Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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-entertainment? Competitive concert Cougar overwh L-_ "_^-' ~^~'" ' '"' '-l~2 ~r>f s iL~. r.;J.''i";i7;" ^^U^liV ^SSf'--: -* rh"'"hv rhin 1 ""*" John Cougar strains to hear crowd approval at Saturday night's rock concert at Carolina Coliseum. Cougar surprised the audience with his hard-driving rock. Economy contributes to lack of concerts By Chris Handal Saturday night's Heart/John Cougar concert was the first concert in Carolina Coliseum this semester, a variance from recent years' average offering of two concerts per month, said Bob Horning, Coliseum director. The first scheduled concert of the semester, Grandmaster Flash, was cancelled because of lack of interest, he said. "How do you figure it? Grandmaster Flash has a popular record, yet they couldn't sell tickets," Horning said. "But this only happens once in a great while. This is a very tricky business." Horning said the economy has kept many groups from touring, and those that do tour are more selective in choosing where they perform. "THE GROUPS have different things they want to accomplish when they set up a tour. Record companies are not in a position to underwrite the tours to promote albums, as they have been in the past," Horning said. Tom Anderson, program director for Columbia's WNOK radio station, which cosponsors many of the Coliseum's con certs, agreed with Horning. "I would think that it's basically the economy that has kept the concerts down. Whenever you're selling anything, cars, tires or rock groups, the state of the economy will affect it," Anderson said. Scheduling is often a problem, Horning said. "Dates are available at only certain times in some locations. This changes the ability to set up a route. You can't route everything the way you'd like to." IN SETTING up a tour, the band may decide to stop in a city it missed before, Horning said. Most groups like to tour the South in fall and winter, Horning said. "Ordinarily, acts don't like to play in the South in the summertime because many of the arenas are not air-conditioned. But they like to tour in the South in the fall and winter because there is less ice and snow," he said. Horning said groups are having to come up with alternate methods to finance tours. Budweiser and Sony have begun underwriting some rock tours. Although no concert at the Coliseum has been underwritten by either organization, Horning said, he has been in contact with them. Three concerts are scheduled at the Coliseum: Linda Ronstadt and the Bus Boys, Nov. 13; Prince, Nov. 28; and Willie Nelson, Dec. 4. 'If Ham* Frnm Un ^uibiu I V 111 HBVI By Doug Bell Gilda Radn< ' It Carne From Hollywood" belongs to and Cheech ai that category of movies occupied almost an introductoi solely by parts one and two of "That's his "tribute" Entertainment." a particular s which I had n It is a documentary in which famous gorilla men; ( film stars act as tour guides, leading the cheap science viewer past a pageant of old film clips. But drug maniacs where "That's Entertainment" skims over musicals, the cream of the MGM crop, "It Came From Hollywood" attempts to tackle a The hosts' ( vast and inexhaustible territory: bad variably, diss movies ? all types and genres, grades B of their famil to Z. Radner and A elms crowd; By Li? Blackford Heart and John Cougar entertained a near capacity crowd in Carolina Coliseum Saturday with a performance that left Columbians begging for more. Two such well-known recording artists rarely appear together in one performance; but Saturday night's concert was an exceptional performance. About 8:15 p.m. the lights dimmed so John Cougar could burst onto the stage and overwhelm an unsuspecting audience. Attired in a white T-shirt and matching black vest and pants, Cougar barraged the audience with tunes. After an inspiring "Ain't Even Done With thp Nichf " rmitrnr coaxed the audience onto its feet for a clapping panorama during "Hurt So Good." Unlike his seemingly softer style of rock 'n' roll, Cougar seemed to want to impress upon the crowd a harder, faster tempo of music. After a short conversation with his responsive listeners, the dark-haired singer performed an energy-charged version of "This Time I Really Think I'm In Love." LIGHTERS FLICKERED and matches burned upon Cougar's exit, coaxing the young performer back on stage for his first encore. Multicolored balloons drifted to the ceiling as Cougar belted out the Roll f; >i!? $''' 'Wr Br .BMKMi Sr lywood che< r, Dan Ackroyd, John Candy id Chong are the hosts. After y skit, the star launches into more snide than sincere) of < ib-genre of bad film, some of *y ?n sver before considered: the ?* iants and little people; . J??n fiction; Japanese horror; sion in hi: juvenile delinquency; and ward W? ^ evitable, in any co omic bits are, almost in- everythir ppointingly stale rehashing dy. His " ar TV and screen work. "Glen or ckroyd fare particularly bad- amples o Heart near ing Stones' hit "You Can't Always Get What You Want." After an inspiring guitar solo Cougar left the stage, but not before asking the crowd for a firm commitment to stop him on the street and let him know his performance was appreciated. A short intermission ensued, but the crowd barely had a chance to visit the heavily populated restrooms and beer counter before the lights dimmed. The crowd roared at the sound of Ann Wilson's vocal cords and the sight of her sister Nancy sporting a glittering guitar. But although Heart threw hit after hit at the enthusiastic audience, something was missing. THP ITI.AfilllMn Hahfc umro tVlnro a aau m V TT VJL V VlIVl Vy and so was the clear, crisp sound for which Heart is famous, but the problem may have been that the women felt they needed to outdo John Cougar and his explosive warm-up band. Heartlessly, the sisters played cuts from several of their albums to enthusiastic Columbians, but they allowed few pauses for breath. Then an awe-inspiring "Love Alive" changed the evening's mood. With the clear notes of Ann Wilson's melodic flute ringing through the Coliseum, "Dog and Butterfly" was 1 i.- At-- ? ? ' uien uuweu 10 uie crowa. Battled in .J. I ^ "jg "o^x. i 9 TB~ - I M Photo ip, exploitiv film review " cl big screen, where the immediacy evision is lost. andy, however, rises to the occas tribute to the late director Ed- B od. It is fitting, perhaps inthat Wood should be singled out mpendium of bad movies, for ir lg he touched is cheap and shod- e, Plan 9 From Outer Space" and H Glenda" survive as notorious ex- fr f extreme ineptitude. tli "V mmmmmmammmmmmammmmmmmmmmm tless make-believe moonlight, Nancy Wilson strummed her guitar in a solo that would have done Jimi Hendrix proud. But the Wilson siDDUngs didn't quit there. They surprised Columbians with an electrified Led Zeppelin tune, "Lonely Time." TWO ENCORES were demanded of the performers before they relinquished their hold on the audience. But although the band did most of its hits during the evening, the overall crowd sentiment was one of being shortchanged. Maybe what the women heeded was a little more communication with the audience. Maybe they needed to slow down and give the audience a chance to respond to their music. Or maybe they simply needed a warm-up band that wasn't quite as explosive as John Cougar. Instead of complimenting each other to make the show a complete success, Heart and John Cougar seemed to present a competitive concert. Comparing the two groups, one finds that John Cougar left the audience begging for more. Heart closed its performance leaving the crowd barely fulfilled and hoping for brighter lights in the future. HBMHMBR HHMB Nancy Wilson plays her I acoustic guitar during one of I the few slow songs at SaturH day night's concert. Heart ? *h0 audience feeling I shortchanged after John Cougar's by Chip Lowed e film Although stretches of "It Came From ollywood" are undeniably amusing, I lust admit much of it seems cheap and leating. The clips are fascinating; they are the limy underside of our cinema heritage, ut I question the motives and manner of leir presentation in this production. If "That's Entertainment" is like walkig through a stately museum that reeks of nbalming fluid, then "It Came From oily wood" resembles the grimy, piteous eak shows that unfairly exploit the unforinate mishaps of nature.