Santa Cruz Sentinel from Santa Cruz, California • Page 46

Cool cat tune, keeping the momentum, going, in the tradition of the best entertainers of his generation. This is a glimpse into a dying breed of singer and is one of the most interesting live recordings to come out in a long time. The laid back days of martinis and old-fashioned romance live on through his voice: the acoustic equivalant to Valium. Tony Bennett has always been great 'Unplugged' UNPLUGGED Tony Bennett Sonv music accordion have literally danced themselves to death. Practitioners of this instrument have been compared with the Sirens who, through the bliss they create, literally lead people to their doom.

What a way to go! And what a disc, this debut recording from Those Darn Accordions. The titles of some of the tunes contained here show the humorous playfulness they bring to their music in pieces such as "The Bowling King," "The Story of Lawrence Welk" and "Boy Crazy." The most outrageous tune they do is Jimi Hendrix's "Fire." Their eldest member, who is in his '70s, speaks the lyrics in a deadpan manner that brings it closer to rap in feel. If you ever have wondered what course Jimi would have taken if he had played accordion, here is your chance to find out. There are eight accordions in the group, along with bass and drums. Five of the members are lead vocalists, which gives a lot of variety to their sound.

No two tracks on this disc have the same mood or character. They move from Tex-Mex and polka to a cover of Elvis Costello's "Pump It Up" with ease. Contrary to what you may be thinking this is not a novelty band like The Dog Whistle Orchestra but a group of inspired performers. Watch out! Those Darn Accordions are out to grab you by the ears. And they will! SQUEEZE THIS Those Darn Accordions Flying Fish Reviewed by Christopher Gaynor Sentinel correspondent There's a reason you haven't seen any accordion bumper stickers or heard any accordion jokes lately: there is an international conspiracy afoot among accordionists.

Their goal is to take over the world and the extent to which they are determined to do so makes the other conspiracies of history pale by comparison. Their means: music. Beware! They have even infiltrated the new Rolling Stones recording via one of their main ringleaders: Fla-co Jimenez. They are a mutated form of the characters found in "The Invasion of the Body Snatch-ers," getting to you through your ears and feet. There have been some that after having their ears filled with the sweet strains of the Reviewed by Christopher Gaynor Sentinel correspondent In French slang the word for something that is hip or cool is branche.

It translates as plugged-in. The opposite is debranche or unplugged. In the MTV world unplugged, in case the news hasn't reached you yet, is in and plugged-in is out. When I mentioned to a friend that I would be writing a review of this disc he said: "Was Tony Bennett ever plugged-in?" In other words, no flirtations with mega-sound coming out of big stacks of amps color this guy's past. He doesn't really have any musical skin to shed, as have former un-pluggies, like Eric Clapton and Neil Young.

The piano, upright bass and drums of the Ralph Sharon trio provide the musical waves upon which Bennett soars. From the first notes he sings, he has his audience with him. This disc is as close as you'll ever come to being present at the rediscovery of the wheel. The raspy sound of his voice here spans generations in the songs he sings and the audiences he has sung for. He covers standards such as "Autumn Leaves," "Fly Me to the Moon" and "It Had to be You." Also included are the three tunes for which he's best known: "I Left My Heart in San Francisco," "I Wanna Be Around" and "The Good Life." These are all songs with distinctive lyrics that evoke another era that was soft-focus in comparison with the hard-focus '90s.

This is perhaps why younger audiences are so enthusi- Crooner Tony Bennett astic about Bennett. The Cold War era had music with rounded edges in singers like Bennett and Sinatra. They have both found audiences across several generations which is rare in our fad-ridden society. Bennett further bridges generations in two duets he sings, one with k.d.lang and the other with Elvis Costello. These are not the highpoints of this collection, however.

He moves back and forth between uptempo numbers, like "Steppin' Out With My Baby" and ballads such as "Autumn Leaves," with ease. He moves from tune to CABRILLOAAUSIC Food Wine Festival Saturday, July 30 8 pm Concert J. S. Bach: Cantata 12, Orchestral Suite, Concerto for Oboe and Violin Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony 110a at Sunset Center Sunday, July 31 2 pm Bach: Minor Mass at Sunset Center Monday, August 1 8 pm An Evening with Janina Fialkowska, piano Bach, Mozart, Liszt, Chopin at Sunset Center Tuesday, August 2 8 pm Concert Haydn: Heiligmesse, Symphony No. 93 Mozart: Piano Concerto No.

17 at Sunset Center Wednesday, August 3 9 pm Founders' Memorial Concert "Splendors of Dresden" at the Carmel Mission Basilica Thursday, August 4 8 pm "Travels with Charley," a words-and-music experience of the 18th century narrated by concertmaster Elizabeth Wallfisch at Sunset Center Friday, August 5 8 pm Handel's opera, Xerxes in concert version, with English supertitles at Sunset Center Art! Food! Music? Wine! SANTA CRUZ CIVIC AUDITORI UM (ON CHURCH STREET, IN FRONT OF THE AUDITORIUM) 11AM TO 8PM SUNDAY, AUCUST 7 CELEBRATION OF WORLD MUSIC Dandaro Sirocco Friends Gospel Youth Choir Free Family Concert Mam Aisop conducting trie Catxillo Festival Orchestra on trie main stage inside the auditorium Medna Usta Alegia Worlds Collide SATURDAY, AUGUST 6 WORLD LATIN MUSIC CELEBRATION Arte latino Readers Theater Eleazar Cortes Company Rhythmagics Las Ramas Cltano Salsa Chicano Theater Works Esperanza del Velle Santa Cruz Chamber Players ENJOY LOCAL FINE ART, A DELICIOUS VARIETY OF FOODS WINE AND LISTEN TO A CELEBRATION OF MUSIC The outdoor stage is presented in collaboration with Santa Cruz Ethnic Arts Network mm WML CABRILLO MUSIC FESTIVAL OySESESIIRi FREE ADMISSION! For more information or for booth rental space, call (408) 429-3779 10 Spotlight Sentinel Friday, July 29, 1994.