Wyatting 💫

 

Yesterday, June 1, 1973, British art rock pioneer and former Soft Machine drummer/singer Robert Wyatt broke his spine after attempting to leave a party by climbing down a drainpipe and falling three stories. It left Wyatt permanently crippled and confined to a wheelchair. Despite his handicap, he began a forty-year solo career that included critically acclaimed albums and a hit single, a cover of The Monkees "I'm A Believer". 

A key player during the formative years of British jazz rock, psychedelic rock and progressive rock, Wyatt's own work became increasingly interpretative, collaborative and politicized from the mid 1970s onwards. His solo music has covered a particularly individual musical terrain ranging from covers of pop singles to shifting, amorphous song collections drawing on elements of jazz, folk and nursery rhyme.

Wyatt had been a member of influential Canterbury band The Wilde Flowers and later, after Soft Machine, put together Matching Mole before his accident.

Soft Machine, photo below, toured the US accompanying friends The Jimi Hendrix Experience.

Matching Mole were about to record their third album when, on 1 June 1973, during a birthday party for Gong's Gilli Smyth and June Campbell Cramer (also known as Lady June) at the latter's Maida Vale home, an inebriated Wyatt fell from a fourth-floor window. He was paralyzed from the waist down and has used a wheelchair for mobility ever since. On 4 November that year, Pink Floyd performed two benefit concerts, in one day, at London's Rainbow Theatre, supported by Soft Machine, and compered by John Peel. The concerts raised a reported £10,000 for Wyatt.

Wyatt released his solo album Rock Bottom on 26 July 1974. The album was largely composed prior to Wyatt's accident. The album was met with mostly positive reviews. Two months later Wyatt put out a single, a cover version of "I'm a Believer", which hit number 29 in the UK chart. Both were produced by Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason. There were strong arguments with the producer of Top of the Pops surrounding Wyatt's performance of "I'm a Believer", on the grounds that his use of a wheelchair "was not suitable for family viewing", the producer wanting Wyatt to appear on a normal chair. Wyatt won the day when he and the band all appeared in wheelchairs.

Throughout the rest of the 1970s Wyatt guested with various acts, including Henry Cow (documented on their Concerts album), Hatfield and the North, Carla Bley, Eno, Michael Mantler, and Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera, contributing lead vocals to lead track "Frontera", from Manzanera's 1975 solo debut Diamond Head. Wyatt continued to appear with other artists and release solo albums. 

The verb "Wyatting" appeared in some blogs and music magazines to describe the practice of playing unusual tracks, in particular songs from Wyatt's album Dondestan, on a pub jukebox to annoy the other pub goers. Wyatt was quoted in 2006 in The Guardian as saying "I think it's really funny" and "I'm very honoured at the idea of becoming a verb."

Thanks to John Einarson for the above 🖖🙏🖖