A loveable old wheelchair-bound Stalinist...

February 2, 2008 10:47 AM

Robert Wyatt is not dead. In fact, he recently released a new album titled Comicopera.

Robert Wyatt was a part of the psych/prog combo The Soft Machine in the late 60s. In 1973 he fell out of a window at a party and broke his spine, leaving him in a wheel chair.

Wyatt's music can be jazzy, avant garde, and psychedelic, as well as combinations of beautiful, ethereal, political, and depressing, usually all at once (his first solo album after the accident was titled Rock Bottom, a play on his condition and mental state with cover art depicting divers and liner notes saying, "songs and drones by Robert Wyatt").

Here's Wyatt doing Elvis Costello's "Shipbuilding" and a YT version of one of my favorites "Heaps of Sheep" from the Eno collaboration Shleep (Wyatt provided percussion and backing vocals on Eno's Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy) as well).

Here's some more Robert Wyatt youtube stuff. Here's a discography up to 2002 that includes his Soft Machine and Matching Mole material and here's another that includes albums released after 2002 (in case you wanted to know).

By the way, the post title was taken from this comment. When I first thought about this post months ago, it was about the only time Wyatt had been mentioned on MeFi, so I thought (and still think) it was fitting.

posted by sleepy pete (15 comments total)

Go team Wyatt!

I'm under the impression that there's not that many of us, and that we're all basically related to Sir Thomas Wyatt, who was a poet and executed revolutionary. Which is pretty cool.

(I'm sure someone will be along to disillusion me and tell me that, no, theres actually millions of Wyatts out there now)

[/extremely indulgent me-centricness]

DId I mention my brothers name was Robert?
posted by Artw at 10:57 AM on February 2

Oh, hell yes! A Robert Wyatt FPP!

I'm going to recommend my own personal favorite, "Gharbzadegi," from his essential 1985 album Old Rottenhat.

(For a more thorough overview of Wyatt's life and times, chase down the biography, Wrong Movements, now inexplicably out-of-print.)
posted by mykescipark at 11:05 AM on February 2

My favorite moment: "Moon in June" off Softs' Third. Robert also appears on Eno's Music for Airports.
posted by porn in the woods at 11:25 AM on February 2

"Heaps of Sheep" sounds like classic Eno- great! Wyatt contributed more than i knew to Taking Tiger Mountain.
posted by bhnyc at 11:27 AM on February 2

I love Wyatt. Do people really think he's dead?
posted by item at 11:52 AM on February 2

No, item, it was a joke on the obit thread syndrome: whenever you post something about someone older-but-famous, it causes a panic in the community who want to make sure that person isn't dead. It's understandable and amusing. The opening was probably a product of too much coffee this morning.
posted by sleepy pete at 12:04 PM on February 2

Er, also those that are older-but-not-so-famous.
posted by sleepy pete at 12:05 PM on February 2

Uh, recently, like, promos went out in September and it made it to a handful of year-end lists (including mine at, like, 14 or so, I think).
posted by klangklangston at 1:42 PM on February 2

...combinations of beautiful, ethereal, political, and depressing, usually all at once...

Oh god, and exactly what I needed this evening. Thanks.
posted by kxr at 1:53 PM on February 2

Wow, you're right, klang, almost four months is, like, forever ago.

It was actually a year end list that reminded me of it. Sorry, but it wasn't yours.
posted by sleepy pete at 1:56 PM on February 2

The Soft Machine. Henry Cow. The Art Bears. Robert Wyatt. Brian Eno.
The music that kept me sane while I read, wept , and played.
posted by doctorschlock at 2:12 PM on February 2

Dude, almost four months ago is, like, six great albums ago.
posted by klangklangston at 2:15 PM on February 2

I didn't know who Robert Wyatt was until I heard Comicopera.

And it is a fantastic, fantastic album. I've been listening to his other stuff, and am so glad someone pointed him out to me.
posted by Windigo at 2:59 PM on February 2

Never realised Matching Mole was a silly pun (rather than just a silly name). How I admire Mr Wyatt and all his works. Thanks, sleepy pete.
posted by Abiezer at 3:32 PM on February 2

Funny, I was just listening to Sea Song before I saw this post. Great stuff.
posted by El Brendano at 2:27 AM on February 3