RETURN
TO OZ
by
Jim Bollinger
‘ Goodbye ' Yellow Brick
Road,’ ELTON JOHN,
MCA RECORDS
If you want a glittering
package full of Elton John in
every conceivable type song that
he and Bernie Taupin can throw
together, then just say “goodbye
yellow brick road.” This
two-record set contains the full
spectrum of the type of sons
Elton is fond of and that we’ve
grown to expect from him.
This double set, however, is
more of a production
engineering triumph than some
of his past blockbusters ( most
notably 'Honky Chateau’). ,In
*Yellow Brick Road’, Elton
brings back traces of the sounds
off ‘Madman Across the Water’
and gives them a certain twist
while mixing them into an
album that is as fresh as now,
and as entertaining as one of his
concerts.
This is one album that can’t
be and
lows; yPff tb take it as
it comSK and re’gajrd it vghoHy.
Be adviwd that' the title cut is a
beau of the entire
album, and that his earlier single
“Saturday Night’s Alright for
Fightin” just shows how much
ground Elton & Bernie covered
in their trip back to Oz.
My only criticism is his
over-reliance on nostalgia in
some of this- album,
although this is apparently his
current craze. Besides, this is
adequately made up for in the
total production of the album.
Gone is some of the frankness of
his -earlier works, and one can’t
help;- but wonder, whatever
happened to the technique that
mac£e “Your Song” so great? But
then, you can’t argue with
success, and that’s what ‘Yellow
Brick Road’ is - - - paved with
solid gold.
UNITED
PARCEL
SERVICE
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available
from 10 pm
to 2:30 am
Monday through
Friday
$3.35 per hour to start
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Applications
will be accepted anytime at
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November 26, 1973
Sandy Ridge
This is the forest pernevil
Where lingering ghosts
Float silently through the shadows
Always watching, waiting
The wolves run rampid
Their teeth true with pain
I know no fear
I am home
HERE AM I
by
Romeo Trajanus
Here am I, but am I here?
See I can, but only fear
The darkness blinds me, but not my ears
The silence deafens me, as I cry my tears.
Here am I, but where is here?
The cold numbs me, but still I feel
The wind stirs me, but not my breath,
As I lie here, in this land near death.
Here am I, but now I can't care.
Now the time passes by, but only stays still
And I am still alive, but my senses are nil,
I must now die some death, for life had I my fill
** * *
Paul F. Shoenfelt
GETTIN’ BACK
By Jim Bollinger
‘Cyan’ THREE DOG NIGHT.
ABC-D UNHILL
In ‘Cyan’, Three Dog Night,
America’s No. 1 concert
sensation, spins out another LP
to follow up their smash single
“Shambala.” Though they
hardly need the record sales to
provide them with financial
security, it seems the 3-Dog is
trying to recapture the magic
they once possessed on their
earlier albums (especially
‘Naturally’), and, to the extent
that is acceptable, they
accomplish the feat well.
‘Cyan’ is no landmark album,
but it ‘is’ all 3-Dog Night, and
every bit of, it’s made of the
same fabric that took them to
their heights of success. This
album is definitely superior to
‘Harmony’, and probably better
than ‘Seven Separate Fools’,
though it’s still no match for
‘Naturally ’or ‘lt Ain’t Easy ’.
On this latest disc, they
finally make their first
baby-steps into the world of
song-writing. Long
acknowledged as a fine singing
group, they break out with not
one, but three original,
self-written songs, all composed
by Mike Allsup, and one of
them, “Storybook Feeling,” is
the prettiest song on the album.
Allsup, the lead ( and best)
guitarist is a suprisingly good
songwriter.
So, though they haven’t
started anything revolutionary,
3-Dog Night is moving along
slowly but progressively to
greater heights on ground that
they have hallowed themselves
with their own patented touch.
Three Dog Night is indeed alive
and very well, and should be
living their latest on your stereo.
Ed note: We would welcome
your comments and/or notes
you have on any new records
you may be interested in.
** * *
C. C. READER
A Morgan Breeder
John Greenall guiding Topfield’s Distlefink enroute to
blue ribbon at the Allentown Horse Show. The vehicle is
an 1890 gentleman’s morning carriage.
** * *
by
John Bradford Langdon
Most Americans hold their
week-ends in near sanctity,
whether it be for football,
hunting, shopping or working
around the home. John Greenall
is no exception. He breeds
Morgan horses, refinishes
antique carriages and runs a
riding school, in addition to
being a full-time business major
at Pennsylvania State
University’s Capitol Campus.
Every Friday at 3:05 p.m.
John begins his journey to
Thorny Hills Farms, his parents’
farm located near New Tripoli,
Pa. School has remained a four
and one-half day occupation for
him.
Although the Greenall
family has owned horses for
about 20 years, John’s interest
in Morgan horse breeding and
showing was not sparked until a
Morgan horse farm started near
his home nine years ago.
Reminiscing, John said, “I
started visiting farms all over and
hung around alot, as any child
would, gaining as much
knowledge as I could.”
His other highly-rated
interest, antique horse carriages,
was spurred on by the
acquisition of his first Morgan, a
stallion named Topfield’s
Distlefink. “The Morgans,” he
explained, “are ideal for pulling
carriages for they’re
even-tempered, easily trained
and really a ‘family’ horse.” The
coupling of Morgans and
carriages has created a dual
obsession, about which his entire
life revolves.
Time is a premium to be paid
in collecting antique
horse-drawn carriages. The 26
year old collector admitted,
“I‘ve spent many hours looking
for the ‘real’ find ( a
well-preserved carriage) and have
discovered them in some unusual
places. For instance, while I was
traveling in Canada, I purchased
an 1880’s ladies formal wicker
carriage from a hotdog stand
that had two dummies sitting in
it!”
Numbering over 25
horse-drawn vehicles, John’s
collection was begun by his
father, Rodger K. Greenall, in
the Fifties. Time has drastically
affected buying prices of
carriages. John explained, “The
Fifty-cent sleigh at an auction
has disappeared. Inflation has
jumped the prices of antique
horse-drawn carriages and sleighs
in very rough condition, up to
the $75 - $2OO bracket.”
Refinishing the carriages can
be an expensive enterprise, so
the young collector does most of
the painting and repairs himself.
However, the Amish of
Lancaster County put on new
rubber tires and do the
upholstery work, some of it
using patent leather.
Distlefink, the Morgan
stallion, has also afforded John
the opportunity to join the
Mid-Atlantic Morgan Horse
Club. A few years after joining
the Club, a European tour for
Pennsylvania horse-breeders was
being arranged by Penn State’s
Page 5
department head of Animal
Hubbandry, James Gallagher, in
co-operation with the People - to
- People Exchange Program.
John was invited to join the tour
which represented every breed
of horse raised in Pennsylvania.
The U.S.S.R., Poland, Austria,
Hungary, France, Germany and
Ireland were visited by the
horse-breeders.
“By far, I was the youngest
member of the tour and was
quite fortunate to gain clearance
from Washington to visit the
Communist countries, for at the
time I was in the Coast Guard, ”
John noted.
Continuing, he stated, “Our
purpose was to exchange ideas
about horse breeding and tour
selected farms. One of the
dramatic differences was the
upkeep of the farm grounds.
Unpainted and unkept buildings,
as compared to our ‘manicured’
buildings and grounds, were
common. However, their
products, the horses, were of
excellent quality.”
The Irish and Russians gave a
new look of horse racing to the
touring Pennsylvanias, who were
accustomed to super
commercialized and emotionally
- wrought contests. The young
breeder remarked:
“The Irish run races on
UNLEVEL turf and in
surroundings which lack the
glamour of our tracks. They
view horse racing as a sport to be
enjoyed, rather than a huge
money making endeavor,
“At a track outside Moscow,
we encountered a strange
situation: Spectators weren’t
cheering or showing any
emotions as the horses neared
the finish line, even though they
were betting! All the Americans
started cheering anyway, and by
the end of the eighth race, the
crowd was beginning to cheer
too! Who knows, maybe it
caught on! They seemed to
never have experienced that kind
of outward show of
enthusiasm.”
Since the European trip,
John’s stallion, Distlefink,
provided him with another warm
experience - winning on the
show circuit.
With a touch of pride, the 26
year old competitor commented,
“ Distlefink and I won a whole
shelf-full of silver and various
cash prizes last year, until an
injury forced my Morgan off the
circuit.” He added, “After riding
his mare throughout her 11
-month pregnancy, and raising
him from a colt, winning blue
ribbons is quite a thrill!”
Last September, however,
misfortune nearly cost John a
valuable 1885 buckboard surrey,
while on his way to Gettysburg,
Pa. The surrey tore loose from
his flatbed truck and flew back
on top of the horse-trailer,
narrowly missing obliteration at
60 mph.
On week-ends when he’s not
showing on the circuit or
looking for buggies, John’s
managing the family farm,
conducting his riding school and
. . . . looking forward to
graduation in June.
** * *