Hartford Courant from Hartford, Connecticut • 139

5G THE HARTFORD COURANT: Sunday, January 21, 1979 bck OCA ALL 0.3 TIMES 1 Rod Lusts, Money Moans Gibney Elected CHICAGO (AP) Frank Gibney, vice president of new products and development of Encyclopaedia Bri-tannica has been elected vice chairman of the firm's board of editors. Gibney will continue as vice president of the NEW! IN COLOR JOHN HOLMES "SENATOR'S DAUGHTER" SURPRISE CO-HIT Rated ft iE ft i W- THE MARK TWIN MASQUERS THRILLER OF A LIFETIME! ccr I I fj 7 By FREDERICK KNOTT C0T Jan. 26, 27, 28 Feb. 1,2,3 Curtain at 8:00 p.m. Roberts no Kingswood w.h.

TICKETS Call 523-7345 or 247-9625 Rod Stewart Eddie Money middletouun, Connecticut SUNDAYS I 4 p.m. By HENRY McNULTY Rod Stewart's new album, "Blondes Have More Fun," seems to be based more on sex appeal than on solid rock 'n' roll. The cover is a giveaway. On both the "regular" and the double-sided picture-disc versions, a leering Rod hugs a couple of femmes fatales (one blonde, one brunette), clad in skin-tight leopard-patterned jumpsuits. And then there are the songs, more than ever geared towards love of the non-Platonic variety: "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy," "Attractive Female Wanted" and "Dirty Weekend" are some of the titles.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with a little lustiness; the phrase "rock and roll" itself was once a synonym for sex. The problem is that Rod Stewart has tried so hard to live up to his image as a swinger that he's neglected his image as a singer. "Blondes Have More Fun" is little more than a rehash of old material, with only one new twist and a whole lot that's been done better before. Considering Stewart's reputation as a vocalist, the vocals on the album are an enormous disappoint-, ment. His hoarse, gravelly singing has little of its former depth and soul here; the rich texture of "Jo's Lament," "Country Comfort" and other older selections is harly evident.

It's been reduced to formula singing. The big surprise on the album is Stewart's first disco single, "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy." Disco-Rod is not hard to imagine (especially after the Rolling Stones' disco hit "Miss and in fact his rough voice is a nice counterpart to the character-' istically smooth, swirling strings of the disco orchestra. But for Stewart himself the song is no step forward; he was born to rock, not to do the hustle. I "Standin' in the Shadows of Love" is a remake of the Four Tops' 1967 hit and for Stewart, an attempt to duplicate his sensational 1972 re-; make of the Temptations' "Losin' You." Unfortunately, just because a singer puts out one successful cover version of a song there's no magic rule that says he can do it again. "Standin in the Shadows of Love" is a big disappointment, a boring case of deja vu, and, anemic bsides; Stew-! art whispers the vocals at one point, which is totally inappropriate.

"The Best Days of My Life" and I "Scarred and Scared" are moody ballads rather in the mold of his re- cent "You're in my Heart" and "To- night's the Night." -The trouble is I that it takes an extraordinary song I SPECIAL FAMILY 1 I SHOW TODAY 6:30 Rli7sQl7IIir(gjjugi PULEFANO for Stewart's timeworn voice to work well in a ballad; "Is That the Thanks I Get," with dramatic drumming by Carmine Appice and solid organ work by Duane Hitchings, is more successful. As far as straightforward rocking goes, the title tune is the most worthwhile song on "Blondes Have More Fun." Stewart himself sounds like he's having fun (instead of merely being lecherous), and the rich, warm horns set off the screeching lead guitar and tinkling piano nicely. If only the rest of the album could have been as well put together, Stewart would have produced a real classic instead of just filler AND THE JJ: I SAMOANS vl wuh -r a Sinaina Stdr a "DUKE" 9 BRKC THE KIDS! tf 563-2335 rnh WE side by Money and members of his band seem to consist of minimal chord changes, one-note vocal lines and the same strained grunt that passes for lead vocals. Not one tune is memorable. Not once do the songs show a spark of wit or a glint of emotion.

"Rock and Roll the Place" has a lively guitar line by Jimmy Lyon, but otherwise it's the same basic tune as "Can't Keep a Good Man Down," "Gimme Some Water" and the title song. Things improve a little on the second side. "Maybe I'm a Fool," a song reminiscent of Hall Oates' white is a satisfactory tune; it's also an absolute clone of last year's hits. "Love the Way You Love Me" at least provides a good rhythmic background for Money's witless moaning. And "Maureen" (perhaps the album's best song) avoids the thudding repitition that pervades the rest of the album.

Some may applaud Money's singing style as "recognizable." That's true, except that once you've recognized what it is, you find that you are stuck with it for an entire album. BLONDES HAVE MORE FUN by Rod Stewart. Warner Brothers Records. LIFE FOR THE TAKING by Eddie Money. Columbia Records.

ntiri'K-iiiflBiiTrtiiu'iiLPl Eddie Money, a rocker out of San Francisco, has been getting a lot of attention lately; a readers' poll reported in Rolling Stone magazine, for instance, listed him as one of the five best new artists of 1978. Based on his new LP "Life for the Taking," however, it's difficult to see what all the excitement is about. True, his two hit singles from last year, "Baby, Hold On" and "Two Tickets to Paradise," showed some promise. But most of the material on his new album is distressingly one-dimensional. Nearly all the songs on the first TONY AWARD BEST ACTOR N.Y.

DRAMA CRITICS' CIRCLE SPECIAL CITATION An Adult Comedy-Mystery by Robert Barry JANUARY 25-28 FEBRUARY 1-4 PRODUCTION STAGED AND DIRECTED BY SAL MARCHESE TICKETS THUR. SUN. FRI. SUN. SAT.

$6.00 FOR RESERVATIONS OR INFORMATION CALL (203) 522-8309 AT 8:30 PM; FIRST SUN. AT 2:30 7:30 PM; SECOND SUN. MAT ONLY AT 2:30 PM Productions Presented in the Tower Theatre of The Hartford Insurance Group 690 Asylum Avenue (Hartford Plaza), Hartford UMUS1C A Cantelli for Collectors mm By KEN ACOBSON Thurs. Jan. 25 -4 2T COLISEUM Prices: Oreh.

sold out, 1st Bal. $8.50, 7.50; 2nd Bal. $6.50, 4. Tickets at Box Office (10-5 daily except Sunday at noon). 246-6807, TICKETRON and CHARGIT (1-800-223-0120).

Herbert von Karajan, among several other conductors, has gotten to the core of this music more successfully than has Mehta. So has Carlo Maria Giulini, despite some rather strange handling of tempos in the first movement. Both conductors have been afforded outstanding orchestral execution by the Berlin Philharmonic and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra respectively, and superb sound engineering by Deutsche Grammophon. Considering Mehta's previous excursions on record into the music of Anton Bruckner, and the contribution of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, I was even more disappointed by these artists' new performances of the Bruckner Te Deum and Mass No. 2.

The minor Mass is a uniquely austere work scored for chorus and brass instruments. The fact that Mehta's performance is accommodated on a single side of this new London disc is an indication of what to expect. The performance does not have an unusual degree of forward momentum, but this is music which needs more breathing space to achieve the sense of ethereal quality which is the essence of this score. Roger Norrington's performance on the Argo label is clearly preferable. Both the Mass and the Te Deum boast fine singing and orchestral playing, and both have been recorded in full-bodied sound.

Mehta's performance of the Te Deum, however, does not have enough sustained momentum to make it a particularly memorable one. There are many fine recordings of the Te Deum, above which towers the majestically powerful interpretation by Herbert vo Karajan, stunningly recorded by Deutsche Grammophon. Against this paradigm, I am afraid that Mehta's effort must be written off as a failure. In a word, -BobLvtUCTV TONIGHT sjys ii Guido Cantelli gMUPPETS. INC 1971-79 Featuring tne Muppet cnaracters From sesame Street The life of one of the most promising conductors to come along within the last several decades ended abruptly in a plane crash on Nov.

24, 1956. Had he lived, Guido Cantelli, a protege of Arturo Toscanini, would probably have come closer than has anyone else to matching the musical personality and charisma of the Italian maestro who died only a few weeks later. Cantelli made approximately two dozen recordings for RCA, EMI and Columbia. Perhaps the most famous is the Beethoven Seven Symphony with the New York Philharmonic. It is rare to encounter recordings by the NBC Symphony Orchestra in performances conducted by anyone other than Toscanini.

However, Con-telli made four recordings for RCA with this orchestra, the last of which was the Franck Symphony in Minor. RCA has just reissued this performance in stereophonic sound. The Franck Minor symphony is one cf the first works I fell in love with, being tantalized by its dark brooding opening movement and its triumphant resolution. Despite its lovely melodic content, its thin musical structure is such that it does not bear up well under repeated listening. Despite my reservations about the musical substance of the piece, Cantelli certainly makes as much of a case for the work as seems possible.

Never have I heard this music performed with as much shape and balance, and there is a sense of urgency to this interpretation which makes the performance quite compelling. The stereophonic sound is quite good, especially considering that the recording dates back to April, 1954. The sound is perhaps not as focused as it could be the violins seem to wander from one side to the other, but there is sufficient clarity and depth to render the overall results quite pleasing. This performance stands up quite well against even the best of the more recent ones recorded in so called state of the art sound. In any event, considering the limited documentation of Contelli's enormous talents, this disc is an invaluable collector's item.

Like the Franck Minor Symphony, Franz Schubert's Ninth Symphony, the "Great Major," is also a readily accessible work abounding PERFORMANCES: FEB. 7 FEB. 8 FEB. 9 FEB. 10 10:30 AM FEB.

10 FEB. 10 FEB. 11 FEB. 11 Opening night, Feb.7, is PEG'S family night. All tickets are $2.00 $3.00 with coupon from Pegnataro s.

REGULAR PRICES: $4.50 $5.50 $6.50 0 FOR CROUP DISCOUNTS PHONE: 772-4200 TICKET INFORMATION PHONE: 772-4530 Youths 18 younger HALF PRICE All Shows EXCEPT if Senior Citizens half price Feb. 8 Feb. 11 CARROLL'S OUR ARM in rich melodies. Unlike the Franck, however, this is music of which one is unlikely to become tired. There are enough recordings of the Schubert Ninth that new recordings seem justified only if they offer fresh insights into this music or are otherwise exemplary in terms of interpretation or execution.

Zubin Mehta's new account of this score for London falls short of the mark in both departments. This is a well judged, sanely, paced performance which offers little in the sense of the emotional excitement of a live concert hall performance, or of the intellectual satisfaction of providing any new perspectives of this masterpiece. The Israel Philharmonic is a fine orchestra, but not among the world's best. There are more than a few instances of ensemble weaknesses and intonation problems. The tentative playing on the part of the violins of the dotted triplets in the final movement is a case in point.

The performance also suffers from a lack of substained momentum. While the sound engineering is quite good, the surface of my review copy were somewhat noisy. TOOSHORTTOBOX PERFORMANCE DATE. PERFORMANCE TIME-NO. of adult tickets.

No. of youth tickets. (18 years younger) ORDER NOW! Make check or money order payable haven COUSIUM MAIL TO: ICC FOLLIES P.O. BOX 1857 New Haven, Co. 06508 For ticket Information PHONE: 772-4350 jMonorapuT- Please enclose 50t Der order to Insure handling .50 Bushnell Memorial TONIGHT 7 P.M.

Tickets $13-5. No. of senior citizen ticK-tts $. Handling $. Total arrrt.

of check or money order enclosed NAME ADDRESS CITY FRANCK: Symphony in minor. NBC Symphony Orchestra; Guido Cantelli cond. RCA ARL 1-3005. SCHUBERT: Symphony No. 9 in C.

Israel Philharmonic Orchestra; Zubin Mehta, cond. London CS 6943. BRUCKNER: Te Deum; Mass No. 2 in minor. Judith Blegen, soprano; Margarita Lilowa, contralto; Claes Haakan, tenor; Peter Meven, bass; Chorus of the Vienna State Opera; Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra; Zubin Mehta, Cond.

London OS 26506. Box office opens at 12 noon. Tickets also available at Ticket-ron Outlets and thru Chargit i' your ice follies tickets. 11-800-223-0120). Include Stamped Self-Addressed Envelope.