The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, August 26, 1983, Page Page 4 B, Image 16
World War I
all facts, no
ay unris nanaai
The end of World War II was nearly 40
years ago, yet thriller writers continue to
refight the war or find some new danger
from it threatening us today.
A quick glance at some of the major
authors that have written at least one book
based on World War II ? including Robert
1 II A II ' - a - * * * * "**
Luuiuiu, /\msiar iviacLcan, jack Higgins,
Fredrick Forsythc and Ken Follet ? shows
writers and readers preoccupation with the
subject.
One reason writers return to this period
may be because it was the last time the coun
try was sure of itself. The lines were more
precise between the "good guys" and the
"bad guys." Such easy distinctions have
become mnHHled
ANOTHER REASON may be because
there was so much real intrigue and deception.
A popular story is one of British intelligence
placing false papers on a dead body
and then letting the body drift ashore so the
Germans would be mislead by the
information.
For these reasons, it is not much of a
mystery why writers use the war as a springboard
for their novels. One writer who
has used World War II for all of his books is
Walter Winward, author of "Hammerstrike,"
"Seven Minutes Past Midnight"
and, most recently, "The Midas Touch."
Winward. however doesn't rnnk with anv
of the other authors listed earlier. "The
Midas Touch" lacks the spark, the imagination
and suspense any thriller needs, if it is to
thrill.
"The Midas Touch" deals with a
desperate effort by the German intelligence
to wipe out the entire U.S. Eighth Bomber
Command. The key to the plan is an aging,
but powerful, Swedish industrialist and his
niece, who tne (Jermans are holding hostage.
WHERE THE novel goes awry though is
not with the plot. The characters never capture
the attention of the reader, and without
that interest the plot plods along to its inevitable
climax.
British Invasi
rock V roll r
By Marc Fink
A u~..? ~>r\ .?
nuuui yeais ago me ueaues spearneaded
the British Invasion of rock 'n' roll to
America, the sound of "yeh, yeh, yeh" filling
stereo speakers and fab gear being the
clothing rage.
Nostalgia looms large in today's pop
culture, with movies like "American Graffiti"
and "Diner," shows such as "Grease"
and "Beatlemania," and the rock 'n' roll
revivals taking place throughout the country.
So when The Hollies, from Manchester,
and the Animals, of Newcastle, announced
tney would release new albums this summer,
it wasn't as much a surprise as the circle
turning.
THE HOLLIES, the state-of-the-art harmony
band, featured the triple tenor voices
of lead singer Allan Clarke, lead guitarist
Tony Hicks and Graham Nash. Bobby
Elliott was considered one of the best pop
drummers of the '60s. THe Hcllies continued
pumping out bits past the psychedelic era and
had intermittent success in the '70s. Their
n Q m A tt/OC #ol/nr* P w si ?-* 11 ..^1^1.. II ?11
numb <iti.-> icain.v.11 11 uui uuuuy nony.
The Animals, based around Eric Burdon's
distinctive bluesy vocals, had a period of
rhythm and blues sound 1964-66, and one of
higher consciousness as induced by
chemicals, 1966-68. The only other member
of the original band to stand out as a perfnrmor
u/oc l/n\iU/\or/4 A 1 n-: ?
luimvi IIUJ i\^/uwaiu in UM /\iau n let",
whose style was imitated when he left the
band in 1965. Bassist Chas Chandler brought
Jimi Hendrix to England for some experience,
and managed Slade, among others.
The Hollies released "What Goes
Around..." in June and have already found
a hit in their version of the Supremes '64
classic, "Stop In the Name of Love." While
The Hollies add nothing to the basic Motown
arrangement, they spare the oldie morbid
treatment given to an update of their own '64
smash, "Just One Look."
Recommended are the second single and
best track on the album, "If The Lights Go
Out," penned by Mike Batt, a ballad "Someone
Else's Eyes," and the upbeat
"Casually." which opens the album.
I 1-lirSliar I
I till IIICI I
I thrill
Winward never allows the readers to sym- 5
pathize with the book's protaganists: Jack S
Fallon and Sam McKenna, respectively >
British and American agents. V
Rather than focus the novel on Fallon and S
McKenna and their dare-devil attempt to 5
ivavut 11tujnuitu owcuca ctnu us iu list- v
qucnces, Winward parades more than 10 S
secondary characters through the novel. The 5
result is the reader's loyalty is defused. fi
While other thrillers might survive this ?
method of writing, a World War II thriller G
usually cannot. The reason is simple. A
How World War II ended is already v
known, and therefore, a novel based on Ger- ?
many's attempt to win the war has a predic- Sj
? ~ u i ~ i: n
tauic ciiumg. V
WHAT IS not predictable is what will hap- \
pen to the main characters during the course C
of the novel. If readers care about the ft
characters, then they will read the book to 3
find out what happens to them, and during u
that process, the plot becomes more enter- ?
taining because it is the plot that affects the 0
characters. fl
But, in "The Midas Touch," the inden- 5
tification never happens. Another problem d
with the novel is the amount of research Win- S
ward did. At the end of the book, he lists all
the people he talked to while researching the
novel. The result is not a more realistic novel, I i
but a novel that sometimes reads like a ! i
textbook. | '
"Defense armaments varied from war !
zone to war zone and sometimes plane to I
plane, but 'Heartless Haze!' was equipped I j
with eleven .50-caIiber Browning machine | ;
* l : ? *i a_M -i l?i
guns, iwo cam 111 me tan pusmon ana mc up- j ]
per ball turrets, one in each waist aperture, j J
the radio room upper hatch, and either side j
of the nose. The crew numbered ten..." ;
The result of the textbook writing and pro- I !
fusion of secondary characters is a thriller ;
that doesn't thrill nearly enough. This is a i j
novel that could only be enjoyed by a World ! !
War II thriller addict,and possibly not even j j
them.
on waxes I
lostalgic I
GENERALLY, THE material is weaker
than one would expect, with too much ||
keyboards, and not enough guitars and j
drums. The vocals could also stand more j .
prominent in the mix. The songs themselves j 1
are inferior to those on The Hollies' best i
release of the later '70's, "Another Night." |
On previous releases the band would seek f
out strong material from other writers when '
they couldn't turn out tunes with hit poten
uai. "wnat (Joes Around..." tails to include
even one song co-written by a Hollie.
"What Goes Around" suffers without
Hicks' usual tasty pop guitar lines, but
"Ark" is marred without the fine fingering
of Price, crucial to the Animals' best tunes.
4 4 r>V/9? /*
rnvrv urrc.Ks a iew line songs, such as
"Night," the first single and MTV video, I
"Love Is For All Time," with Burdon's j
voice most tender on this lover's song busting '
with hit potential, "Being There," marked
by the most melodic instrumental passage on
"Ark," and the toughest track, "Melt
Down," featuring Burdon's fierce singing I
and, for a change, stinging guitar.
The incredibly touched up photograph of
the Animals on the back cover of "Ark"
mirrors the doctoring of the bands' sound,
and thp alhlimc hv th#? Prir? RnrHrvn
; HIV luvi IV I/Ul UV/11 uauu UI
the '70s at least had some bite to them, as the
old material had.
Those who remember the original greatest
hits are likely to be disappointed in that
neither of these albums contains a classic to
comnare with thf* onM*>n r?IHioc i ictonarc. -
1 .. .... ?..V DV/?V.Vi? V/IV?IV<7 IvIOl VllVyl J) a
little younger, unfamiliar with the Animals' !
"House of The Rising Sun," "We Gotta Get
Out of This Place," "Inside Looking Out,"
and "Sky Pilot," and The Hollies' "I'm
Alive," "Bus Stop," "Carrie Anne," and
"Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress," may i
not be so picky and find "What Goes
Around..." and "Ark" satisfactory.
THE HOLLIES and the Animals have ag
eel and changed disappointingly, neither of |
these recent albums enhance their I
rep lit cit ions L
i i iw:': t ' I: t-M: t ! i nn ?! iI i H M I !-f?! i'i i
pooooooooooooocooooooooooooc
Cobm&fa 3
CLASSES IN MODERN
"Learn to let your body speak .
find a new language ..."
For the beginner or the sei
taught by James Clark. James
study at the North Carolina Sc
and recently taught at The
Chapel Hill, N.C.
"Modern dance is fresh, exubera
Hours: Wednesday 10-11 am
Thursday 7-8:30 pm (
Friday 5-5:30 pm (floe
Saturday 10-11 am (rr
Registration: August
Term Begins Augui
715 Harden St. in Fiv<
256-0481
aoooooooooocooooooeoooocooot
EX-RECORE
Used
Records
in Great
Condition ^ \
Cassettes
Buttons
Magazine^ &
Record ^
Rental
c.*ii ^fll/h I I
799-2878,
6?c Get instant c
off any'^P yOUr records ai
LP with quality condition.
this ad heavy metal, punk, han
D -*r~% 4-^ ^
IVCIlUllg
The only wa
- ? u
@ I divisions and
appliances also available
Advanced Furnitu
In Columbia:
CTI/W T_- i ?
.i.n/i i riMinoim Ktl.
(803) 787-8076
' i ''. I! i',> '!; ("TT^TTrrTTTT
oooooooooooooocooooocooocooooc I
. //_ /_ ?/ 1
mten; <=>c yiuui |
Training Dancers 1
DANCE * I
X M
Vx <fl I
rious dancer as A ^\W 8
formalized his ?
hool of the Arts SVj ?
Arts School in \ ^ 8
a* ' I
mt, new dancing." ' I ' ^
(modern) , 1 \ |
modern) \ ) ij
>r barre) 8
lodern) >? ' 7 jj
/~?r? o-7 X
?-<^-?-1 Fi^ 1^5 X
3t 29 M |
b Points o
>oopooooccocoooooocooccoooccocl.
> exchungei
Jj$r New
Igjfifcy. jmgr Direct
Comics!
^v/:>:;.K.yy^L the Best |
Selection
of New !
JF WBIm Heavy
jr I Metal
WBk HM Imports! !
Cut Outs
B,ue |
ash, or trade ^'"9? 8
id cassettes in ^fgp w,*n 1
Rock, new wave, thel
d core, 60's, etc.,etc.! X|
>S? MfiKE %EM EX-RECORPSj_|
I
y to buy ^ I!
For Students Only
A complete, three-room
package for less than $2.20 a clay!
Free Delivery!
A $40 value! ( May not be* used
in conjunction with any other
discounts. Validated ID required.)
re Rentals and Sales I 1
In Ca in den:
938 S. Broad St. 1 ?
(803) 432-31 ;-l