reference releases , mostly of blues and songs Davidson has strength and persistence. This with blues derivations, with masterful playing. is the musical equivalent of the David- standards ? mediocre-to-bad lyrics (on his own songs). son you see on television—pleasant if not and dreadful singing. profound, entertaining if not deep. Definitely Everyone knows that stara writes and sings okay. M.A. his own songs. so that's what Bromberg does. I wish he would content himself with the role of interpreter. It is not bada profession: Some of M ARTHA VELEz: Matinee Weepers. Martha the world's best musicians have been "only" Velez, vocals, vocal and instrumental accom- interpreters: not everyone can be Beethoven.a paniment. Best Thing on the Block: Do Right When Bromberg does play a good song by Woman, Do Right Man: Mocking Bird: seven someone else—such as Dylan's Wallflower—he more. [Mike Vernon, -prod.] SIRE SAS 7409, does very well. M .1. $5.98.

Martha Velez ais singer in the blues-rock vein CHASE: Pure Music. , trumpet; with stylea akin to several others, such as the Wally Yohn, keyboards; Jay Sollenberger, late Janis Joplin and Maria Muldaur. Her lat- Jim Oatts, and Joe Morrissey, trumpets; Tom est recording is well done, complete. and Gordon, drums; Dartanyan Brown, bass; rather exciting. Only one tune. Mocking Bird. John Emma, guitar. Weird Song = 1: Run falls short—and then mil\ in comparison with Back to Mama: Love /s on the Way; three the version by James Tavlor and ('ark Simon. more. [Frank Rand, prod.] EPIC KE 32572, We would not claim our L30T or 50 to But. as competent as is.it this disc is not suf- be the highest performance systems $5.98. Tape: fe. EA 32572. $6.98; 01, ET ficiently different from a number of others. available—yet they offer performance 32572, $6.98. Miss Velez is a tine performer. It' (ink she that almost always causes the listener weren't working in such limiteda field. N.4.J. to compare them with far more expen- Chase is a jazz band that plays loudly enough sive systems. The TL30 and TL50 are to appeal to rocka audience and so has been transmission line loudspeakers that of- called jazz rock. The group sports three fer exceptional value for dollar, striking trumpeters and keyboarda player who is fond yet efficient styling, and most impor- of the synthesizer, and if that gives you hinta tant, performance to satisfy the audio- theater and film phile. If you are considering the pur - that there is a lot of upper-register mucking chase of loudspeakers you really can't around, you are right. Weird Song # I. typical G ONE wiTH THE WIND. Original motion-pic- afford not to investigate the Audionics of Chase. is as it says: weird. It has a lot of ture score by Max Steiner. National Philhar- TL Series. Write for the name of your punchy squeaks from the brass and impro- nearest dealer. vised bumblebees from the synthesizer. monic Orchestra. Charles Gerhardt, cond. It's exciting music but only for time.a It be- [George Korngold, prod.] RCA RED SEAL ARL 9 A U DIO NICS INC. comes grating, especially if you hear the band 1-0452, $5.98. Tape: irt ARS 1-0452. $6 95; 8600 NE Sandy Blvd SW ARK 1-0452, $6.95. in person or play the record through speakers Portland Oregon 97220 that favor treble. M.J. CIRCLE 6 ON READER-SERVICE CARD What can you say about Gone with the Wind? The film theis epitome of everything good and III JOHN DAVIDSON: Touch M e. John Davidson, bad about Hollywood. and much the same can vocals, Mike Post, Pete Carpenter, Lenny be said about the score. Yet even the most de- Stack, and Mike Melvoin, arr. Gone; You and vout cynic will have difficulty turning himself FIN C O We Had All;It eight more. [Mike Post, prod.] off from the unmistakable tragic grandeur of 20TH CENTURY T 429, $5.98. the film, and few scores have been woven as FM ANTENNAS thoroughly into the fiber of a movie as Max You've got to hand it to John Davidson. He Steiner's magnum opus. ("i'_HANr.:7" has survived numbera of style changes. is still Indeed, even if Steiner had gone no further making it. and still looks twelve—or anyway. than the celebrated Tara theme, he would younger'and more innocent than he can possi- have contributed one of the most soul-grip- bly be. ping themes ever devised. Just as the estate When there was standardsa market. David- called Tara dominates Gone with the Wind son was in the middle of it. robust and stagey. with presencea greater than the destiny of its • Quadraphonic Stereophonic• all June Is Busting out All Over and Sound of inhabitants, so does the Tara theme both sum • Monophonic Multiplex• Music. Why not? It was happening. up and supersede the drama involved. But the • GET MORE and BETTER FM with Now the Cosmopolitan male centerfold is score as a whole certainly contains many of FIN C O happening. and last month John Davidson Steiner's best moments—one reason 'being. I was it. This album is within that image—freer. feel. the avoidance of the Viennese whipped Award Winning FM Components! carefully sexy. contemporary. Anyone who cream that sugar-coats many Steiner scores in thinks such image changes are easy or fun anis favor of morea probing idiom that often has. idiot. They usually occur after long soul- at least to my ears, decidedlya Slavic ring to it searching on sink-or-swima basis. Davidson (note. for instance, the rather Tchaikovskian had no choice. and thinkI he met the chal- theme associated with Scarlett and Ashley). lenge honestly. As recorded here. the Gone with the Wind He has retired his big. Goulet-type voice music benefits from the magnificent sound FM Dipole FM ANTENNA and gotten in touch with the simpler sound typical of RCA's "classic film scores" series. Ribbon Model FM 40 imperative for singing most contemporary And it is played—excellently—in its original. Antenna Model 1130 songs. Simple or not, the old Davidson polish full orchestration and includes some previ- is there. ously unrecorded excerpts. with everything ar- The only song I recognize here is Jim ranged into an extensive suite that captures the Croce's /'// Have to Say LoveI You in Song.a essence of the film better than any of the previ- Others are by such writers as Troy Seals. Tom ous recordings. Bahlor, Teddy Randazzo. My objection is again one of priorities. FM Band Pass Filter Fm Indoor Amplifier One song on the album bugs me: / Am Not G WTW—both film and score—has to be one of Modei 3007 Model 65 7 Yours, You Are Not Mine by Brian Foley. a the most overexposed of cinematic commodi- Write Dept HF-6-74 for Catalog 20-213 preachy song of alienation and paranoia. It is ties. RCA does in fact have Herrmann. Rozsa. T H E FIN N E Y CO M P A N Y not the structure but the message that turns me and Waxman projects in the offing. but these \ 34 West Int er,f ate Street Bedford Oh. 44146 r off. If it's a hit. I'll break my car antenna. were delayed while we were given yet another CIRCLE 22 ON READER-SERVICE CARD

114 HIGH FIDELITY M AGAZINE