RIO 2019 : PRESENT, ROCK BOTTOM par THE NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA

RIO 2019 : PRESENT, ROCK BOTTOM par THE NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA

More info on the Rock In Opposition happening (11 May 2019) here

"This arrangement of Robert Wyatt’s masterpiece, Rock Bottom by Greg Fortman and his contemporary ensemble, as well as being critically acclaimed, will be the finale of this twelfth edition of the Rock In Opposition Festival. On this occasion, the group is enriched by the presence of the collaborator Wyatt, founder of Henry Cow: John Greaves on bass and vocals and a rising star: the singer Annie Barbazza".

The Future Eve featuring Robert Wyatt

The Future Eve featuring Robert Wyatt - KiTsuNe / Brian The Fox. This is a project we have mentioned a couple of times before (here and here), and if I understand this right, we can soon get it on CD and vinyl from Flau records (Japan).

Annette Peacock in The New Yorker

You might be interested in Damon Krukowsk´s piece "The Unclassifiable, Unstreamable Eighties Albums of Annette Peacock" in the New Yorker (5 December 2018), where she among other things talks about Alfie and Robert Wyatt.

"I was impressed with Alfie’s work, its innocence, the colors, her concept, and I asked her to do a portrait for the cover of “I Have No Feelings.” Alfie was apologetic for never having finished the hands. But all I saw was that glorious, blue, technicolor sky visible through my transparent eyes, and I didn’t care about the unfinished hands. Robert and Alfie are like Paris in the thirties, wonderful, and I fell in love with them both!"

Nicolas Roeg (RIP), Venice and Rock Bottom

Somebody (@MrPaulDuane) recently tweeted a link to a piece called "Two Intertwined Semi-Venetian Masterpieces" by Glenn Kenny (The Criterion Collection 2015).

I must have read it before but can´t see that I have posted it.

"Venice asserts itself as “a sinister presence” in Roeg’s film ((Don’t Look Now, 1973)) Robert Wyatt aptly notes in the liner notes to a 1998 reissue of his 1974 album Rock Bottom. Wyatt cites Don’t Look Now in his notes because the making of the film, particularly its six-week Venice shoot, is intimately intertwined with the genesis of his classic album—ranked alongside Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks by NME in the year of its release, when it was also awarded an international Grand Prix du Disque in France, and, according to biographer Marcus O’Dair, “still widely considered one of the finest albums ever made.”

Late in 1972, Wyatt’s then girlfriend and future wife, the artist Alfreda Benge, was hired as second assistant editor for the just-beginning Roeg production. Benge had met Roeg while he was shooting the concert doc Glastonbury Fayre, and was close friends with the film’s female lead,Julie Christie. The picture began filming around Christmas in England, and in January of 1973 moved to Venice for location shooting."

North Sea Radio Orchestra plays Rock Bottom

North Sea Radio Orchestra with John Greaves and Annie Barbazza plays Rock Bottom Friday 30 November 2018 - in Italy that is (Conservatorio di Musica G.Nicolini, Piacenza).

Carolina Katún - Al Silencio (Jazzland 2018)

A nice cover of "Sea Song" on Carolina Katún´s album "Al Silencio" on the Norwegian Jazzland label (October 2018).

""In Al Silencio", I was willing to pay tribute to some of the keys songs and singers that have impacted my life so far. This repertoire is composed of some Latino American standards such as la ranchera mexicana "La llorona", and others which are less well-known, such as "Le tengo al silencio", from Athahalpa Yupanqui, the song that gave the Album its title..." Through pieces by Robert Wyatt or Purcell, the band opens up to other horizons such as pop and baroque music. The specific quality of the band is to make each piece their own in a common spirit, conjuring new arrangements that possess a beautiful simplicity. The group's open-mindedness was the perfect fit for Carolina Katún."

Listen, buy and read more on Jazzland´s Bandcamp and home page.

MOJO No. 300

Finally Mojo´s issue no. 300 is in the shelves here in Norway too.

The cover is a nice tribute to Beatles´ white album of course and the CD that comes with the magazine has a previously unreleased track by Robert Wyatt.

The Wyatt song is a beautiful demo of Robert Wyatt singing the Paul Weller lyrics to "Invisible", a song later used on Weller´s "22 Dreams" (2008).

From Mojo:
"I owe so much to Paul, he´s been so encouraging over the years", Wyatt tells us, "and he played on half a dozen of the best recordings I´ve been able to make. This is my way of saying "Thank you, Paul"."