NOVEMBER 11,1988 — THE DECREE — PAGE 3
'Rattle and Hum' takes diverse trip
By MARK BRETT
Rattle and Hum. The words just
seem to roll right off your lips, don’t
they? They are a part of the song
“Bullet the Blue Sky” by U2. They
are also the title of a new movie
about U2. They also, in a very satis
fying way, describe the feel of the
better rock music of the last 30 to 35
years. All of which brings us around
to the topic of this review, U2’s new
est album, “Rattle and Hum.”
From blistering blues-rock to
gentle, thought-provoking ballads
(with a stop along the way for some
gospel,) this album trips along
through some very diverse territory.
Not content to let the listener settle
into a comfortable groove, the album
mixes up-tempo numbers with low-
key, quiet songs in quick succession.
The album also mixes old songs
with new, and live performances
with studio recordings. The album
almost appears to have been thrown
together like a yard sale: a little of
this, a little of that, and, what the hell,
maybe some of this other stuff over
there. Organization is not the strong
point of this album, but that’s okay.
The style in which everything is pre
sented rolls just as naturally as the
album’s title.
The roll of that title may be one of
the nicest touches about this album.
“Rattle and Hum.” It just seems to
capture the sound of really good rock
and roll. “Rock and Roll.” “Rattle
and Hum.” They play off each other
nicely. Bono has said that the album
is really about the history of rock and
roll, so I suppose this is all very fit
ting.
Books offer glimpse
of unexplored vistas
(Continued from Page 2)
cimile reprint of his 1904 collection
of essays about writers, books, and
life. Scholarly Press proudly uses “a
fine acid-free, permanent/durable
paper of the type commonly referred
to as ‘300-year paper.’" "A man may
be judged by his library," Stephen
says to us from a different cultural
milieu. His long, winding, pithy sen
tences roll from one observation to
the next with apparent ease but actual
felicity. Felicity is not a word we
now take seriously, but the grandeur
of Victorian prose is that it is felici
tous: “A gentleman convicted at the
present day of practices comparable
to those in which Pope indulged so
freely might find it expedient to take
his name off the books of any re-
pectable club.” Leslie Stephen
wrote more important books [indeed,
he had more important creations],
but a nineteenth-century British edu
cated man’s reading notes continue
to illuminate these pages.
The energy pulsating from an
unopened book would light up the
world if anyone could harness it. No
other invention so dominates our in
tellectual history as does the book.
Language is the book’s medium and
no other human characteristic has
such important intellectual ramifica
tions as language does. Reading
changes people slowly, as they
(re)shape their perceptions to be the
reader of a new book. The results
from this reshaping are difficult to
measure; the rewards are subtle. But
haven’t the well-read people in your
life been immediately obvious?
Reading makes us limitless.
Meanwhile, excuse me, a couple
of catalogues have arrived and I want
to see what’s in them.
Paper draws fire in letters
(Continued from Page 2)
ead, particularly with sentences
vhich begin with inappropriate ad-
erbs set off by a comma. These sen
dees often end up being grammati-
ally correct non sequiturs. Writers
ould be well advised to have their
;opy proofread by a qualified indi-
idual. May I suggest an English
.rof?
Secondly, I quote: “What every
acuity and administration member,
s well as every student, needs to
now is that The Decree staff is too
mall and too constrained by dead-
;ne pressure to verify every little
piece of information in our paper.” A
very interesting attitude toward jour
nalistic responsibility for a newspa
per in an academic community, and
one to which I, personally, cannot
subscribe! Just how much confi
dence can the reader have in what is
printed after such a statement? None.
With freedom of the press comes re
sponsibility. I suggest serious recon
sideration of the policy and perhaps
restatement in a future issue. This
policy is disgraceful, even when the
following paragraph of the editorial
is taken into consideration.
Marvin J. Ward, PhD
Adjunct Instructor of French
“Rattle and Hum” begins with the
words, “This is a song Charles Man-
son stole from the Beatles. We’re
stealin’ it back.” TTiis exclamation is
followed by an excellent live version
of “Helter Skelter,” basing the album
firmly in rock and roll history. We
then move on to “Van Diemen’s
Land,” a new song and a first for U2
in that the Edge sings lead vocals
(and doesn’t do a half bad job of it,
either). Next, we get “Desire,” and a
guitar riff stolen directly from Bo
Diddly.
The album goes on, with lots of
highlights: a really nailed live ver
sion of “All Along the Watchtower;”
a gospel version of “I Still Haven’t
Found What I’m Looking For;” the
anti-apartheid “Silver and Gold,” in
which Bono asks the audience “Am I
buggin’ you?” then tells the Edge to
“play the blues;” “When Love
Comes To Town,” with B.B. King;
“God Part II,” a song dedicated to
John Lennon (which oddly enough,
includes the lines, “I don’t believe in
the 60’s in the golden age of pop.
You glorify the past when the fu
ture dries up;”) Jim Hendrix’s ver
sion of “The Star Spangled Banner”
(the real Hendrix version. Not a
cover;) and a heart-felt live version
of “Bullet the Blue Sky” in which
Bono slips in a jab at TV evangelists:
“The God I believe in ain’t shorta
cash, mister.”
While I don’t think that “Rattle
and Hum” can be considered a real
growth in the band’s style, it is a solid
look back. I get a feeling from this
album of reviewing what has gone
before to get a firmer grasp on where
to go in the future. I have no idea
what this band’s next album will
sound like, but I do think that we’ll
be hearing a lot more from U2 in the
years to come. And that can’t be a
bad thing.
Variety of activities slated
for Wesleyan during week
By JACK PENIFEL
On Nov. 12, there will be a Table
Tennis Tournament at 2 p.m. Sign up
in Student Life Office before Friday
Nov. 11.
On Nov. 13, a movie will be
shown in the TV room. If you have
any movie suggestions drop a note in
the Campus Box in Student Life in
care of Pam Gourley.
Just a reminder. Yearbook photos
will be taken Monday and Tuesday
from 8:30 a.m. until 8:30 p.m. and
Wednesday and Thursday from 8:30
a.m. until 5:00 p.m. in the Student
Activity Center so look your best.
On Nov. 16 and 17 there will be a
J.F.K. Display from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
in the S.A. Center in remembrance of
J.F.K.’s death 25 years ago.
On Nov. 17 at 5 p.m. the Campus
Organizations are invited to partici
pate in a Thanksgiving Scavenger
Hunt for the Less Fortunate. For
more details contact Pam Gourley at
Student Life.
On Saturday Nov. 19 at 11 p.m.
there will be the Second Annual Tur
key Trot two mile fun run. Partici
pates are to report to the S.A. Center
that Saturday. Prizes will be given to
first male and female winners.
RESERVE OFFICERS' TRAINIXG CORPS
$2750.00
YOUR UNCLE WANTS TO PAY FOR COLLEGE.
BUT ONLY IF YOU'RE GOOD ENOUGH.
Army ROTO offers qualified students two-
and three-year scholarships that pay for fuU
tuition and required educational fees
and provide an allowance for textbooks
and supplies.
You’ll also receive up to a $1000 grant
each school year the scholarship is in effect.
So find out today if you qualify.
ARMYROTC
THE SMARTEST COLLEGE
COURSE YOU CAN TAKE.
Contact: Major Blake Adams, Room 272 Pearsall Classroom or
Cadet/Major Mike Morgan, Room 310 South Dorm
Call 977-7171 Ext. 341 or 1-800-682-2233 Ext. 341