Two Things David Bowie Loves (Other Than Lou Reed and Mick Jagger’s Cocks)

Robert Wyatt was the drummer and vocalist for jazz-prog pioneers The Soft Machine during the late 60’s. In 1973, he fell from a third-story window during a party and was paralyzed from the waist down. His career as a drummer ended, Wyatt has made a series of eccentric solo albums and soundtracks, including this cover of Elvis Costello’s Shipbuilding from 1983. The performance comes from the old BBC show The Old Grey Whistle Test. If you dare type that show into youTube’s search engine, take a jar to pee in and a granola bar, because you will be stuck at the computer for a long fucking while. You’ll see.

I bought the vinyl reissue of The Pretty Thing’s S.F. Sorrow about a year ago, and I finally grew some balls and invested some time in it. It is extraordinary as advertised. I read an interview with The Replacement’s Paul Westerberg when I was 19 or 20 where he cited them as an influence, and was intrigued. Over the years, I’ve heard bits and pieces of their stuff on Nuggets and various Mojo compilations. It only took me 15 or so years to finally get around to hearing them properly!

Anyway, their guitarist, Dick Taylor, was a founding member of The Rolling Stones with Jagger, Richards, and Brian Jones, a bit of trivia I can’t believe I didn’t know until now, but he didn’t want to be relegated to bass. If there’s anything I understand, it’s that, because I get stuck playing bass in all of my fucking bands. My musical life has been quite a lesson in humility. Midnight to Six Man is an early semi-hit, and one the great mod anthems.

Tags: Brian Jones, Dick Taylor, Elvis Costello, Keith Richards, Kevin Ayers, Mick Jagger, Robert Wyatt, SF Sorrow, The Canterbury Scene, The Old Grey Whistle Test, The Pretty Things, The Rolling Stones, The Soft Machine