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Show B-52's offer a fun concert, but Ziggy is more genuine by RON GEORG Record staff writer Folks old enough to remember The B-52's of a decade ago remember a notoriously stiff collection col-lection of kitshy musicians who looked like they came from 1957 but played like nothing anyone had ever heard. And while the band's performance perfor-mance at ParkWest last weekend was an exciting event highlighted by some great dance music, The B-52's have lost some of the subtle chemistry which made them feel like time-warped nostalgia ten years ago. Their songs are infectious, and the band did offer some potent versions of both new and classic tunes. The problem is the novelty seems to have worn off for the band; times have changed, their music has seen subtle changes, but the band's format feels tired. When the B-52's first found their way from Athens, Georgia in the late '70s they looked like a group of intellectual freaks who'd been doing their shopping at local garage sales and that probably vasn't far from the truth. Vocalist Cindy Wilson and vocalistkeyboardist Kate Pierson looked like they lived in their beehive hairdos; but now their physical and style affectations look more like stage props. Attention Manufacturing Executives Are you interested in a plant site that offers: NO Corporate Income Tax NO Personal Income Tax NO Inventory Tax LOW Property Taxes OUTSTANDING Public Infrastructure NO Smog NO Traffic jams PLUS GOOD Transportation (1-80 & UPRR) AVAILABLE Industrial Sites LOW Crime Rate REASONABLE Environmental Regulations CENTRALIZED Access to Markets EASY Access to Salt Lake International You'll find It all In Uinta County, Wyoming! Just one hour from Park City Contact the Uinta County Economic Development Commission at (307) 789-4261 about your relocation or expansion plans. However, lead singer Fred Schneider has remained the same engrossing odd-ball who led The B-52's to stardom. And that was the show's ultimate redemption. Schneider's lead provided the offbeat off-beat fringe folks have come to expect ex-pect from the band; from his se-quined se-quined shirt to his graceless, amusing dance steps, Scheider is true to the spirit that mad the band. Through Schneider's front work, the band brought home a number of their tunes. The opening open-ing version of their current hit Cosmic Thing was a potent rocker, as were their renditions of Mesopotamia, Love Shack, and Strobe Light. Perhaps the biggest hit of the evening was their raging rag-ing version of Private Idaho, highlighted by Schneider's powerful power-ful vocals. And, despite some weak vocals from Wilson, their offering of-fering of Junebug was a thriller. While The B-52's were slightly lacking in style, Ziggy Marley builds his strengths with each show. His last two visits to Utah have been big stage productions, but as an opening act Ziggy and the Melody Makers made due with a much sparser set which only added to the musician's heartfelt performance of original tunes like Look Who's Dancing, Conscious Party, and Justice. Cruise offers by RON GEORG Record staff writer With Platoon, Oliver Stone gained gain-ed a reputation as the first person to accurately chronicle the Vietnam Viet-nam War. But at that point he had only told half the story; the other half came with his collaboration with fellow Vietman veteran Ron Kovic and their production of Born on the Fourth of July, now available on home video. The film is the story of Kovic's life, from his patriotic childhood in Masepequa, Long Island to his ultimate realizations about his country and government following his participation in Vietman. Paralyzed from the chest down from the war, and carrying some horrible memories, Kovic is haunted into reconsidering his views on war. Tom Cruise's portrayal of Kovic is stunning. The pretty-boy actor fits well into the role of devoted son, high-school jock, and maturing matur-ing adolescent early in the film, but no one would have guessed he could have carried the second half. After being injured, Cruise has to go from a proud, heroic Marine to being a frightened, drooling cripple. The effect is potent. Cruise drops his charm instantly, and the cocky glint in his eye is amazingly transformed to a depth unseen in the actor; close-ups shots are mesmerizing as the actor ac-tor exudes the rage Kovic felt at The best way to enjoy delirious TCCTFroen Yogurt is to visit your kxalTCrr store and try k. "TCiV" The Country Best bgurl. 632 Main Stnet (Bottom of Main) 649-4000 I TTTP fl nnn , I L-i "'" -4 I I I 13 Park Record Thursday, August 16, 1990 Page C3 conviction being betrayed by his government and rejected by society. The film also contains some other excellent performances, most notalby from Willem Dafoe. Playing a fellow parapalegic in a Mexican town filled with disillusioned disillu-sioned veterans living off their disability pension, Dafoe has come further with his rage than Kovic, and he holds up an unappealing unap-pealing mirror to Kovic. His trip to Mexico is part of what pushes Kovic to pursue a more meaningful existence to attempt at-tempt to justify what's happened to him and around him. Educating himself beyond government govern-ment propaganda, he learns exactly ex-actly why a large part of the population doesn't agree with the war, and he joins them. Facing tear gas, police with (fiWW' CLASSIC fteliinrfln UUI1KLU l mum Sat. Mat. 3:00 & 4:30 nT? 7' Nightly (ex. Sun) WQSsajgi WHSSdV. SAT. MAT. 5:00 ALL 7:30 Nightly (Ex. Sun.) $ 1 I 111 HolldyVIIIqeMall M9-6541 j MY BLUE HEAVEN MON-FRI: 5:30, SAT-SUN: 1 :30. PRESUMED INNOCENT It's always dangerous to presume. MON-FRI: 4:30, SAT-SUN: 2:00, "TTl SomeBnes shoukMtecrossed b mflatliners MON-FRI: 5:00. 7:15. 9:30 SAT-SUN: 12:30. 2:45. 5:00. 7:15. 9:30 utfjm ''M '". as Kovic nightsticks, Republicans with neckties, and a whole range of opposition, op-position, the long-maned, uniformed Kovic sets out to tell people what really happened from the perspective of someone who really knows. It's not what a lot of people want to hear. Stone and Kovic are real veterans whose brilliant visions can't be denied. Their reactions to the war aren't knee-jerk responses to aggression; both men were willing to give their lives for their country, but they realized too late that Vietnam was not a righteous cause. Their experiences validate their views, and their talents for writing and directing allow them to express those ideas with inescapable in-escapable power. Starts Friday nVAQ BRUCE WILLIS tMuy,. A jssz k-cvj. sivm. ic. ouu.j Bird n a wire MEL&COLDIE SEATS 9:30 Nightly .50 (ex. Sun.) ALL SHOWS START FRIDAY 7:30.. 9:30 3:30, 5:30, 7:30, 9:30 7:00., 9:30 4:30. 7:00. 9:30 Mh 'tflftJO ' '- |