on
Robert Calvert

Paul Fraser Rudolph > Boy, when you talk Bob Calvert you talk genius on the edge - as frequently truly innovative creative people are. Arthur Brown was on the first Calvert solo project Captain Lockheed - and a lot of other people: Keith Moon - Vivian Stanshall - Me - Simon King... - and I can tell you that it was sometimes controlled craziness that frequently developed a lot of the final sound. I used to work a lot with Bob at my place in London and get the basic changes and arrangements to try to jive with his 2-string guitar playing. Bob would spend a lot of time planning and rehearsing and still always be open enough to ride the cosmic surf of the moment and let his music have a certain feel and flow that was Bob. He was great to work with and loved stuff with a good marching beat. We spent a fair bit of time pre-recording (demos and what have you). We (Hawkwind) had rented a small castle in Wales which had an attached barn which we set up our equipment in. So, everything's set up and I hang a microphone from the ceiling and plug it into my Revox tape recorder. We go for dinner and then the locals served up hot Psylicibin mushroom tea -- well -- about an hour later things are getting pretty bloody cosmic and we all ended up in the practice room jamming. Very spacey with Bob & Nik Turner doing chants and howls. What a trip!! It was very interesting working with Bob & Brian Eno (on Lucky Leif and the Longships) -- two very artistic people on the sound front. (see below) Paul Rudolph on the collaboration with Calvert and Brian Eno on Calvert's 2nd solo-album Lucky Leif and the Longships "Lucky Leif and the Longships started with the idea of making a concept-type album about vikings -- then bob decided to continue with the idea that as the vikings discovered america they encountered different american things, travelling around the country, exploring. as bob's imagination ran wild --and thankfully it did-- we got some twists going on at what point in time things were actually at!! we travel through the thirties in chicago when prohibition was in place and volstead was the city mayor -- through to moonshiners brewing up illegal whiskey to the surfers on the west coast of california -- 'i guess you could call us barbarians -- bar-bary-annes' -- fashioned after the beach boys song "barbara-anne"! a lot of the ideas bob and i got together and then gelled things together in the studio with eno. once bob started thinking of america a whole style opened up and we would just ride his thoughts. it was cool with michael moorcock playing banjo on some stuff. really, i can say that it was one of the most spontaneous projects i've been involved with and the picture of him on your spirit of the page truly captures the spirit of the country gentleman and the space pilots. one of his favourite costumes was the one on your page with the flying goggles, which were worn with leather jodphurs and knee-high leather jack boots. thanks and keep up the spirit" ---------------- paul rudolph < more infos on Paul Rudolph & The Pink Fairies back to front