OCTOBER 23, 1970

by Chris Decker

Rock culture finds expres"
sion in many ways. The inOst
visible of these is in the pro-
liferation of bands and indivir
dual artists who regard the
listening public as a long-
haired offshoot of the LBW’
rel-ice Welk generation. Thus,
it is no surprise to find that
the themes which dominate
most rock art are as uninter-
esting as they are insincere:
the Alienation of the Non-Vior
lent Idealistic College Stud-
ent, You Can‘t Make a Revo'
lution with Flowers, How I
Planted the Seed of Love and
Watched it grow into a Mean
ingful Interpersonal Relation-
ship, and so forth.

Against this formidable are
ray of schmaltz, a few artists
try to speak intelligently. Fr-
ominent among them is Paul
Kantner of the Jefferson Air-
plane. His development as a
songwriter reflects the crys-
tallization of his aestheticand

area news

THE
GRINNEll

HERALD-
REGISTER

cultural opinions.

His two songs on Surrealis-
tic Pillow, “Today" and
“D.C.B.A.-25," already hint
at a departure from the ”Air-

’ plane sound." Here Kantner

appears pensive and earnest,
uncertain but willing to give
thought a chance before falir
ing to obese imagery and
moneyrgrabbing.

Crown of Creation

Kant-ner's first strong state‘
ments come on "Crown of
Creation. The title song is ta-
ken almost verbatim from a
novel by John Wyndham, The
Chrysalids. The novel takes
place 200 years after a nuc-
lear war, in a society oflsur~
vivors. These survivors are
very conscious of mutation
because of the vast genetic
damage done by radiation. Any
mutant form of life-- be it
cornstalk, cow, or child" is
destroyed immediately. Two
children become aware hyacr
cident that they are able to
communicate telepathically
with one another. Eventually
they are discovered and are
forced to flee.

The story line, admittedly,
is somewhat hyperbolic; the
important ideas are implicit.
As human beings, we consid-
er the wholesale extermina-
tion of other forms of life to
be an ethically neutral aCLIVi’
ty when these other species
threaten our position at the
“crown of creation.” Witness
our campaigns againSt bac-
teria, insects, and rodents.
Thus it seems that murder is
a meaningful concept only wi-
thin a given species. In the
case of homo sapiens, thepro-
blem is somewhat more diffi’

THE SCARLET AND BLACK 7“

Airplane Pilot Kuniner’s Music Flies High

cult, since we don’t Imowwhat
man is.

Now, the sixty- four dollar
question. To what extent must
a human mind differ from the
"norm" before the change is
a change in species? For ex-
ample, does the intensificar
tion of a particular sense con-
stitute a qualitative change?
We do not jail people who have
extremely good hearing or
sight. It seems, then, that a
qualitative change may involve
a new sense, or the psychold
gical equivalent of a new
sense. If, in fact, there are
people who are qualitatively
different from the rest of hu-
manity, to what extentare they
justified in defending their own
species? If they used our ex-
ample, theywouldexterminate
anything which gets in their
way.

Pooneil Corner

To return to Paul Kant-her,
the interlude in the title song
on Crown of Creation is a
quatrain borrowed, withminor
changes, from Wyndham‘s
book:

In loyalty to their kind

They cannot tolerate our
‘ minds ‘

In loyalty to our kind
We cannot tolerate

obstruction

This rather vague songsket-
ches the outlines ofa concept
which is developed more fully
in the brumlly melancholy
"House at Pooneil Corner.”
This song, which begins with
an atmosphere reminiscent of
“Sounds of Silence," CamiO’

their

gues the logical extensions of '

cermin Amerimn cultural [r’
ends. Logic is ignored, says

 

SPECIAL

Save $8.00 on Study Lamp

Kantner, lost in the wild con-
fusion of Muzak, Jerry Rubin,
and The Guess Who. Thus
Kantner declares:

That's the last hour to think

any more

Jelly and juice and bubbles

Bubbles on the floor

The song ends with an un‘
fortunately camp variation on
Winnie the Pooh.

Song of Despair

"House at Pooneil Corner"
is not perfect: it has an inter-
lude by Marty Balin which is
extremely inappropriate, and
some of Kantner's images
border on the insipid (The
moon circles / Likea vulture).
Nonetheless, it is a powerful
song, and it even has a gen-
yearwine no-breastebeating
statement of desperation.

Kantner's other song
Crown of Creation, “In
Time," is more reflective
than the other two. Thematicr
ally it is insubstantial; how
ever, there is a strong hint
of ”Wooden Ships" in theme
lody. '

Ironic Mocking

"We Can be Together," far
from being an anthem for po
litical revolution, seems tome
to be principally personal and
cultural in emphasis, as well
as exceedingly ironic. There
are lines in which Kanmer
appears to be mocking the id-
iotic mentality of the Teeny—
Bop - Problem ' Child» Right
>Onr Brother elite:

We are obscene lawless hi7
deous dangerous dirty vio-
lent and young.

Yes indeed.

The serious intent ofthe song

seems to be in the lines:

We must begin here and now
A new continent of earth and

fire

OPPORTUNITY, spare—
time, addressingenvelopes
and circulars! Make $27.00
per thousand. Handwritten
or typed, in your home.
Send just $2. for INSTRUC-
TIONS Plus LIST OF
FIRMS using addressers.
Satisfaction Guaranteed!
BStV ENTERPRISES, Dept.
9108, PO Box 1056, Yu-

Tear down the walls

Won’t you try.

This seems to me to be an
extension and intensifimtion
of john Lennon's advice back
in 1968: '

You say you'll change the

constitution

You better free your mind

instead. -

Kantner says, in effect, that
the radical “ethic" is just as
puerile as the Madison Aven-
ue “ethic.”

In sum, the rock movement
(at its best) is aminor cultur-
al phenomenon which is char-
acterized by clean thought
lines and precision of feeling.
We who feel an affinity for the
rook medium should expect no
less than this from our song-
writers.

Auction FeaIures‘
Orgy And PasIry;

Record 51700 Bid

The Martin Luther King Jr,
Scholarship Fund ~ WorldUnr
iversity Service Auction Held
on Saturday in Darby Gym
proved to be quite successful.
At auction time, approximate-
1y 98 student itemsand14 fac-
ulty items were listed. During
the auction 11 more itemsap-
peared, including Mrs. Menr
doza's apple and cherry pies,
which came directly from the
oven to Darby Gym via Carlos.

Returning favorites were the
president’s dinner, sold for
$115, Miss de Lecluse's cho-
colate cakes at$20apiece, and
practitfilly all the faculty it»
ems which sold for on the av*
erage of 40 dollars. The tra-
ditional Care's orgy went for
a low $90. One Other interest
ing item was the sale of Sue
Petersen and Mary Stuart by
their roommate Chris Humy
for the sum of $10. With the
large number of items this
year, however, an allv time
high of $1700 was recorded
as bid. Students and faculty
will receive receipts, bills,
and norice ofpurchasethrough
the mail shortly.

Upon interviewing the direct
tors of the auction, the only
comment availabiewas "many
thanks to everyonewhohelped,

NOW $1195 " ‘ caipa, Calif. 92399. but never againl" /

Regular $19.95 by Lightolier

* HELP AVOID EYE FATIGUE TRY AHRVANO'SnTHE PIZZA

* HIGH LEVEL, BUT EVEN FOR EFFETE SNOBS

GLARE FREE LIGHT

. ms is 3

Offer
Expires
December 31.
I970

" DURABLE, WASHABLE POLY-
PROPYLENE SHADE

AHRVANO‘S
FREE DELIVERY 236-6222

svuov [AMP

 

 

 

Approved Ior prDVIding abundant, even light
over entire desk area . , . blocking glare from
any angle , . , preventing distracting shadows.
The right light to encourage good study habits.
proper posture. Classic styling to go with any
decor,

HOLIDAY TRAVEL

Whether to home or some glamorous destination
should be reserved well in advance of departure
date.

Height: 22" Diameter: 14"
Better Light Better Sight Study
Lamp Special.

VISIT GALAPAGCXS - the unique islands which in-
spired Darwin. Christmas, Easter and summer

AVAILABLE IN VARIOUS COLORS programs available.

IOWA SOUTHERN UTILITIES

907 Broad St.
Grinnell

SKI
fers,
NYC.

in EUROPE at Christmastime , air, trans-
accomodations and meals, from $381 from

RESERVE EARLY (like now!)

GRINNELL TRAVEL CENTER