Show Date	1979-10-05
Location	Passaic NJ
Venue	Capitol Theater
Tour	The 'Reggatta' years 1979/80

PASSAIC, NJ: Capitol Theater

The Police/Moon Martin/Capitol Theatre, Oct. 5...

The Police, like Jekyll and Hyde, suffer from a dual identity crisis. At times, the trio is an Anglicized reggae band, playing the genre's unique syncopations with razor-edged execution. At other times, the band exhibits a punkish posture, punching out frantic tempos with drive and intensity.

In fact, the Police even manage to transform from one idiom to the other during the same song ('So Lonely', for example). Fortunately, this musical schizophrenia is only superficial.

The band, despite its unusually loud volume (Stewart Copeland's snare drum was unnecessarily noisy), was professionally consistent throughout the entire evening, although 'Hole In My Life' and 'Can't Stand Losing You' were even more vibrant than their vinyl versions on 'Outlandos d'Amour'.

Moon Martin and the Ravens followed the esoteric electronics of Fashion, playing a spirited set of originals from the LP 'Escape From Domination' and a handful of oldies from the likes of Elvis Presley, Fats Domino and the Beatles. Martin, a bespectacled Oklahoman, is a much better writer (he composed Robert Palmer's 'Bad Case Of Loving You') than he is a vocalist or guitarist, but with the competent Ravens in reserve, he can generate a lot of enthusiasm - especially with the bouncy 'Rolene', which is currently climbing up the singles chart.

However, when called upon to encore, Martin responded surprisingly with a couple of remakes: a weak version of 'Please Please Me' and a confused rendition of 'I'm Ready', a 1959 hit for Domino. Still, Martin, who is heading for a European tour next month, is a star on the rise.

© The Aquarian by Bill Chernerka (with thanks to Dietmar)



PASSAIC, NJ: Capitol Theatre

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