Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • 75

Austin American-Statesman E9 Friday, November 18, 1988 Robert Plant concert a perfect triumph "THIS IS WHOOPI GOLDBERG'S BEST WORK SINCE 'THE COLOR PURPLE HER TALENT AND ACTING SKILLS POUR FORTH." -Richmond Shtpard. WNEW AM RADIO (N Review "Whoopi Goldberg gives a performance of such wisdom and tenderness that she reaches new heights as a dramatic actress of substance and Heart' has certainly captured mine." Rex Reed. ATTHE MOVIES pacing. Joan Jett the Blackhearts opened, with the standard set of Jett staples, including Light of Day, Crimson and Clover and the inevitable Love Rock 'n' Roll. While she is as earnest in her tough-girl pose as ever, Jett doesn't seem to have developed her style or song-writing much.

Hopefully, a tour with Plant might teach her that an artist can update his sound and remain faithful to his formative years. Whoopi Goldberg Clara's Heart ber, and Plant delivered the song with grace and care. Most impressive was the way he recast everything into his own image. The band updated the Zeppelin material without obliterating it, and even a classic blues like John Lee Hooker's Dimples sounded like Plant's territory, especially after Boyle fired off Kashmir's classic guitar riff halfway through it. The band closed with a rush, playing Heaven Knows (written by Johnstone, who co-produced Now and Zen), a spirited, full-length Kashmir, and then the new album's de facto anthem, the computerized hillbilly strut of Tall Cool One.

During the set, Plant had established his Now and Zen material, so the encores were devoted primarily to Led Zep material. After encoring first with the early solo hit Big Log, Plant finished the night with Misty Mountain Hop and then, on the final encore, Communication Breakdown. The show was an arena triumph: A superb performer, tight band, great sound system and wonderful By Michael MacCambridge American-Statesman Staff The 1988 Erwin Center concert season drew to a close Wednesday night, and did so in spectacular fashion with Robert Plant ripping through one of the best arena shows of the year. Plant was accompanied by a crack five-piece back-up band, I which he drove through a superb 100-minute set, focusing on much of the material off his successful 1988 solo effort Now and Zen, but also featuring a full complement of classic tunes from the Led Zeppelin 1 days. And the fans at the Erwin Center, usually noteworthy primarily for sitting on their hands, responded in kind, standing through much of the show and cheering Plant's every move.

There were plenty; the singer, dressed in a blue shirt and black vest and jeans, high-stepped it around the stage in vintage Zep fashion, shoulders jutting back, frequent Daltreyesque microphone twirls punctuating his steps. But none of this would have mattered nearly as much if it weren't for the superb sound that Plant's crew churned out. I've never heard anything so loud come through so crystal clear in the Erwin Center. The sound was nearly perfect, with Plant's vocals rising above a clean musical mix powered by the guitar fireworks of Doug Boyle and Phil Johnstone's swirling keyboards. Highlights were early and often, first with the new album's Dance On My Own, which was assisted by computer-enhanced video images projected onto a nifty screen of concentric circles that made for the concert's major visual prop.

When Plant weighed in with the first certified Zeppelin classic of the night, Goin' to California, the crowd's decibel level seemed to double. The audience cheered the end of every line all through the acoustic-guitar-accompanied num JOHN WATERS in person WARNER BROS. pres An MTM ENTERTAINMENT Production WHOOPI GOLDBERG "CLARA'S HEART" MICHAEL ONTKEAN KATHLEEN QUINLAN SPALDING GRAY BEVERLY TODD and introducing NEIL PATRICK HARRIS Music by DAVE GRUSIN Executive Producer MARIANNE MOLONEY Screenplay by MARK MEDOFF Based upon the novel by JOSEPH OLSH AN Thursday Dec. 1st Co-Sponsored Produced by MARTIN ELFAND Directed by ROBERT MULLIGAN. AUSTIN CHRONICLE WARNER BROS.

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