Rockin' the Proletariat

PAGE 6, RETRIEVER, 23 FEBRUARY 1976 ROCKIN' THE PROLETARIAT Professor of Economics, EvEhrlich, Was Born' To Rock By Elias Lieberman ~---------------------------------------- "Live at the Panacea Hilton" - Red economists who suffer from acute cases of crescendo as "Rise" fades away gives way Shadow (The , Economics Rock N' Roll ivory towerism. "Movement Lovers" is to "Hurricane," a forceful rocker by Band) (Physical Records) like something out of Doonesbury, the Ehrlich. '''Hurricane'' is a call to power, a lament of love lost 'twixt two radicals. forecast that the Weather Underground Tucked away among the maze of office With memories of "smoking reefers by the might issue, a warning of the rage and cubicles on the sixth floor of the Ad mimeo machine, ' writing leaflets saying strength locked inside eachof us who has ministration Building is the office of a that the government's obscene," the song ever been shafted by the system. professor of Economics. Now of course we is bound to bring at least one cynical tear Ev Ehrlich has some very definite ideas all know that Econ. teachers are drab, to the'eye of every true child of the sixties, about the role of music in his life as a bespectacled little creatures who tell us Side two opens with "Understanding Marxist economist. People aren't taught, why we are spending more to get less. But Marx," a parody on a Ray_Charles tune. he asserts, they must be forced to learn in here's the rub ..... sitting in this particular According to Ehrlich it is also intended as a personal, often painful process. If some office is Ev Ehrlich. No mild-mannered a parody of the "religiosity" with which find the tone or lyrics of Red Shadow's economist he, Ehrlich is a young Marxist Marx and his writing are revered. In music offensive, that in itself is part of the Ev Ehrlich economist who was born to rock n' roll the between choruses a couple of Red learning experience. Ehrlich sees the goal masses into a knowledge of the class Shadows' comrades-in-music tell the of the artist-teacher-propagandizer as the for their collective philosophy. Ehrlich struggle. The proof is "Live at the tongue-in-cheek stories of their conversion "undermining of the middle class," the insists that Red Shadow will pull no Panacea Hilton" an album conceived and to the truth, the blinding flash of light changing of their perceptions. Rock n' roll punches if any kind of success should come brought to fruition by Ehrlich and his which led -them from Groucho to Karl. is Ehrlich's second language. It is only their way. There can be no trade-off, he musician cohorts who collectively call "Ass With The Class," set to the tune of natural that he speak his mind to us, his insists, between the raw political content themselves "Red Shadow". "Put Your Hand in the Hand," is a call to middle-class, rock n' roll audience, in our of their music and its value as enjoyable A little background material is in order. action, a chance to join "the class that's a common language, rock n' roll. The two go hand in hand. Ev Ehrlich grew up in Chicago and quite wage away from hunger." "Rise," written ~ The problem is that rock and politics 'Even if it won't guarantee you a better naturally he did so on a steady diet of J;aw by Dan Luria, Delta X and Evie Rosenthal, have never really mixed to any large grade in Ev Ehrlich's course, you should Chicago blues. As an econ. student is the surprise of the album. Building on a degree. Mick Jagger singing "Street still make an effort to get hold of "Live at studying at Stoneybrook and while in choir-like acapella introduction, the song Fighting Man" will not bring about a class the Panacea Hilton." It is a tribute not econ. grad school at Michigan, Ehrlich paints a grim portrait of the rut in which so revolution. The Fugs, the Mothers of In only to a personal philosophy but also to a directed his talents toward a form of many of us are trapped: vention and even the long-defunct MC-5 certain spunk, a sense of daring that each "economics guerilla theater," an attempt "Another job, another raise come to mind but they represent the of us experiences at some point when we to dramatically spread the word about the Another day lived out of phase periphery of rock or the by-products of the say, "Damn it - there's something rotten horrors of the capitalist system. Along Another proof that not just sin has last turbulent decad~. The record industry here that I'd love to rock n' roll about to comes Stephan Michelson (also known as wages. is big business, firmly entrenched in the spread the word around." Surprise, Delta X), an economist in his own right Spent too long in this bad dream capitalist system, and it will tolerate UMBC! There's revolutionary fervor and a musician with fifteen years of dues Soon there will be no in-between political iconoclasm only so long as record humming good ole rock n' roll in the heart behind him. Their meeting resulted in a We got to rise up, rip the bars from all sales aren't affected. "Live at the Panacea of the beast. Give it a listen. 'decision to mold econ. guerilla theater into our cages." Hilton" wa~ l>roduced on a shoestring (Copies of Red Shadow's "Live at the a more popular and palatable mode. The last line builds in intensity through budget on a tiny label. If Red Shadow can Panacea Hilton" can be obtained by Enrlich, Delta X and their musician repetition to a stirring climax of harmony, sell 5,000 copies, they will break even. If sending check or money order for 5 dollars' economist friends decided they would cut a reminding us that truly great change they sell more, all the better, but only to: The Physical World, P.O. Box 125, record. always starts inside ourselves. A cymbal because it would mean greater exposure Cambridge, Mass. 02140.) Now the scene changes to Boston where Ehrlich and cohorts make some demo tapes at Delta X's apartment (which they subsequently dub "The Physical World"). joined in 1969 and quit in 1972, rejoined late Somehow they stumble onto a dude named in 1974 and made the Grass Roots look like Wayne Waldhams, an independent record a group again. But Provisor quit again in producer who has to his credit ,a Pan Am 1975, and with this the group fell apart. commercial and the Left Banke's "Walk Without Provisor, it could easily be said Away Renee". Waldham goes wild for Red that Rob Grill is the Grass Roots. This is Shadow and is convinced he's discovered not to slight the other members of the the next Mothers of Invention. He agrees group, who have all contributed greatly, to do the engineering and mixing for the but in my opinion, since I fell in love with album, the band finds a Boston studio and their "rock-with-a-dash-of--soul" sound in manages to stake the ' money needed to the spring of 1970, Grill always has been record. With the help of some guest the Grass Roots. Apparently Haven economist-musicians and one genuine, agrees, as they are planning to release his bonafide pianist, Red Shadow begins the first solo single as soon as ,they hook up task. After thirty hours in the studio, with their new distributor Arista, which countless blisters on Ev Ehrlich's fingers happens to be the label which is making and ten hours at the mixing board, the Eric Carmen of the Rasberries into a solo ::tlbum is born. star. Hopefully they can do it with Rob. But now to the album itself. "Live at the This tall, good looking, mustachioed Panacea Hilton" opens with a spoken Californian certainly has one of the introduction, aural guerilla theater, with Dest voices to ever grace the Top 40 air bleating sheep in the background. The waves. listener is introduced to the ultimate The new Grass Roots, album, titled economists' convention. A slightly rough oddly enough The Grass Roots, is basically r The Grass Roots Disband Rob Grill singing a bunch of pleasant pop but spirited guitar lick propels us into Bv Glenn Isaacson "Stagna,tion," an Ehrlich-Luria com longevity of the Grass Roots (1966-1976) is rock songs with a few background position which bitingly expresses the After ten years in the record bUSiness, unquestionably unique for a pop-rock vocalists and an effective musical back plight of the person caught in the middle of nearly two dozen hit singles, and a group that specializes in making hit FOp. It is a good showcase for Grill's the economic squeeze. "Commodity multitude of member changes, the Grass singles. Most pop groups make three or talents as a vocalist and interpreter. The Fetishism" is a short little piano ditty Roots have finally decided to call it quits. four hits at the most and then die. The album was produced by Dennis Lambert which seems to point out the absurdly This news came to me personally from an Grass Roots had over twenty hit singles, and Brian Potter, who created and run natural way in which buying and con insider at Haven Records, the label which including rock classics like "Midnight Haven Records. Grill co-produced it with suming are as natural as swimming, the Roots joined early last year.

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