Dear CREEM:

Greil Marcus deserves five stars for his great review of Creedence’s Mardi Gras. Someone takes Creedence for what they are!

George Koumantzelis

Lowell, Mass.

THE GREAT DEBATE

Dear CREEM:

You should print a transcribed debate between Lester Bangs and Tony Glover on the subject of the Allman Brothers.

And it’s Sri Chinmoy, “Chomery.”

Yours truly,

Doug Wray

Hartsdale NY

Dear CREEM:

Living in a small town, there ain’t much to do for kicks. At one time, I even felt like killing myself. But now me and two other boys have found great fun in grabbing girls’ tits. Believe me, it’s a gas.

Larry Pozalek

Russell, Kns.

P.S. The Rolling Stones ajnd Lord Sutch are the-greatest people in the world.

MOTT THE HOOPLE'S STRANGE COINCIDENCES

Dear CREEM:

Re: Peter of Jersey City’s letter about the Rolling Stones and Mott the Hoople.

1 think it might be interesting to note that besides the opening of “Rock & Roll Queen”/ “Bitch” being exactly similar, another couple of strange similarities exist. The original title of M the H’s second album was Sticky Fingers believe it or not. Also, the title of their third album and McCartney’s third is both Wildlife. Big deal.

A.H. Olsen

Avenel, N.J.

Dear CREEM:

You (and Craig Karpel) seem to be quite confused on a certain subject – concerning “Howard Huges: ‘When Electred My First Act Will Be to Cure Cancer,’ ” in your June issue. To contradict you – "The Panama Red” is alive and living right here in the Canal Zone.

Zappa you ***!!!***

Big Red & Billy Zig Zag

Fort Clayton, C.Z.

(Prove it. –Ed.)

SENIOR PROM OF THE EIGHTIES

Dear CREEM:

That’s a good question (from my letter in June '72,) because I don’t know what “ricorsic” means, but if you look back to your Chicago six massacre you’ll find that Nick Tosches uses it (and. it. is spelled the same way) and after I spent fifteen minutes trying

to find it in an assortment of dictionaries I gave up and decided that whatever Saga of man it reeked of it sure did reek. Arouse poor Lester for me and tell him he’s right about that Jimmy Page, I saw him hanging around outside my window last night trying to rip off some of my incredible guitar licks but I drove him off by turning everything up full blast and batting out “Louie Louie". Tell Lester his Sabbath piece was (and is) beautiful and so is Black Sabbath, but alas I’ve already died with King Crimson. But I do have two Grand Mothers (don’t we all) and all they would need would be a little dose of Their Satanic Majesties (see things do carry on, the Rolling iStones probably don’t know what they created) at about 1000 watts to put them up for their funeral. Well that isn’t very funny but this long haired drunk guy who came to our senior prom with the tightest pair of tweed pants that came down to about midcalf, and with a very embarrassing bulge, who kept trying to sing “Light My Fire Baby” (the original rhythmic idea was there but I don’t think it went any farther) was a riot. He got up (from the floor) and came over to our! table and said that he was Lester Bangs and asked us if we wanted him to creem all over our table – he finally passed out and our “half a dozen of Rent-a-Cops of both sexes” dragged him out over an imitation' of a screaming elephant from the band. All the while he was yelling something about Lester Bangs Creem.

Tom Shepard

Lisle, Ill.

Dear CREEM:

Dear CREEM: Just read Vince Aletti’s “Tighten Up” in the May issue.

I’m of his ilk. I agree.

agree. But the forthright espousal pf homosexual love in public ballad seems a pipe dream, as much as I too would like to see it. So, like him, I settle for ambivalent lyrics – words which can be taken either Way. can Way. And while Vince may be way ahead of me, I would like to call his attention to the George Harrison album, All Things Must Pass. Do you realize that every song on the album is thusly ambiguous? Not once is mentioned the feminine name or even pronoun. The closest the album comes to this is in the one cut Harrison did not write, Bob Dylan’s “If Not For You.” The word used is “babe,” but this is a term of endearment which I am sure has been used by many a queen, or faggot, if you must, in deference to Vince.

you But more than this, certain cuts on the album get off some real scorchers of very strongly implicative verbiage, which any faggot with his antennae up and tuned to the right frequency can’t dismiss as coincidence. Most of this intimation occurs on side two, following the aforementioned Dylan cut. Three songs “Behind That Locked Door” (the title itself is dynamite for faggot), “Let It, Down,” and “Run of the Mill” are notable.

Down,” and “Run of the Mill” – are notable. Try for the thinly veiled meanings also in “What Is Life?” “I’ll Have You Anytime,” “Wah-wah,” “Beware of Darkness,” “Isn’t It A and Scruffs”.

A Pity” and even “Apple Scruffs”. Has Vince ever , really listened to this album in this light, and if so, what are his comments? If he has not, will he please do so, and IS what I read into this or merely the phantasizing of a depraved, homosexual mind?

Please do not print my name, as job, friends, and yes, even my paranoid life might depend on my remaining “behind that locked door." Just sign me

Closet

F. Wayne, Ind.

BRITISH BLUES RESOURCES DISCOVERED

Dear CREEM:

Tom Shepard writes, in your June issue, that both the Small Faces and Led Zeppelin lifted the same old blues song; you reply that both of the songs have “little to do with anyone’s blues.” Unfortunately, you’re totally wrong. Enclosed find documentary proof (hat Messrs. Jimmy, Bobby and Co, did in fact steal directly from an old Willie Dixon song, "You Need Love.” Notice some of the lines that mysteriously pop up:

I ain’t foolin/You need schoolin’ and

Way down inside

and so on. The song is published in Folk Blues by Arc Music and, if I’m hot mistaken, the same song also appears on a Chambers Bros, record.

I don’t object to using old blues as source material but at least Led Zeppelin and the Faces should have had the decency to keep Mr. Dixon’s name in public sight as lyricist.

Craig O’Donnell

Newark, Del.

Dear CREEM:

You were right about NRBQ. They appear to havp a sense of humor and fairplay but I know better. After radio concert here, they did an interview with a very sensitive d.j. He agreed that these new groups were loud and offensive. NRBQ went on to assert that they were playing authentic r&r. Their big claim to fame is singing about grilled cheese and french fries, which is okay but they manage to do it condescendingly. I could really enjoy this band, but they are so intent on appearing loose and good timey that they become. Goooooooelfey (sic).

Saturday night I saw McKendrie Spring and Fleetwood Mac. Everybody came out to have a good time, no matter what the groups played. Well, M.S. was bad but the audience was stomping on their own turds for them.

Then, Big Mac came out and said, “Hey let’s boogie.” And so we did. I ended up in front of Mick Fleetwood, banging on his drum. Some guy next to me was banging me with his tambourine. Yeah, he was having a good time.

All the little taco tit chicks were trying to keep their peasant blouse straps from falling down. If I had been in a better humor, I could have laughed. But I was sick and I forgot my earplugs. The fact is that I don’t like this art for art’s sake music, but then this steam-roller stuff makes me feel physically bad in live cohcert. Lester seems to be up to it, but I can’t take it without the ear-plugs.

So Dear Baggatha, please tell this little mushy wimpoid rock fan what he should listen to. After all, you do know what’s best for me don’t ya?

Chester the Conger-eel

Memphis Tenn.

P.S. Raspberries to all sensitive avant-garde rock fans, including myself.

(Dear Chester: The soundtrack from The Godfather is pretty good. Hey, wanna review some records for us? –Love, Lester)

THAT OLD BANGLA MAGIC Dear CREEM:

Quakertown, Pa. doesn’t seem to agree with Greil Marcus about the Bangla Desh benefit. I don’t care one way or the other, but I couldn’t help noticing the incredible contradictions in Holly Schwer’s letter. The best example is the paragraph about “egotistical, neurotic, frustrated, narrow-minded, uptight, superior, super-super-hip critics” (whew!) which ends with “Everyone should have their own opinions and I respect them...” I suppose if Mr. Marcus praised the album she’d say, “How right he is obviously the fairest reviewer alive today.” She misses the point of record reviews. If she really likes it, why should it matter what Greil Marcus says? He’s not insulting her intelligence or demanding that she agree with him (as she demands that he agree with her),.he’s trying to tell people who are thinking about buying the album what he thinks of it, and they can judge for themselves if he has the same taste in music that they have by his previous reviews. The reviews are intended to be guides, not gospels of truth.

Now if Mike Saunders would just quit reviewing albums he knows he’s not going to like before he even plays them, even if his reviews are entertaining...

Mike Ashton

Auburn Ala.

Dear CREEM:

When I was at KSFX and a jock(ette), I played Bob Seger singles, albums and enthused about him oyer and over and shy, wouldn’cha know it, other jocks at the station played him, too! The power of energy, if you please. KSFX is in San Francisco, so never use “neyer” mah boy, unless you know it's never.

And, just to show how cycles can be made if not born, here I am at Asylum records and we’ve got this group, The Eagles and Glenn Frey is a Detroit skinny and what's he reeeeal proud of?; why that he played on “Heavy Music” of course, and a couple of other Seger sessions. So the two of us enthuse and enthuse and all that.

Lita Eliscu

Asylum Records . Hollywood, Ca.

(We didn’t say that Bob’s records didn’t get played in San Francisco, exactly; we were sort of talking about Top 40 singles action. Is KSFX (ABC-FM outlet) singles action? Naw... -Ed.)

WHO'S THE STAR?

Dear CREEM:

Now that Grand Funk is breaking up, I guess the star of the group will go on to bigger trips and the other three will drop by the wayside. They were the first big group where people talked about the manager more than the musicians. Knight was the star, anyone could have been GF. Hell, they were Everyman, that was part of their appeal. Most of Knight’s publicity campaigns were built around that idea, as a matter of fact.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 65.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8.

I suppose it’s all choreographed. It’s just more of Terry Knight’s genius that I feel this way - it really works though. I feel like going out and buying another GF album just to feel more of that glorious self-pity and defiance and brotherhood.

“Hey there baby — do you want to make, the scene?” Mark, Don and Mel made it but I bet after the hip capitalist sues them for 15 million and the rock and roll shyster puts them through his wringer they’ll wind up back in Flint with nothing but their slightly used rock star costumes. Like the MC5, they can still hit those heavy power chords, but how long will they sustain in the music “industry” without Knight’s hyping? Oh well, Mark’s got his farm. That’s cool. Good luck to ’ them,

Peter L. Schneider

Qak Park, Mich.

BEACH BLANKET ROULETTE DearCREEM:

I’m sorry Tom Smucker doesn’t understand. The Beach Boys put out hits in the mid-sixties. As West Coast, Protestant, running-dogs-of-Imperialism or as Artists, just HITS. You could like them and buy them or not. No problem.

He fidgets too much. Everyone likes a periodic public tussle with the old Identity, but he seems to be letting his self-image get in the way of the music. At that rate, he won’t enjoy himself or find out what’s going on.

It would be best to merely realize that rock’n’roll is basically big, fun and really hard to live with. Especially if you find politics really seductive and even more especially if the identity tends to crisis.

It’s all just a virulent case of the rockin’ pneumonia, Tom Smucker. That’s all.

With best wishes,

Lisa Shoot Booklyn N.Y.

P.S. Great to see Christgau with you regularly. (That’s all! That’s enough! — Ed.)

Dear CREEM:

What’s this krapp about Lou Reed being a more talented and versatile old fart than Bob Dylan. Tell Lester Bangs to stick his toes up his ass.

Country Punk Shields Corinth, Miss.