THE LIST
Walks on water‘.’ llavers. man! The Scots had no ' divine { expectationsof 1 William of ()range. Had the cameras been there to record the final leg. so to speak. of his progress towards seisin. there would have been little surprise from northern viewers at the sight of the illustrious personage being borne from stranded barge to kingdom aboard the sturdy back of a fisherman called Peter. So the campaign managers blew it'.’ So what would you expect from a deracinated cheese-eater?
Or something similar. The. trappings of majesty are not. in themselves. sufficient to force a free-minded Scot to his loyal knees. Until. that is. you come to the home team. The harder the independant-spirited republically- inclined come . . .
If you're looking for true glory. man — if you're looking for a revolution that will really turn heads.
Right place
crowned or otherwise. try the Stuarts. eh‘.’ See them move with the ball'.’ Ya beauty!
Actually. that‘s not quite right. It‘s not the home team — he it the Stuarts or the '(iers or the Democrats— it‘s the man. the champ. (The woman'.’ (‘ould be. can he — but not. please. wearing a man's skin. . .). Whether you're rooting for King Billy. Prince (‘harlie or Lincle Joe. it's the individual who‘s pitching for the votes. llowever responsible. however educated. however rational we may be about the essential frailty of humankind. we like leaders. not committees.
So while the Labour Party splashes purposefully around the shallows of positive policy-making. critical eyes
Right time
are diverted to the success of Kinnock as Leader of the Opposition. ls he in the right place at the right time wearing the right clothes‘.’ (‘an he get to the end of a question without hesitation. repetition or deviation? Does his wife hairstyle-rhetoric,choice of Desert Island Discs enhance or diminish his national and international credibility? Does it matter'.’
The Americans believe it matters. They believe that popular commitment to self-improvement demands role-models. and
CENTRAL BELT
Sheena McDonald considers the pros and cons of leadership qualities.
personality is just as important as policy if you're going to get the 50’; who don‘t vote out of bed on polling day. L'nfortunately. the campaign- structure over there has a built-in distorting mirror which reflects the opposite of what is presented to a gullible world. So that those with Chutzpah have it sucked away through lenses and microphones. and those who book a second seat on
Right clothes
the plane for the ego come on like St Francis of Assissi-by-l)ow ning Street.
01‘ at least. so it is for a season. Since it is the late ofevery leader to he succeeded. if not superseded. we may cast our favours with a degree of luxurious abandon. You don't like this one'.’ We'll get another — there's plenty of good old boys who want to be up there in the spotlight. And once we dare to start thinking like that. we join the eynies who quell their chartist consciences by voting for the man. in the knowledge that he will best inspirit and soothe the masses. while the shady business of government continues to be executed by those who always did and will.
l have nothing against champions. I wish Frank Bruno a cool head and a smart one when he meets ’l‘yson (what is it about .‘ylichaels these days‘.’ ). Beware cashing in and christening your own little Mike. though — the next vogue name's bound to be Neil. Isn’t it'.’
But I shrink from republicanism. it's because the cult of the champion can only too well disguise the murk and horse-trading behind the olyrnpian images and the augustan
Right of centre
rallies. 'l‘he monarch ofour glens and shires may well court our irritation by riding fishermen or encouraging corgis or splatting architectural zits. but it's a familial irritation and an affectionate ridicule. lnfallibility is not required. What was and is required is a structure w here the exercise of wise government is not diverted by the need to appear glorious. and given the public appetite for glory. I maintain they do it best who‘ve done it longest.
Put it this way — l'd sooner believe a man who entrusts his dignity and safety to the strong legs and back of another citizen than one who claims to walk on water. Beware the blurb. And at the same time. prepare to be astounded. As Mr F. Waller so deftly put it — one never knows. do one‘.’
SPENCER DAVIS
The sound track album at the Phil Collins lilm Buster made itto number1inthe album charts recently. making Spencer Davis' day. “They used the 605' original ‘Keep On Running'. ourlirst Number 1 . with the Winwoods. Mull played that wonderiul bass rill.’ He laughs. ‘In lact Mull probably peaked about then. alter that he got into production. . . he‘s head of CBS in London now. and spends his time behid a desk or on the phone. and it you‘re not playing you lose yourchops!
The Spencer Davis Group is based in LA nowadays. and alterZO years criss-crossing the States. Spencer‘s Welsh accent has a distinct drawl. ‘Apartlrom 74—79. when I hung the guitarup to raise thelamily. and even then I was still playing most days. lhaven't stopped perlorming. Iwas playing lorages belore the band with Stevie Winwood. andjust the same afterwards. Actually. we were playing a Manhattan club a couple ol years back. and Steve came on with us lorcouple ol hours. But nothing organised. But nothing more than that. We do a lot in Canada. where there is a great blues scene. and the size ol the place is so huge. and thenthere's the US. that there is a big audience. and a circuitlor whatever sort at music is yourbagfi
Muddy Waters. Lightning Hopkins and Big Bill Broonzy were his idols and influences. and country blues inlluence leatures in the Rhythm And Blues Revue. arriving next week in Scotland. ‘We‘re doing it lorlun. it‘s a great group of musicians. including one at Britain'szaniest one oils. Zoot Money. whom I've known lortwenty years. a lot ollun.‘
With loci on keyboards and vocals. overlrom Munich. where he has his own TV show comes Pete York. superb drummer and one olthe original band. And then MillerAnderson. He's 3 Scot. and a major starol the blues guitar.
‘l‘m secretly stealing his guitar licks. He is justso good. and he'saline acoustic guitar player as well. lingerpicking. We do some of that. quieter stull. even some rockabilly.‘
So will this Modern Languages graduate ever go backtoteaching? ‘Like those old black guitarists. I'll stop when I‘m 80 . .. maybe 79.‘ (Norman Chalmers)
Spencer Davis in the Rhythm and Blues Revue. Glasgow Maytair318t. Edinburgh Music Box 1st. See Jazz Listings.
GUEST LIST
.,I
It you think there is already quite enough disguise and role playing in Shakespearean comedy. you‘re likelyto be a little concerned by the decision of Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum to cast Myra McFadyen as Touchstone. the lusty male tool in As You Like It. Her perlormances with Theatre de Complicité. Wildcat and The Five Past EightShow leave you in no
doubt that McFadyen has a
gilt for comedy. but has director Hamish Glen also recognized in her a hidden
‘ talentlorcross-dressing?
‘As La Corbie in Liz Lochhead's Mary Queen at Scots. l was once described as being an androgynous character.‘ laughs McFadyen. ‘So I saidto Hamish. don‘tworry about it. I'll just be completely asexual?
So don‘t expect to lind any subtextual meaning in the casting; McFadyen was
3 simplythe bestmantorthe
job. as it were. Likewise the
production.apartlrom . being setin modern day
Scotland. avoids
gimmickry. ‘As You Like It is very relevantto the 19803.‘ : says McFadyen. 'lt's about
love and romance. butthere
; are a lot ollayersto it.‘
This is McFadyen‘slirst Shakespeare and as such it represents the latest at her attempts to stretch hersell as a comic perlormer. 'l
= could have stayed with Wildcattilllwas 80.‘she
l
says. ‘But alter I’d done so many ol their showsthat was as tar as I could go.‘ So lrom the physical demands at Theatre de Complicité (‘l was doing things thall didn'tthink I was capable ol') to the terrilying emotional demands of stand-up comedy (‘I can‘t understand people who do it lora Iiving'). she linds hersellwith the challenge ol bringing to tile 3 man who talks in 17th century riddles. ‘I can't see mysell dashing olltothe RSC
RA McFADYEN
tomorrow.’ she says. ‘But I'd like to do more olit.‘ And no doubt she will. (Mark Fisher). As You Like It opens at the Royal Lyceum. Edinburgh on 28 Oct. See Theatre Listings.
DEREK JACOBI
Derek Jacobi comes to the phone altera latiguing three-hour photo-session with Lord Snowdon. ‘Well. I won't go to him when I want my passport shots done.‘ he says.
Jacobi is touring ‘Richard II' with a 27-strong company in an adventurous plan to do unsubsidised. ‘commercial Shakespeare'. While perlorming in Glasgow and Edinburgh. the company will be rehearsing ‘Richard III‘ priorto perlormances ol both plays (with Jacobi as both kings) in London's West End.
Shakespeare‘s history plays are being much perlormed these days. Michael Pennington's English Shakespeare
Company (seen in Glasgow ,f
in March) are currently touringtheWarsolthe/ Roses cycle. while in Stratlord. Adrian , Noble's f ,- ‘The Plantaganets' (lhe‘HenryVl' / " playsand
2 The List 28 ()ct — ll) Nov 1988