The Courier-Journal from Louisville, Kentucky • Page 141

13 THE COURTFR SUNDAY. DECEMBER 7. 1980 MARC ZAKEM ON MUSIC 9m SERVICE Lennon's 'Starting Over' ranks as a minor pop classic STANDARD COMPLETE SET Oral Exam ft Ray Included 1 50 CHARACTERIZED COMPLETE SET Oral Exam -Ray Included 20000 ECONOMY PARTIAL Oral Exam ft X-Ray Included $7500uP CAST METAL PARTIAL Oral Exam ft Ray Included 1 50 up EXTRACTIONS $1000 RELINES '20 up REPAIRS 1 0 uP INDIVIDUALLY FITTED BY LICENSED DENTISTS-APPOINTMENTS PREFERRED GERALD M. RICE, D.D.S., P.S.C. remains the sort of tease similar to the couple's open letter in The New York Times of a few years ago, in which they let everyone know that they were alive and well.

Attempting to balance his hit single in one hand with the rest of his new output in the other, Lennon leaves us with the thought, "Sure, I can still create hit songs, but that's not what I'm into now, man." the others, not only because expectations for him were higher, but also because, as the most likely candidate for Musical Genius of the group, his failures were indeed as grand as his successes. But "Double Fantasy" is not a grand failure, just a regrettable one. To say that it is alternately cloying and obvious, false and ultimately cynical in fact gives the album too much importance although in truth Lennon is dba SOUTHEASTERN DENTAL CENTER (502) 459-8520 4312 Bishop Louisville, Ky. Monday thru Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

all of these things (Yoko is a different story). Still, the album Is largely unap proachable because, while a fan could build a case for any one of those voices, together they are totally unre- concilable. Take, for Instance, the bluesy "I'm Losing You." Lennon is in fine voice, great voice in fact, as he sings that "Somehow the wires have crossed Communication's lost I'm losing you." Yet, given the confessional con text of the rest of the album, from songs about son Sean and Yoko, to a defensive indictment of the music in 1 Sansui R-50 45 Watt I AMFM Stereo Receiver with vsv-s-v LED Peak Power Level and I SignalTune Display. I nSXsSSSNXVS i "I 45 watts per channel, min. RMS at 8 i 00'" 1 W't'1 more t'ian 1 Ti jg LJ Jj dustry the "I'm Losing You" is strikingly out of place.

If this were simply an album of plain old songs a Billy Joel or Paul McCartney album, for instance the number could not only be well re ceived, but it would even evoke some of the intended emotion. Given the autobiographical nature of "Double Fantasy," though, and especially since the life portrayed is one of utter con tentment, the very presence of "I'm Losing You" is absurd. On some shlockmeister's album, we might be fooled into thinking that there is a reason for such a song to exist. Here, we know there is none. The aforementioned "Watching the Wheels" presents another problem Not only does it contain only a frac By MARC ZAKEM Courlar-Journal CeMrlbutlnf) Critic Extra, extra, read all about it: Before you delve into this "week's column, let me entreat you to rush right out and buy a copy of this week's "Village 'Voice." If you've ever wondered 'what a big-time New York music critic likes in the way of music, the answer is in a Page 1 'feature of the prestigious weekly magazine.

The answer is Lou-' isville new-wave rock, with pictures and special emphasis on BabyloH Dance Band, Malig-nantDrowth, Dick Brains and Endtabtes. Then, if you're still wondering what a two-bit Louisville critic has been listening to this week, read on: From its Guess Who-like introduction to the final shoo-wop-de-bop, John Lennon's "(Just Like) Starting Over" is a minor pop classic. A child of the studio, the song doesn't leave the listener with the good feeling because of any emotional commitment on Lennon's part; rather, the song reaches us the way it does because it, is simply so right. It is constructed- flawlessly, and if Lennon is no longer Jn a position to rock, roll or even fac6 the music, it's more than a bit comforting to know that he can still compose this effortlessly and seamlessly. As good as it is, though, "(Just Like) Starting Over" gets some respectable competition from its flip side.

Turn over and you're greeted by "Kiss Kiss Kiss," a Yoko Ono experiment as in execution as Lennon's composition is lush. Except for a few ill-chosen moments when Yoko strives, for an operatic sound, "Kiss Kiss Kiss" can be just as engaging as it might vat first seem off-putting, with background chatter complementing a melody line that is even more memorable ah hummable than John's. The hew John Lennon-Yoko Ono album, "Double Fantasy," begins with just this one-two punch the single opens the album, followed by the B-side. Not surprisingly, as stylized and formulaic as "Starting Over" is, and as controlled and mannered as Yoko seems on "Kiss Kiss Kiss," much of the remaining album is no less planned or programmed. Sound effects float in and out of the songs, some with seemingly little purpose the bells that greet both "Starting Over" and "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)," for example and others to great effect the crowd rumblings and cocktail piano that turn "I'm Xur Angel" into a nightclub routine.

Elsewhere, a Lennon song about losing a lover moves right into a Yoko Ono reply. And most premeditated of all is Jtie alternating throughout the alburnJetween songs written and per-formetNiy Lennon, then by Yoko Ono, then If this last piece of programming sounds as though it would halt any logical fldw on the album, you're right. But then, once you get past the first two cuts, there's more to worry about than the sequencing. For an album that-begins so full of hope, and has been planned so carefully, "Double Fantasy" rapidly deteriorates. In many ways, the album picks up wheretennon's career five years ago left off.

It is a reminder that, despite the fact that when Lennon was good, he was very, very good (as "Plastic Ono Band" and a handful of singles testify), on the whole his solo output has been as disappointing as that of the, other ex-Beatles. At times he was perhaps even more disappointing than tion of the insight displayed in Pete Townshend's "Empty Glass" album of this year I say I'm OK they look at me kind of strange Surely you're not happy now you no longer play the game strikes closer to Pink Floyd's "Welcome to the but the overall assertion that none of it matters makes the very existence of a song like "(Just Like) Starting Over suspect (and vice versa). No matter what rules he plays by, either Lennon is part of the game or he just doesn't care whether we buy or even like his songs. And if the latter is the case, why care enough to write a song about not caring? After five years of silence, Lennon's "where my head is at" manner practi I ymanff" lit, 1 SB-L70 3-Way; Speaker Sys- I tem with 9" Woofer, 4" Midrange, 2Vz" Tweeter in Sim. Walnut Grain Cabinet.

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Of course, not as much is expected of her by most listeners, and it might be for this reason alone that she does not disappoint. Still, the things that are most musically interesting I find to be happening in her songs. Perhaps she has toned down her style. Or maybe punk and art rock have vindicated her abrasive vocal style and energy. Or it could just be that she was never as bad as everyone swore that she was in the early 70s.

Whatever the reason, Yoko's approach on "Double Fantasy" Is fresh enough, while remaining in a traditional framework (verse, chorus, bridge), to be highly listenable. The disjointed nature of "Double Fantasy" is ultimately most unfortunate not because Yoko Ono's presence breaks up John Lennon's vision, but because Lennon intrudes on hers. Ono experiments with acoustic guitar and flute on "Beautiful Boys," a cold, electric sound on "Give Me Something," punctuated by her own "ah-AH, ah-AHs," and closes the album with "Hard Times Are Over," a cross between black gospel and the sign-off tune from "Saturday Night Live." On "I'm Your Angel," she displays a sense of humor by becoming a cocktail-lounge singer, a move that upgrades the song's purposely silly lyrics by downgrading the song's entire performance (when she sings "I'm so pretty," one hears a wolf whistle in the background). Assuming that the Lennons will go on to make their own separate albums in the future, I'll probably buy those of both, but for different reasons: John Lennon for the performer he once was, and Yoko Ono for the artist she promises to be. "Double Fantasy," necessarily dominated as it is by John Lennon, YOUR CHOICE TDK TDK SA-C90 Super Avilyn 90-Min.

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