page four
Bloomfield revives blues
By Gwen Bikis
Columnist
I had lost track of Michael
Bloomfield after he recorded
"Triumvarant" with John Ham
mond and Dr. John back in the
early '7o's. One of the most
prominent figures in the late
60's folk scene's revival of the
old blues, Bloomfield is one of
those white artists who, as a
voiungster, became transfixed
ZA I fYI "1 TYI Between the Hard Place
JL IJLky Lil x 1 And the Ground
Michael Bloomfield 1 ■
by old blues recordings.
He eventually made his pil
grimage (like Junior Wells,
Muddy Waters, and counless
others) to Chicago: to the bars,
lounges, the juke joints where
the blues were played. Like
John, Michael not only picked
up musical tips from black
bluesmen, but, more important
ly, got to know them, and to
know the lives they led.
Bloomfield is truer to the
roots of the music he plays than
the average Johnny Winter or
Duane Allman because he
knows what the music's roots
are. They are much more than
dusty scratchy reocrds, or an
old man, the grandson of a
slave, singing and playing on a
sagging porch looking out on
miles of Delta cotton rows. The
blues is nothing so picturesque.
Bloomfield later became in
volved with Al Kooper and his
Blues Project, and took part in
the Super Sessions album,
along with Steven Stills. He was
the driving force behind Electric
Flag, was the guitarist for Paul
Butterifeld's Blues Band, and
has recorded with Dylan and
Sleepy John Estes.
Bloomfield is reportedly a
great admirer of Johnny Win
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Compiled by The Chronicle of Higher Education from information
supplied by college stores throughout the country. November 5,1979.
ter, but ask him who his
influences are and he'll tell you:
"I come from B B King, man."
And from countless others,
because the blues is folk music.
Bloomfield gives credit where
it is due, and he did it at a time
when there was even less
knowledge than there currently
is among white teenagers as to
where the blues "comes from."
All the songs on this album are
given their proper acknow
ledgement, which is more than
can be said for George Tho
roughgood's new release.
In a tradition which knows it
has been ripped off by white
musicians (Elvis Presley is only
an obvious example. Led Zep
pelin, the Rolling Stones, and
countless others are notorious
for their appropriation), even
this seemingly obligatory ges
ture of decency is appreciated.
Michael Bloomfield's sound
is so much more obviously true
to a tradition than the average
Led Zeppelin travesty. This
album is a case in point.
Recorded live at the Old Wal
dorf in San Francisco, the music
here is enough to give any fan of
the blues revival a nostalgia
attack.
The album opens with
"Lights Out," a fast boogie
driven by piano and horns. "Big
Chief from New Orleans" is
good-time blues, with sharp
guitar licks (courtesy of Bloom
field, and 8.8. King) inter
spersed with the heavy staccato
bass typical of much urban
blues, but especially reminis
cent of the people surrounding
the old Muddy Waters/Otis
Spann bands.
Guilfordian
Between the Hard Place and
the Ground" is even more
obviously derived from 8.8.
King; not only the guitar
(King's Lucille has influenced
more rock musicians than would
care to admit their influences),
but even the vocal delivery is
King's. "Kid Man Blues," a
Sleepy John Estes composition,
closes side one.
"Orphans Blues," on side
two, is tight, harmonica, guitar,
piano, and bass jam together
live, Chicago-style. "Juke
Joint" is a jumping boogie
originally written by Joe Tur
ner, the Kansas City blues
shouter. The album ends wjtb
"Your Friends."
I like this album very much;
the blues spark vital to this
music is definitely there. Re
vealingly, though, Bloomfield's
guitar outsparks the efforts of
his sidemen. Bloomfield's blues
follow form, but true blues
requires more than form to be
authentic: they also ask for a
piece of the artist; to be true,
feeling must accompany form.
The feel of the blues is intangi
ble, and, especially since the
sixties, there has been much
cross-breeding, and even a
limited amount of interaction.
It is almost tangibly obvious
on this album that Michael
Bloomfield loves the blues he is
performing. His playing throws
off sparks; his licks are sharp
and cutting, picked out in the
high style typical of any blues
man who knows his stuff.
But his vocals sometimes
crack as if striving and straining
for some great, intangible
which he, and everybody else,
knows exists, but is, neverthe
less, just beyond his reach.
Still, what Bloomfield does is
amazing.
This album is so good it puts
Thoroughgood to shame.
Bloomfield loves the blues, but
even better, Bloomfield has
some sense of what the blues
are.
Women's Center results
The Women's Center Opinion Poll results are in. The Women's Center sends orchids to
members of the vocal minority who filled out their questionnaires.
Next week, we'll print our interpretation of these results. Be sure to save this article till
next week.
We received 39 questionnaires, two-thirds of them from women and one-third from men.
Some people didn't answer all questions, so there will not be 39 responses to each item.
SA= Strongly agree, A= Agree, U= Undecided, D= Disagree, SD= Strongly disagree.
SA A U D SD
1. Marriage more important to women than men. 3 8 5 12 11
2. Much sexism on Cuilford campus. 3 12 3 15 6
3. No inherent differences between women and 10 11 1 11 6
men.
4. Funding for abortions for poor women. 18 8 6 3 7
5. Affordable child care for all working parents. 17 113 6 2
6. Would take a Women's Studies class. YES-18 NO-17
7. ERA would substantially change things. 3 8 7 20 1
8. Women's active participate in religious 20 13 1 5 0
procedures. _
9. Parents following traditional roles. 4 15 1 12
10. Man favored for job because would remain *l2 1
with company longer.
11. ERA should be ratified. 12 15 6 2 3
12. Non-sexist language is important. 6 12 6 6 9
13. I am following traditional role for sex. 1 4 6 19 7
14. Women biologically unfit for business world. 0 11 7 30
15. I feel threatened by feminism. 1 5 3 16 14
16. Child care primary responsibility of mother. 2 6 1 16 14
17. Women innately better nurturers 0 7 6 19 5
18. Affirmative action measures. 10 13 7 5 2
19. "Men's liberation" movement. 18 14 1 5 1
20. Women's Center is important. YES-32 NO-4
- '• -v
Photo by Steve Lowe
Due for completion in the fall of 1980, the Ragan-Brown Field
House financing does not include a tuition increase.
Financing continues
By Marci Brown
Staff Writer
Financing of the Ragan-
Brown Field House is not quite
complete, but only $400,000 is
lacking of the estimated total
cost of $2.5 million.
The $2.1 million already col
lected has come from many
different sources, with the bulk
of it being donated by alumni.
The YMCA has provided much
help with campaigning, tele
phoning and fund-raising.
Last January 1 through Feb
ruary 15, there was an intensive
fund-raising drive held on cam
pus, managed by 86 people; a
staff made up of students,
faculty, and other concerned
people. Mailings were sent to
students, faculty, parents of
November 13, 1979
students, and community resi
dents as well as massive tele
phoning.
In this six week period,
$600,000 was raised. That push
helped to speed up what was
previously comparatively slow
fund-raising.
Inflation will not significantly
change the amount left to be
raised. A recent appraisal of the
contracted work to be done was
still within $30,000 of the origi
nal estimate.
Many schools would have
increased student fees to fi
nance part of an endeavor such
as this. Guilford has opted not
to do so; instead, the financing
was undertaken as a special
project, and not deducted from
tuition revenue.