, satellite was experien-
cing one failure after another. Then
we were beaten by the Russian Sput-
nik, Our satellite was like a good
civil servant: it wouldn’t work and
you couldn't fire it ”

“Then the Russians pnt dogs in
orbit, We were considering putting
cows in Orbit 50 we could have
‘the herd shot round the world'."

“In the old days, they tried to fig»
are out how many angels tit on the
‘head’ of a pin, They solved that
and then worked on the number of
angels on the ‘point’ or the pin. But
that was an irisignincant point and
they got stuck.”

“A long time ago, people had to
make their own tires. That was BC
(before cosh.”

“ ‘Force' measures not mass bilt
the attraction to the earth. It’s an
ecological problem. It measures how
nluch you are attracted to the earth "

During a class disagreement:

“You say the molecule is here, he
says it’s there. But that's neither
h 'e nor there.”

‘ We are using a very light weight
‘pith' ball. Thomeiimes l llthp.”

“1 will put the problems in the
seminar room. You can either look
them over or overlook them,”

“An erg is a dyne/cmz, which is a
small amount of work even for this
class," '

“Power is work over time (work/
time), but no one wants to work
over-time,"

“A professor showed his class that
a compass needle untlerawiredoes—
Ii't move when current flowed
through the wire All this showed was
that neither the needle ilor the sin»
dents was moved.”

Upon lighting up a high voltage bulb:

"I'm not used to looking at silcll
bright things, Alter all, i work with
students all the time.”

Mr Gale also instills initiative and
student participation.

For instance, at 3:30 a.m. the night
beroi-e one of his tests, some or his
students called him to settle h dis-
uute they were having. Their quesr

Don Dngennis and next year’s
editorial staff will edit eight
pages of next week’s 55113
Don’t miss it,

tioii was “it it takes a camel 24/2
weeks to walk across the Sahara De-
sert, how long will it take a grass—
hopper with a wooden leg to kick the
seeds out of a dill pickle?”

This philosophy also adorned such
students as Dan Weston the oppor-
tunity to respond to such perplexing
problems of the physics world, as
“why does sap climb upa tree“ with.
“because it was there!”

That universal justification exr
plains why a pseudo-journalist such
as myseli endeavored a Physics
class trom Mr. Gale

Because he was there.

McGovern And Goldwater

by Greg Vranicar

In these days of inflated campaign rhetoric, ITT scandals, and election
treasure chests, it is a commonly held View that all politicians are alike.
Being one who does not agree with political analysts who see it that way,
i was more than ZI little surprised when Professor Don Smith remarked to
me the day alter the Wisconsin primary that he sees a great resemblence
between McGovern of '72 rind Goldwater of ’64. I thought for certain that
Mr, Smith "knew better” than to place such ideologically opposed indivi-
duals ill the same category. Having thought about the matter more care-
fully, however, I can now also see the similarity.

Although their positions with regard to most questions differ quite radii
cdlly, McGovern ’72 and Goldwater ’64 have a great deal in common.
Their similarities lie {or the most part intheir approach to the Presidential
campaign, in the philosophy and practices or winning the nomination and
election.

Both McGovern this year and Goldwater in ’64 attempt to place issues
ahead or personality in their appeal for their party's endorsement and
the entire publlc's vote, Barry Goldwater lost to LBJ in large part because
the people did not choose to support a hardllne, conservative challenge to
Washington bureaucrats and Communist leaders. It has yet to be. seen
whether McGovern's populist Challenge for the nomination and the election
can succeed. Regardless whether he wins or not, however, McGovern is
basing his hopes on (I rejection 0fthe “fat cats” who govern without regard
for the over-taxed middle~class, the blacks, the poor, and the young, For
fun, guess which man said: “My candidacy is pledged to a victory {or
principle and to presenting an opportunity for the American prople to
choose. Let there be a choice right now and in clear, understandable terms.
And I ask all those who feel and believe as I do to join with me in assuring
both the choice and the victory.” (McGovern in New Hampshire? No,
Goldwater announcing his candidacy from his Arizona home.) '

Both men realize clearly that Tire-convention politics is organizational
politics. Goldwater took over the essentially leaderless Republican party
by outemanuevering his challengers at the precinct, county, and state party
levels. His first ballot victory was due to the well»orchestrated effort of
his staff which tried to motivate every possible potential supporter to join
the conservative crusade. There is good precedent, then for the super-
organized McGovern staff that everyone marvelled at in Wisconsin and
which is now appearing elsewhere, The name or the game is locate the
support, mobilize it completely, and thus garner enough convention votes
to win the nomination, (McGovern's campaign manager in Wisconsin, Gene
Pokorny, a 25—year~old tellow Nebraskan, said last week. “Allpolitics
is in names. Get their names and telephone numbers and put them on 3x5
cards. The guts oi politics is 3x5 cards.”

in some basic ways, the respective political environments surrounding
the Goldwater and McGovern campaigns are also similar. Each man’s
candidacy is B challenge to Lin incumbent who is leading all contenders
in the polls. Both men are Senators from Small, relatively politically
insignificant states. The parties from which these men are vying for nomir
nation are essentially leadei‘less political bodies whose day is past. The
1564 Republican Party Was not and the Democratic Party in 1972 will not
be capable of “delivering" it sizable “loyal” Vote. Almost all votes
Cast for Goldwater had to be earned in the sense that it was necessary to
search them out and make certain they were cast. if George McGovern
can activate enough support to wirl the nomination, a reasonably credible
possibility since Wisconsin, he will also have to “earn" all his votes in
the November election.

What makes the prospects for McGovern’s success any greater than
Goldwater’s were? First, the discontented of the nation may be more
numerous and organizdble in 1972 than in 1964, Secondly, the Democratlc
Party ill ”72, although disorganized and liable to be split after the conven—
tioli, nevertheless will hold a decisive registration edge over the Republi-
cans, a factor Goldwater had to fight and one which McGovern Could use
in his favor. The Democratic nominee’s success will hinge on the ability
to convert the advantage in numbers or registered voters into a plurality
on election day, a ditticult task. Finally, the prospects oi calm George
McGovern faining a “hothead” image as Goldwater did seems unlikely.

At this point in the campaign, it seems quite certain that the Democratic
convention will be deadlocked, regardless oi the prospect that McGovern
can ouleorgnnlze his foes and win several more decisive primaries. With
the party expected to be in such disarray, the nomination may rail to an
unscared new ngure (Teddy?) If so, we may never be able to compare
the electoral phase of me McGovern candidacy with its 1964 counterpart.
It the McGovern nomination strategy does work, however, lpredict that
the Senator from South Dakota will do a much more admirable job of
coalition building than G.W, did, I think that Wisconsin showed that Mc—
Govern knows enough about winning to realize that he will have to coalesce
presently widely divided torccs quickly, even it that means toning down
somewhat on the issues which now divide Democrats, Somewhat paradox-
icnlly he will have to attract a good deal or the “give Washington a ines-
sage", Wallace vote, and by doing so, he could deieat Nixon by a whisker,

 

