Shleep

 

Today Robert Wyatt will turn 80 - a day to remember him. He was the drummer of prog-/art-rock band Soft Machine. They released several critical highly acclaimed records but I have to admit that they still aren't my cup of tea. Wyatt left the band in the early seventies and formed another bands to release his eclectic sounds. Many of his releases were also recommended as one of the best recordings ever. For me he made only one record that I play from time to time is Shleep.

On this record he returned after a while of absence and new additional musicians. Most of the songs have a very slow mood and songs that shows his abilities of songwriting. Musicians like Brian Eno, Paul Weller and Phil Manzanera made most the songs more than superb. Surely not everyone's taste but a smart look into another galaxy of music.

Shleep

Robert Wyatt is a veteran of British progressive music and founding member of Soft Machine. During a party in 1973 he fell out of the window from the 4th floor and was paralysed from the waist down and had to use a wheelchair for mobility ever since. But he never stopped making music in the following decades. Not the normal stuff you can find in a jukebox and always searching for new sounds. Most of his recordings were experimental and filled with great ideas in arrangements. A few days ago I found his album from 1997 Shleep again in my collection. It made fun to listen to this album after a long time. Shleep is a conscious return to more melodic paths, eschewing some of the experimentation of the past in favour of a gentler sound that recalls the calmer moments of his classic album Rock Bottom, albeit in a more pastoral vein. It is the tension itself between nearly happy ones and the rather more epic songs the album makes amusing. And you can hear that Brian Eno produced the album and played on it as well as one of the most underrated guitar players of the 70's - Phil Manzanera.

Robert Wyatt - Heaps of Sheeps
Robert Wyatt - Alien

Sweet Dreams

During the mid 70's until the early 80's Split Enz the New Zealand rock band formed by Tim Finn were successful in their native country and Australia. I remember the times when I was bored about most of popular music in the mid 70's and was looking for something new. My local record dealer introduced me to Split Enz and Second Thoughts. It was recorded in London an produced by Roxy Music's Phil Manzanera. It was handmade and well arranged music and totally different to many other artists in this decade. Before punk appeared they were one of those few bands that made the difference and I think many bands were inspired by their sound. XTC and Godley & Creme have many influences by Split Enz. And their outfit/performance like in this video were far ahead of their times.