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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 21, 1984)
Entertainment Thursday, June 21, 1984/The Battalion/Page 9 Vaughan’s 2nd a nice surprise By PETER ROCHA Staff reviewer Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble Couldn’t Stand The Weather Epic Records ★★★★ The hardest part about reviewing an album like this is trying to keep from getting too excited. It’s defi nitely not gonna be easy. If you’re wondering what all the hoopla’s about you have to remem ber who we’re talking about here. Remember David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” LP? Well that was Stevie Ray Vaughan on guitar. Ever hear his first major release, last year’s “Texas Flood?” Well it was nominated for a Grammy. So get excited. “Couldn’t Stand The Weather,” like the first album, has a lot of the Texas sound that has made Vaug han an Austin favorite for years. But Vaughan also has other musical in fluences that show up here and may surprise a few people. “Scuttle Buttin,” the instrumental that kicks off the album, “Cold Shot” and “Honey Bee” all have a nice beat that makes you want to get up and move around. You see Vaughan and Double Trouble (bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Lay- ton) don’t just bang away on chords like some people do nowadays. Vaughan takes the lead and together they make great melodic music with out an overabundance of instru ments or post production meddling. “The Things (That) I Used To Do” and “Tin Pan Alley” are both good blues songs that are improved by the performance. In other words, these songs wouldn’t be the same if they were played by a musician with less soul. Now Vaughan doesn’t have the greatest voice in the world but like his guitar work it’s clean, honest, and he makes it work. All these songs up until now have been similar to other stuff that Vaughan has done before. And the guys play with the conFidence of en joying what they are doing. These songs just as good if not better than the first album. But there’s even more. “Couldn’t Stand The Weather,” “Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)” and “Slang’s Swang” show other aspects of Vaughan’s musical interest. “Wea ther” is a funky rocker with a killer- rhythm section part and brother- Jimmie Vaughan of the Fabulous Thunderbirds on second guitar. "Voodoo Chile” is a Jirni Hendrix song and there’s not too many peo ple around who could do it justice or who should even try. These guys do a damn good job. Vaughan’s guitar playing is very impressive and re markably versatile. “Slang’s Swang,” the last song, has to be the shocker on the album. This is an all out jazz number. With Stan Harrison on tenor sax this sounds more like something off of a North Texas State University Lab Band al bum. And as they say in jazz hngo: this really cooks, man. Add it all up and you’ve got one of the best albums of the year by one of music’s hottest guitarist. And while you’re at it give a listen to the first al bum. Run, don’t walk. The keyboard sneaker is part of a new foot fad. Painted shoes becoming fad By JUDY OLIVER Reporter When Roseann Mufich Smith decided to paint designs on her 16-year-old daughter’s plain white sneakers she was starting something too big for Kansas City. Now the decorated tennies have spread into College Station— and beyond. The genesis of the Mufich line is one of those success tales peo ple dream about. First Kimberly Smith’s friends wanted sneakers like hers. That convinced Smith that she should paint some samples and set out for New York. There the presi dent of Pappagallo, Jean Shargal, became interested and called a shoe trade publication. Later the hand painted foot wear was seen in the Kansas City market by a manufacturers’ rep resentative. He organized a group of investors in Texas who bought out Mufich Designs and a nationwide marketing plan was launched to sell the sneakers. Mufich Designs, all done by in dividual artists who work in a kind of cottageindustry, are car ried here by The Shoe Store in Parkway Square. Owner Nita Conner says most are bought by young people — from 12 to 20. The Mufich line offers 25 de signs, from camouflage to straw berries. One of the most popular, Conner said, is a piano keyboard painted diagonally across the toe. Rainbows and strawberries also sell well, she said. Brightly colored grosgrain rib- One of the most popular lines is a piano keyboard painted diagonally across the toe. Rainbows and strawberries also sell well. bons — solids, stripes and polka dots — replace the traditional shoe lace. A Mufich heart shaped logo is attached to each right shoe. The sneakers are shipped in hand painted boxes with the art ist’s name written across a hand print on the lid. Purchase orders dictate to the artist specific patterns to paint, so each pair of sneakers are consid ered an original piece of artwork as explained by an insert in each pair of shoes. Mufich Designs are now sold through major chain stores and shoe stores across the nation. Willie’s picnic comes home to Austin United Press International AUSTIN — Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson will headline the return to Austin of country music superstar Willie Nelson’s fabled Fourth of July Picnic. Nelson scheduled a news confer ence for Wednesday to announce the complete lineup, but other artists expected to appear with Nelson are Leon Russell, Carl Perkins, David Allen Coe, Johnny Rodriguez, Jerry Jeff Walker, Joe Ely, Billy Joe Shaver, Moe Bandy, Johnny Bush and Jessi Colter. The concert will be staged at South Park Meadows, an outdoor concert site in south Austin. It will be the first time Nelson’s picnic has been held in his hometown since 1980. Houston-based Pace Concerts, which is promoting the event, said the picnic will begin at 10 a.m. on In dependence Day. Adult ticket prices will be $16.75. At the last official picnic in Austin, some 80,000 fans fought blazing heat, long lines for food, drink and toilet facilities, and miles of bumper- to-bumper traffic during the 18 hours of entertainment. After that picnic. Nelson an nounced he would not have the event in the future in order to pur sue other interests. But he revived the picnic last July with a series of musical extravagan zas in Syracuse, N.Y., East Ruther ford, N.J., and Atlanta. Concert organizers say they ex pect a crowd of about 15,000 for Nelson’s Austin picnic, but law en forcement officials said they are pre paring for a crowd of at least 40,000. Woodcreek gives you a whole lot more for less. Like ponds for ducks. And for jogging And And pc privacy Woodcreek trees. swimming. And for just plain enjoying. It’s a new way of living diole lot more Wx)d(Sreek Homes, patio homes from the $80s. Estate lots priced from $22,000. Woodcreek 409-696-1732