By the late ’80s, Adrian Belew had compiled an incredible list of credits that included stints with Frank Zappa, King Crimson, and the Talking Heads. His greatest success, however, lay just ahead — and it would come courtesy of his solo career
Although he’d already released a handful of records on his own, starting with 1982′s ‘Lone Rhino,’ Belew’s attention during the ’80s was divided between solo albums and his work with Crimson and another band, the Bears, with whom he recorded a pair of LPs released in 1987 and ’88. Although he wasn’t exactly a household name, he was consistently in demand — and considering that just a decade earlier he’d despaired of ever making a living with his musical gifts, Belew seemed more than happy to forsake solo stardom in the name of long-term success.
Saying he got his big break from Zappa “out of the blue when I was at my lowest point and was thinking that maybe I won’t have a place in the music business,” Belew later recalled, “I really was a starving artist, as they call them. Frank called me and asked me if I could audition. He had heard me play in a little nightclub and then months went by and he never called, so I figured it was just a fluke. Then one day, he suddenly called again. It changed my life on a dime.
“It put me into hyper-professional mode, where I suddenly had to play catch-up,” continued Belew. “I had to be in a touring band, playing Frank Zappa’s music, going around the world. Can you imagine that? From being in a band where you are playing to 15 bikers swilling beer in Nashville to being onstage with a hugely complex operation called Frank Zappa.”
Read More: 25 Years Ago: Adrian Belew Releases 'Mr. Music Head' | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/adrian-belew-mr-music-head/?trackback=tsmclip
No comments:
Post a Comment