A recently discovered set of answers to a Q and A from a Spanish music journalist , which Ricky Gardiner typed out, that give an interesting insight into the Low David Bowie session at the Chateau d'Herouville . Go intuit the questions ! Ricky also took this enigmatic kodachrome image (see below ) of the Brain Eno at the Chateau d'Herouville during these sessions
ANSWERS FOR SPAIN
1: DAVID PHONED ME AND ASKED IF I WOULD GO TO THE CHATEAU AND PUT ON SOME LEAD GUITAR. I AGREED.
2: THE IDIOT TOUR WAS GREAT FOR ME, AFTER BEGGARS OPERA, BECAUSE IT WAS ALL FIVE STAR—— MARVELLOUS.
3: I SEEMED TO FIT IN VERY WELL—- TALKING TO CARLOS, GEORGE MURRAY AND BRIAN ENO WAS A LOT OF FUN.
4: I DID PRETTY MUCH AS I WISHED. DAVID SEEMED TO BE TAKEN WITH THE TREMOLO ARM.
5: BREAKING GLASS. I LIKE YOUR DESCRIPTION ‘ LIKE MECHANICAL FUNK’.
6:’WHAT IN THE WORLD’. YOU SAY IT HAD A POWERFUL RHYTHM. IT SHOULD BE REMEMBERED THAT TONY VISCONTI, BEING A BASS PLAYER, TOOK DRUMMING VERY SERIOUSLY.
7: ‘SOUND AND VISION’. THIS WAS VERY MEMORABLE BECAUSE MARY SANG SO BEAUTIFULLY ON IT.
8: ‘ALWAYS CRASHING IN THE SAME CAR’. THIS WAS THE FIRST OF THE SOLOS I OVERDUBBED. I BELIEVE BRIAN WAS THERE. THEY, DAVID, BRIAN AND TONY, SEEMED TO LIKE IT.
9: ‘BE MY WIFE’. I LIKE THE PIANO AFTER THE INTRO. IT STRIKES ME THAT ROY WAS ON SONG THERE.
10: ‘A NEW CAREER IN A NEW TOWN’. THE THING I TAKE FROM THIS IS GEORGE MURRAY’S RIFF ON THE PRECISION BASS AT TWO MINUTES AND TWENTY THREE SECONDS.
11: CARLOS AND I GOT ON VERY WELL. OUR COLLABORATION WAS VERBAL.
12: THE ‘LUST FOR LIFE’ ALBUM JUST HAPPENED. I DO NOT REMEMBER ANYONE DIRECTING AS SUCH.
Enjoy this awesomely powerful guitar solo from Ricky Gardiner in Electrofire Invasion/ Beggars Opera / Lose a life.
AI says : "Electrofire Invasion" is the opening track from the Beggars Opera album Lose a Life, released on August 31, 2010. The album is a concept album written by Virginia Scott and Ricky Gardiner, and the song and entire album are about the experience of living with electrical sensitivity.
electrofire invasion
my brain hurts my eyes blur i am crushed i am numb and motionless from electrofire invasion save me save me
my head spins my cells shiver my thoughts dissolve i am numb and motionless from electrofire invasion save me save me
One of the last things Ricky Gardiner worked on before he fell ill was his solo album Songs for the Electric.. This is Ricky preparing for a photo shoot for the album cover. The exclusive download from the Beggars Opera website contains 11 tracks of chilled out guitar songs from the master of melody himself, with Virginia Scott on Keyboards.
This atmospheric picture was taken by Ricky Gardiner at the Chateau D’Herouville during his time at the Low sessions with David Bowie. As you can see Mary Hopkin and Brian Eno are at the far end of the breakfast table. David Bowie is seated at the far right in one of two comfortable chairs. In the other chair is Morgan Visconti, son of Mary Hopkin and Tony Visconti, who kindly revisited this image. I love the vintage paraphernalia at the far end of the room: the old TV, video player, which I believe was used to watch Monty Python, the upturned blue heart on the pink poster and the random potted plants.
I think the person next to Brian Eno may be Pat Gibbons who was David Bowie management at the time
Singer Pete Scott joined Beggars Opera in 1973 He was a classically trained and sang blues, having previously been with Savoy Brown on a tour of USA. He has an amazing improvisational ability. This is a rare image of the band at the time, taken at the Legendary Marquee club in London of l/ r Ricky Gardiner, Pete Scott, Raymond Wilson and Gordon Sellar. Pete Scott was to return to Beggars Opera in 1975 and sang on Beggars Opera releases Sagittary and Beggars Can’t be Choosers for Jupiter Records Germany.
More Blue Sky song is from the Beggars Opera Doris EP , featuring Ricky Gardiner on guitar.
more blue sky i felt grey i feel it now i feel it more than you gimme some more blue sky gimme some more blue sky gimme some more blue sky
i saw the stars i saw the darkening horizon i wished for you burnt with puzzle over puzzle over puzzle i finally saw the truth of it and now i’m glad your gone
gimme some more blue sky gimme some more blue sky gimme some more blue sky
Thanks to Russel Leadbetter for his write up in the Herald recently about Beggars Opera in 70’s Glasgow.
“BACK in the November of 1969, the discerning music fan in Glasgow had lots of intriguing concerts to choose from.
David Bowie, Deep Purple, and Fat Mattress – the latter featuring Noel Redding, former bassist with the Jimi Hendrix Experience – all played the Electric Garden on Sauchiehall Street. Such shows were billed as ‘Electric Garden goes Underground every Monday night’.
Jon Hiseman’s Colosseum were at the Maryland Club, in Scott Street, across the road from the Glasgow School of Art. And, down at Burns Howff on West Regent Street, a progressive rock band called Beggars Opera was about to start a residency.
The quintet took over the slot from the popular rock band Stone the Crows (who themselves included Maggie Bell, Jimmy Dewar, and Les Harvey), and were an immediate success. At one point in 1970, a city newspaper reported that there was an hour-long queue outside the venue on a Saturday morning, prior to a Beggars Opera appearance.”
For the full article click on this link: BACK in the November of 1969, the discerning music fan in Glasgow had lots of intriguing concerts to choose from.
Ricky Gardiner guitarist dances in Tango for the End of Time by Beggars Opera. This avant garde progressive rocktrack comes from Beggars Opera/ Lose a Life an album which has incredible presence as a result of Ricky Gardiner’s ability to create massive sound structures with his choices of guitars and effects. Ricky’s extended melodies and string bending are unique in the guitar world.
This interesting doodle was created when Beggars Opera were working on their 2 covers of the Passenger with Virginia Scott on vocals and Andy Milner on acoustic guitar. Such a great song.
Ricky Gardiner 