The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 65, No. 16, Ed. 1 Monday, November 21, 1977 Page: 3 of 12
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records
Boz Scaggs
Down Two Then Left
Down Two Then Left, the
new album from the master of
smooth funk, Boz Scaggs, is
oh, so smooth. This record, a
good bottle of wine, and a
special friend truly insure the
perfect evening.
The album is, for the most
part, more disco sounding
than the last Boz album, Silk
Degrees. The jumpy disco
beat is quite evident in most of
the songs, but there is also a
sophisticated orchestrated
mood in accompaniment.
Unlike Silk Degrees, Boz
very rarely rocks out with his
guitar or vocals; in fact, his
lyrics tend to be very difficult
to understand because of his
tendency to sing in a pleasant
yet hard to comprehend, high
pitched voice. The vocals
sound nice; I only wish that I
could distinguish all of his
lyrics.
Like the last one, this one is
full of potential hit singles.
"Hard 'Kmes" is the first such
song. It is a Boz classic from
its lyrics to its Indian style
tom-tom drumwork. This is
certainly one of the most
outstanding Boz Scaggs songs
ever. "A Clue" is a subdued
funk number, quite remini-
scent of Earth, Wind & Fire, et
al. This tune is one of those
high-voiced soul sounding
songs that Boz has developed
quite a taste for over the years.
"We're Waiting" is a
wonderful Boz love song. The
horn work alone is enough to
make you hug that special
person sitting next to you, and
as for the vocals and the rest of
In the colleges
Hanszen
Hanszen's run-off election for
off-campus representative will
be held Tues. Nov. 29.
Sid Rich
Last Tuesday, November 15,
those who stayed after dinner
in the Sid Richardson
commons were treated to an
interesting slide presentation
by Dr. Bill Snow, visiting
resident associate from the
University of Missouri at
Rolla. Dr. Snow's presentation
dealt with two current projects
that have the Space Science
department here busy.
Dr. Snow talked about the
research he is principally
engaged in, along with Dr.
Ron Stebbings of Rice—that of
merging molecular beams.
The purpose of these
experiments is to determine
the effects of molecular
collisions while approxi-
mating the conditions found
in outer space.
Dr. Snow also discussed the
studies conducted by Dr. John
Freeman of Rice's space
science department on the
feasibility of solar power
satellites. These proposed
satellites would convert solar
radiation into microwaves to
be beamed down to antennas
on earth. These satellites are
seriously being considered as
future energy sources.
Dr. Snow said that he is
enjoying his role as resident
associate of Sid Richardson
College and is looking forward
to his next semester at Rice.
—gregory greenwell
the music, whew! Very nice.
Side two tends to rock more
than does side one, as many of
the songs sound like a
continuation of his Silk
Degrees. "Hollywood" opens
the side with its smooth funk
rock sound. The vocals (both
main and background) are
quite nice, and the music is
equally as good. "Gimme the
Goods" is still another funk
rocker featuring tight horn
work and great vocals. If you
listen to the lyrics, you might
think that this is a continu-
ation of the saga of lido from
"Lido Shuffle" on Silk
Degrees. "1993" is a real
rocker a la "Lido Shuffle,"
with a highly infectious
melody. The song is unique in
two respects; first, it features
special vocal effects, some-
thing Boz has never done
before, and second, the piano
solo reminds me of Genesis
and their "Trick of the Tail."
The prettiest cut on the album
Oust as with Silk Degrees)
comes at the end of side two.
"Tomorrow Never Came" and
the "Reprise" constitute one of
Boz' best ballads ever, as it
features basic orchestration,
superb vocals, and conjures up
the most pleasant mental
images; it's just like the Boz of
Slow Dancer come back to us
after all these years.
All of the songs mentioned
so far are just the highlights of
the album. Not to say that the
other songs are weak; it's just
that a line can be drawn
between the extraordinary
songs and the otherwise good
ones. The latter includes "Still
Falling for You," a very disco
sounding cut, "Watcha Gonna
Tell Your Man," a funky yet
pretty ballad, and "Then She
Walked Away," a hard-to-
understand, yet pleasant
song.
Down Two Then Left is a
fantastic new album for the
neophyte Boz Scaggs fan as
for us hard-core buffs. The playing on ''Sheer Heart
music is tight, the vocals never Attack" makes it a cut to slide
better, and as far as smooth the needle over. While you're
goes, Boz wrote the book. at it, you might as well skip
Rate: 1 "All Dead, All Dead" too.
—bruce kessler "Spread Your Wings " is a
typical Queen mix of light and
Boz Scaggs will be in
Houston on December 1, at
the Summit.
Queen
News of the World
For an album that starts off
as energetically as this one, it
does not reach many heights
after the first few minutes. It
does hit several low points, but
most of the time it moves
through material that is just
average. The tone does vary,
especially on the second side,
but that does not make an
album successful in itself.
If you like basic, primal beat
rock, "We Will Rock You" will
do just that for two minutes.
Notice, however, that the
expected guitar does not
surface until the last part. Up
until then it is special effect
hand clapping and vocals. The
strangth of this cut lies in its
brevity. It does not bang you
over the head with its catchy
refrain for an obscene length
of time, but lasts just long
enough to whet your appetite
for more.
"We Are the Champions" is
the probable single off this LP,
even if it does show traces of
"Bohemian Rhapsody" in
parts. The rest of the side
ranges from weak to alright.
The mindless rhythm
not-so-light, and whether you
like it or not will depend on
your attitude towards this
group's music in general. And
although "Fight from the
Inside" has some interesting
chord changes, it could use
some more lead guitar to spice
it up.
The album takes another
dive at the top of the second
half. Not that I expected "Get
Down, Make Love" to be a
piece of moving beauty, but
such body banging nonsense
with cheap sci-fi effects in the
middle does not help their
artistic credibility. Also, the
overextended "It's Late" could
afford to be cut in half, because
it would not be bad as a three
minute cut.
"Sleeping on the Sidewalk"
sounds like a spin-off of much
blues rock from the late sixties,
and if it was meant to reflect
this sound, it succeeds. The
maracas-flavored acoustic
"Who Needs You" and simple
piano blues number "My
Melancholy Blues" are both
decent variations from
Queen's normal sound, and
perhaps the sound this group
should include more of on
future albums. If there is great
talent in this band, it does not
surface much on this release.'
Rate: 2-
—jim fowler
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the rice thresher, monday, november 21, 1977—page 3
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Parker, Philip. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 65, No. 16, Ed. 1 Monday, November 21, 1977, newspaper, November 21, 1977; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245353/m1/3/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.