Calgary Herald from Calgary, Alberta, Canada • 14

BEST Wi 2 CALGARY HERALD Fit, August 25,1989 SCENE arte OflOrV yides trip down me Ringo Charming ex-Beatle gets by with some help from friends By Alison Mayes (Herald writer) I was too young to see Woodstock or the Beatles. I only saw The Last Waltz on a movie screen. But Thursday night I caught a little glimpse of history, with Ringo Starr and a little help from his friends. Ringo and his eight allstar band members took us on a lighthearted trip through our shared musical past, and there were no ponderous moments or overblown egos to mar the journey. There may not have been transcendent musical highs, but there was a warm feeling that could be felt in the upper behind one of three drum sets (the other two played by Levon Helm and Jim Keltner) and gave the floor to the supporting players.

They put lots of energy into backing each others' hits, each introducing the man to follow. The sound was of typical muddy arena quality, but since most in the audience knew the words to all the songs, it didn't much matter. We had Dr. John in a David Lazarowvch photos, Calgary Herald 7i ft': 1 I'- 1 If Standi fiL 1 nrnl THE FRIENDS: Ringo's band included Rick Danko, left, Joe Walsh and Clarence Clemons on his stellar bandmates 4. reaches of the Saddledome.

The show kicked off with the former Beatle bounding on stage jn a purple jacket to the strains of It Don't Come Easy, his samurai ponytail bobbing to the beat. Then came the No No Song and Yellow Submarine, with a playful Ringo dancing in his slightly klutzy style. Nobody has ever called him a great singer, but one can't help being charmed by his clownish persona. He soon retreated 1 rj! history Thursday night at the Call him (Associated Press) BLOOMINGTON, Ind. Singer John Cougar Mellencamp's latest release is Big Daddy, but he can go by the name Granddaddy.

The 37-year-old singer became a grandfather Aug. 14 when his daughter, Michelle, gave birth to her first child, Elexis Suzanne Peach. Michelle, 18, is the daughter of Mellencamp and his first wife. The singer also has two daughters, aged seven and three, with his second wife. Mellencamp has spent much of the summer at his 23-hectare spread near here pursuing his hobby of oil painting.

magnificent purple-and-yellow Mardi Gras headdress, leading a spirited Iko Iko. The New Orleans pianist also did Right Place, Wrong Time, and took a verse when Levon Helm sang The Band's The Weight. Billy Preston fired up Will It Go Round In Circles and Nothin' From Nothin'. Big Man Clarence Clemons served up the minor hit You're A Friend Of Mine, then partied through the show with dynamite sax playing and a shakin' tambourine. There was bass player Rick Danko, in fine voice for Shape I'm In, and former Eagle Joe Walsh with a searing Life In The Fast Lane, as well as a rendition of Rocky Mountain Way that drew a thunderous response from the crowd.

Walsh showed his versatility by sitting alone at the piano for a sensitive (but abbreviated) Desperado, a song that seems to take on greater resonance with age. Aging, in fact, seems to sit well with most of the band, who between them have a staggering number of years in the business. Fittingly, they closed with With A Little Help From My Friends. It wasn't the Beatles or The Band, but it was one for the memory banks. RINGO STARR AND HIS ALL-STARR BAND, Thursday at the Saddledome.

Attendance: about 8,000 1 Nureyev a kinder monarch (Canadian Press) TORONTO He's not bald. He's not a singer. But Rudolf Nureyev's not bad in The King and although the ballet star doesn't rule Siam with the absolute authority of a shaven-headed Yul Brynner. The Rodgers and Hammerstein musical opened Wednesday night here, its first stop in a 20-week North American tour. Nureyev, in his first stage role, portrays a kindler, gentler king than the scowling Siamese leader Brynner created.

It's a tough act to follow. Brynner was synonymous with the king. And Nureyev's hoarsened voice he also assumes a strange accent and fierce mannerisms are reminiscent of Brynner. While he doesn't come close to acting the "barbarian" that Anna criticizes him of being, Nureyev does handle the tenderness and humor of the character with finesse, gathering laughs for his naive pronouncements on English customs. But the most enjoyable and memorable number, Shall We Dance, in which Anna teaches the king how to polka, is more than a little ironic in this production.

Nureyev for years the most famous ballet dancer in the world does his best to look as if he has two left feet, but his prowess shines through. fans of Ringo Staand his All-Starr Band were given a glimpse ol Saddledome. The night came without overblown egos 4 Album ban extended (Associated Press) A TLANTA (AP) A judge extended a ban Thursday on distributing an album ex-Beatle Ringo Starr recorded in 1987 but now wants kept off the shelves. Starr says his drinking problem marred the album. Record producer Chips Moman and CRS Records, based in College Park, say the record could make $3.5 million if released while Starr is on his current U.S.

concert tour. Superior Court Judge Clarence Cooper, who earlier banned distributing the album for 30 days, extended the restraining order until Starr's lawsuit to kill the album is tried, possibly in October. Starr recently underwent treatment for alcoholism and said in a deposition filed this week that during the recording sessions in Moman's studio in Memphis, he and the other musicians often drank. "We would send out for wine, or there would be tequila there or cognac or whatever, you know, anybody felt like drinking, vodka. There was always plenty of alcohol on the premises," Starr said.

MERRY MAESTRO: Ringo urges 1 -WARMFe'eunG: About s'oOO PEOPLE Singer lyeing inovies (Associated Press) 68AY, Term. rB ee Greenwood fans soon Em may see the country music Sar in the movies, but he says Jtiat won't keep him from performing at fairs and baseball ames. JIThe five-time male vocalist of ie year in country music says is working on music for Chuck Norris's forthcoming film, Stranglehold: Delta Force II. "And I'm planning to do some acting in two other films," Greenwood said this week in an interview at the Appalachian Fair. Greenwood said Norris and Dallas star Patrick Duffy are helping him break into motion pictures.

Even if his acting career takes off. Greenwood says his fans will still see him performing country favorites at ball games and community fairs. Veteran rocker to it road If I grandpa COUGAR MELLENCAMP Sarandon, Jodie Foster, Whitney Houston, Julia Roberts, Geena Davis, Kelly LeBrock, Melanie Griffith, Jody Watley, Faye Dunaway and Anjelica Huston and not a stockbroker or a lawyer in the bunch. oh a i i sTv I fJ Mirror, mirror GREENWOOD: Expanding "I really like promoting my own show," Greenwood said. "I love to sing the national anthem at ball games.

1 get to perform and watch a ball game. It's fun." Greenwood is known for such hits as God Bless the USA. (Knight-Ridder) Who are the world's most beautiful women between the ages of 21 and 48? Time's up. According to September's Harper's Bazaar, the fairest of the fair are Susan (Canadian Press) NEW YORK Getting older is "not that groovy" singer-songwriter Paul McCartney said Thursday as he announced his first concert tour in 13 years. "But the idea that music equals youth engagements, are not yet confirmed.

McCartney, 47, also announced he's on the verge of a settlement ending a 20-year dispute with the other surviving Beatles and John Lennon's estate over royalties. "We're ready to sign," he said, without offering details. MrfWnPv said he'll plav certain Beatles McCartney said he'll make no concessions to age after having toyed with the idea a few years ago of singing Long Tall Sally in a lower key. "I only know one way to do it," he said of performing. I never used to jump as high as Townshend anyway." The Who, with guitarist Peter Townshend; the Rolling Stones and former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr are among the once-dormant rock acts revived on the road this summer.

don't think that applies anymore." The former Beatle plans to perform Dec. 7 in Toronto and Dec. 9 in Montreal as part of an 11-city North American leg of what's being billed as a world tour. Venues for the two Canadian dates, and six U.S. songs live on the tour for the first time since the group broke up, including Hey Jude, as part of a repertoire that will range from 1950s rock 'n' roll to songs from his new album, Flowers in the Dirt..