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March 28, 2024, 09:51:16 AM

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Canterbury schnizzle

Started by holyzombiejesus, July 08, 2019, 07:56:05 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

BlodwynPig

Quote from: Flouncer on July 09, 2019, 08:44:25 PM
I didn't know that about Andy Summers. There is another Canterbury connection with The Police: Mike Howlett from Gong was in Strontium 90, a short-lived band with two bass players which consisted of him, Summers, Copeland and Sting. They performed at Gong's 1977 reunion in Paris.

Yep, ive mentioned that on here before - its not great sadly, Nik Turner is on it too and his recordings of it in the 90s are far better (with Pressurehed)

BlodwynPig

Quote from: holyzombiejesus on July 09, 2019, 08:59:11 PM
See, all that stuff really puts me off. I fucking hate The Police. I like Robert Wyatt's voice and the thought of loads of weird young men pootling around Canterbury making records. I don't want to think of the fucking Police.

Martin Clunes hung around with Ozric Tentacles in their early incarnation (Bolshem People), always loved that image

NoSleep

Andy Summers was in The Animals as well, so they get on the Canterbury family tree, too.

NoSleep

In 1982 Bill Laswell, who has worked with several Canterbury scene musos (Daevid Allen, Charles Hayward & Fred Frith come to mind) debuted Whitney Houston, singing a song composed by Soft Machine bass player Hugh Hopper that was first sung by Robert Wyatt. The track also featured jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp, so you can add his name to the list, too. Whitney's version of the song (Memories) is the only one existing where all the written verses are sung.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xj4xGiXfW0

Here's Robert Wyatt singing it in 1974 (the b-side of his single I'm A Believer):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvSEPmsgA9w

And Robert singing it earlier on Daevid Allen's album Banana Moon (1971):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlvsBgwn4m0

And even earlier (1966) with the Wilde Flowers (the band that had members of both Soft Machine and Caravan):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyEEGfWw83c


NoSleep

Soft Machine appear as the backing band on two tracks of Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs. They had to play along to the already recorded Syd on vocals and guitar (with no thought of a band being added later), which explains why they sound like they're having trouble keeping up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1lAbB-wil4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGEDlmPu78

Sin Agog

Quote from: NoSleep on July 09, 2019, 08:01:11 PM
Brian Eno played drums? nah, it was Simon Phillips. You can have CH's singing.


Yeah, but that was Eno singing Hayward's Rongwrong, and generally infusing the air with Eno odours the way Hayward had done with his Hayward smells previously.  CH is hardly the shy, hide behind the cymbals type when it comes to songwriting and structuring.

Dirty Boy

Don't have much to add beyond saying that this thread is a goldmine of things i've missed or otherwise not got round to, Quiet Sun for instance, as a huge This Heat fan there's really no excuse.

Has Kew.Rhone not been mentioned? What an incredible album that is.

Some of you might have missed that Rock Bottom was recently covered in it's entirety by the North Sea Radio Orchestra in collab with Henry Cow's John Greaves and  Annie Barbazza (who tbh i'm not au fait with) it's on youtube and snotify and apparently has the blessing of your man Mr Wyatt himself. I'm still trying to find a sensibly priced copy though...

Sea Song.

Absorb the anus burn

Quote from: Dirty Boy on July 10, 2019, 11:35:44 AM
Kew.Rhone not been mentioned?

Sea Song.

Yes, Kew.Rhone is a corker...

Also, a shout out for Fred's Frith's first three solo albums - especially Gravity with support from Samla Mammas Manna who certainly have some Canterbury touches

jobotic

Stop singing Hayward's Rongwrong wrong.

Hemulen

Quote from: Absorb the anus burn on July 10, 2019, 11:39:22 AM
Yes, Kew.Rhone is a corker...

Also, a shout out for Fred's Frith's first three solo albums - especially Gravity with support from Samla Mammas Manna who certainly have some Canterbury touches

Agreed. Worth mentioning that the aforementioned Muffins also acted as backing band on Frith's Gravity - Samla on side 1 and Muffins on side 2. Marc Hollander of the wonderful Aksak Maboul also guested on both sides.

On the subject of Frith, what about Skeleton Crew? Maybe we're straying too far from core Canterbury stylistic elements there, but I think that project shares a lot of the same impish humour and freewheeling energy. It's such a fuzzy border between Canterbury and RIO at times - just goes to show how these labels are really only of use to us anoraks who want to file everything into little boxes.

purlieu

Just announced, a Caravan 9CD box with everything studio & live from 'If I Could' through to 'Cunning Stunts'. http://www.superdeluxeedition.com/news/caravan-the-decca-deram-years-an-anthology-1970-1975-9cd-box-set/
That's a good selection of music. It's missing the wonderful and hugely underrated debut, which is far less prog and closer to the psych sound at the time, but otherwise contains all the other Caravan you could ever really want.

Sin Agog

Quote from: Hemulen on July 10, 2019, 01:14:41 PM
Agreed. Worth mentioning that the aforementioned Muffins also acted as backing band on Frith's Gravity - Samla on side 1 and Muffins on side 2. Marc Hollander of the wonderful Aksak Maboul also guested on both sides.

On the subject of Frith, what about Skeleton Crew? Maybe we're straying too far from core Canterbury stylistic elements there, but I think that project shares a lot of the same impish humour and freewheeling energy. It's such a fuzzy border between Canterbury and RIO at times - just goes to show how these labels are really only of use to us anoraks who want to file everything into little boxes.

I dug the Skeleton Crew, and all of Frith and Cutler's forays into almost-pop music, really.  You heard The Science Group's A Mere Coincidence?  One of the best things he did since his Henry Cow/Art Bears/News From Babel salad days. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jk3OEp2Z1x0

I did meet him once at a posh friend's mum's house.  He was kinda aloof and more interested in the cheese platter he had in front of him than talking to me, which is understandable.

shh

Quote from: purlieu on July 10, 2019, 04:02:21 PM
It's missing the wonderful and hugely underrated debut, which is far less prog and closer to the psych sound at the time

One of their best. They never became too po-faced either when they switched over into prog 'proper', unlike say Yes/Floyd.

Having said that, they did do an orchestral collaboration concert (the first?): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQbmHa6Qz7Q

Gilgamesh as another (minor) entry, I'd say they occupied territory half-way between Hatfield and national health.

purlieu

Quote from: shh on July 10, 2019, 04:59:46 PM
Having said that, they did do an orchestral collaboration concert (the first?): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQbmHa6Qz7Q
I've never heard this album, because... well, because it sounds like a bad idea. I was enjoying this until the great bit, but the brass totally ruins in there. Let's have that scuzzy organ to the fore please.

NoSleep

Quote from: shh on July 10, 2019, 04:59:46 PM

Having said that, they did do an orchestral collaboration concert (the first?): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQbmHa6Qz7Q


Do you mean were they the first band to share a stage with an orchestra? There's Deep Purple (Concerto For Group & Orchestra - 1969 - recorded live at the Albert Hall) which is actually quite fun. Pink Floyd did Atom Heart Mother live at Hyde Park with an orchestra in 1970 (went to this and support acts Kevin Ayers and Edgar Broughton were tons more fun). Kevin Ayers recorded a live BBC session with his band and an orchestra in 1972 (Kevin Ayers BBC Radio 1 Live In Concert). And Zappa of course.

Quote from: shh on July 10, 2019, 04:59:46 PM
Gilgamesh as another (minor) entry, I'd say they occupied territory half-way between Hatfield and national health.

I saw Gilgamesh as the support act at a very early Hatfield & The North gig; must have been organised by the bands themselves as H&TN's Dave Stewart was running the box office. I saw their guitarist Bill Gilonis years later in Tim Hodgkinson's band The Work, which was one of the best gigs I've witnessed: extremely powerful band.

jobotic

My only knowledge of all this is a bit of early Soft Machine but enjoying this thread.

The Polite Force is really good, thanks for that.

jobotic

Early Robert Wyatt thing - lovely.

Wilde Flowers - Impotence

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iPPBZBVbMs


Maurice Yeatman

Quote from: jobotic on July 10, 2019, 10:44:40 PM
The Polite Force is really good, thanks for that.

A Visit to Newport Hospital is bloody brilliant for a start.

I think I've linked before to this impressionistic biographical video that a fan put together, but I still like it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7_xdm_CJ_k

NoSleep

#48
Inspired by this thread, I found a very affordable copy of Triple Echo, a three album retrospective of Soft Machine's career up to 1977. I already had all the recordings but the accompanying booklet contains a family tree for the entire early Canterbury scene focussed around the band. Interesting to note that Quiet Sun are in there (naturally) but no mention, as yet, of the early This Heat, although Radar Favourites gets noted, and was where Charles Hayward and Charles Bullen met up so far as I know.

Enjoy: SMFT.jpg

The BBC Session version of Moon In June, which is on Triple Echo, would be one of my Desert Island Discs I think. Have always loved that track. With its name checks for Pink Floyd, John Peel, John Cage, Caravan and "jazz groups" it conveys so perfectly how I assume it felt to be 19 years old in the late '60's (I was actually 9 years old and still listening to my Thunderbirds 7" 33rpm mini-albums).

NoSleep

#50
Quote from: chveik on July 09, 2019, 08:19:11 PM
Art Bears. they don't really belong to this scene, but they're great.

Although all the members of Art Bears did an entire tour with Robert Wyatt sharing lead vocals with Dagmar when they were still Henry Cow, which makes up the best part of Henry Cow's "Concerts" album (dimedozen.org is a good place to find further recordings from this tour). They played Matching Mole and Robert Wyatt tunes as well as stuff from the Henry Cow repertoire. Also Chris Cutler (H.Cow, Art Bears) and Dave Stewart (Egg, H&TN, National Health) both worked together, before going on to join the bands we know them for.

Sin Agog

Quote from: NoSleep on July 25, 2019, 02:11:22 PM
Although all the members of Art Bears did an entire tour with Robert Wyatt sharing lead vocals with Dagmar when they were still Henry Cow, which makes up the best part of Henry Cow's "Concerts" album (dimedozen.org is a good place to find further recordings from this tour). They played Matching Mole and Robert Wyatt tunes as well as stuff from the Henry Cow repertoire. Also Chris Cutler (H.Cow, Art Bears) and Dave Stewart (Egg, H&TN, National Health) both worked together, before going on to join the bands we know them for.

Wyatt seemed right at home on that lovely last News From Babel album.  https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FhL1hpjFuIY

Twonty Gostelow

BUMP but the thread content is still relevant.

Someone is currently uploading rescued footage from ILEA's cable television channel, including Music Alive performances by Kevin Ayers and Robert Wyatt, with and without Soft Machine and Matching Mole. I'm pretty sure I've never seen any of it before - worth keeping an eye on if anything else turns up.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-VZ_N8KLdwJhobRHGRtm8Q/videos .

(Mr Safety is worth a watch too!)

Pete23

Two bands I've been listening to recently who've been heavily influenced by the Canterbury scene:


studpuppet

Reading through and there is a Pete Frame family tree (should be legible if you click on it):


Twonty Gostelow

Quote from: Hemulen on July 09, 2019, 10:56:34 AM
Egg - They put out three gems of early Canterbury, of which The Polite Force is my personal favourite.

Quote from: jobotic on July 10, 2019, 10:44:40 PM
The Polite Force is really good, thanks for that.

Quote from: Maurice Yeatman on July 10, 2019, 11:51:30 PM
A Visit to Newport Hospital is bloody brilliant for a start.

I think I've linked before to this impressionistic biographical video that a fan put together, but I still like it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7_xdm_CJ_k

Talking (14 months ago) of Egg, a while ago I read an article about Anna Campbell, the British woman who was killed in Syria fighting ISIS. It was only after watching this moving documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XP1DGuze9EI that I realised she was the daughter of Mont Campbell, Egg's singer and bass player. He's now known as Dirk Campbell (he's released 3 albums under that name) and appears in the documentary at the beginning and throughout.

jobotic

Wow that is interesting.

Glad this got bumped, I'd forgotten about Egg and that fantastic track. Ended up going to bed far too late last night.

NoSleep

Quote from: studpuppet on September 11, 2020, 06:34:03 PM
Reading through and there is a Pete Frame family tree (should be legible if you click on it):



It was a similar (earlier but more comprehensive) Peter Frame family tree I shared (after carefully scanning) in the previous link, but one that was included in the 3 LP Soft Machine boxed set Triple Echo. Here it is again (grab it quick as the link will only last a while):

Soft Machine/Canterbury Family tree



Twonty Gostelow

Dave Stewart has said that if the 18-year-old Hillage hadn't left Uriel to go to university they would have gone on to make some brilliant music and had much more commercial success. Obviously there'd be no Egg as we know it but I think he might be right.

Flouncer

Quote from: Twonty Gostelow on September 09, 2020, 10:41:06 AM
BUMP but the thread content is still relevant.

Someone is currently uploading rescued footage from ILEA's cable television channel, including Music Alive performances by Kevin Ayers and Robert Wyatt, with and without Soft Machine and Matching Mole. I'm pretty sure I've never seen any of it before - worth keeping an eye on if anything else turns up.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-VZ_N8KLdwJhobRHGRtm8Q/videos .

(Mr Safety is worth a watch too!)

Cheers man, that looks like smashing stuff. I'll grab those videos in case the channel gets taken down.

Quote from: Twonty Gostelow on September 11, 2020, 09:41:39 PM
Talking (14 months ago) of Egg, a while ago I read an article about Anna Campbell, the British woman who was killed in Syria fighting ISIS. It was only after watching this moving documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XP1DGuze9EI that I realised she was the daughter of Mont Campbell, Egg's singer and bass player. He's now known as Dirk Campbell (he's released 3 albums under that name) and appears in the documentary at the beginning and throughout.

Oh shit, I didn't realise that. Anna was a member of my trade union (the IWW - I think four of our members have died out there fighting alongside the Kurds); she went to uni here in Sheffield and some of my union pals knew her. Absolute top lass. I'll check the documentary out also.