Roxy Music (Dedicated to Ian)

[Jason]

Funny, just as Ian mentioned Roxy Music in the Eno thread, I happened to be listening to the first album. Highly underrated combo.

[I. Spaceman]

The Eno stuff is incredible, the post-Eno pre-breakup stuff is amazing as well, but the most underrated material is the first couple comeback album. No, not Avalon, though that's a great record too. I'm talkin' Manifesto and Fleash And Blood. Same Old Scene is their finest song to my ears.

[Jason]

Manifesto is an awesome album.

I've been thinking, sometimes I think Roxy Music should have been the first band to be labelled "new wave". The Talking what?

[I. Spaceman]

Manifesto is an awesome album.

I've been thinking, sometimes I think Roxy Music should have been the first band to be labelled "new wave". The Talking what?

Yep. Exactly.

[Jason]

Not to knock Talking Heads, they're awesome as well. But I think Roxy Music had them beat to the new wave bit.

[I. Spaceman]

Yep, and who built those bands? ENO!!!!!!!

[Jason]

Well we all know that Eno is God.

[I. Spaceman]

Except for that Luther guy.

[the captain]

Now we're talking...

[Jason]

Uh oh.

[Old Rake]

"Flesh and Blood" -- I totally agree. Underrated album -- smooth and gorgeous like "Avalon" without the proper respect, that's what I think. Killer stuff.

[trumpet sounds]

No mention of "Viva! Roxy Music" yet, so thought I'd mention it. Live album from shows in ’73, ’74 and ’75. Post eno, but Eddie Jobson makes you forget.  "Out of the Blue" and "Both Ends Burning" rock like nothing else!  "If There is Something" when Bryan sings "shake your head girl with your pony tail, it takes me right back when you were young" hoo boy! If you've never heard this album, then you haven't heard the best Roxy Music.

[I. Spaceman]

And it has Pyjamarama!

[forgetemarie]

The Musikladen DVD is fun, if you like early live Roxy Music.  Bryan's costumes are worth checking out, including his stormtrooper get-up.  Heck, they all wore colorful costumes.  Eno and his feather boa.  Andy Mackay and his codpiece.  Plus, they were an excellent band, musically speaking. 

[mark goddard]

years ago i bought a VHS of all their video's ...don't know if it's been released on DVD ? but it's Excellent !! I agree Manifesto is highly underrated.

[forgetemarie]

That collection of videos was released on DVD, then withdrawn by the band.  It's missing "Avalon," among others.  I think the VHS tape is similar.  It has as many solo Bryan Ferry videos as Roxy Music, and misses some key songs.   It's been rumored that they're going to release a more complete, remastered DVD of their videos, eventually.

The Best of Musikladen DVD has been reissued as "Roxy Music/T-Rex Live."  It's worth getting if you like early Roxy Music.  There's nothing comparable out there for early performances of the band, including Eno.  It's very good, live concert footage from German TV.  It's also got a few songs from T-Rex, which is also cool to have.

[jazzfascist]

"Stranded" I guess is their best album. Kind of a mix between Velvet Underground and Kinks. It seems that Bryan Ferry after Eno split, had a little of the same modus operandi as Brian, when it came to recording. He would first make the band  record the instrumental track, without anybody having heard the actual song and after having perfected the lyrics, he would add his vocals and first then you could hear, what it was he had in mind.

Søren

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Roxy Music...my favorite band besides the Beach Boys. Too bad Graham Simpson went Sufi, because his bass lines on the first disc were great. Bassists were to Roxy Music as drummers were to the Jeff Beck Group.

Siren was a great album...and that's arguably the "worst" of their records! Worst being a relative term, in this case.

God..."Do the Strand" and "Editions of You"..."Remake/Remodel"...sh*it, their 1979 single "Trash"...

If my entire music collection was destroyed, and all that was left was my Roxy stuff and my Brian stuff, I'd still be okay,




By the way...was Phil Manzanera at the Live8 performance? Cause I didn't see him...

[al]

Ah, Roxy - they were HUGE by the way in Britain, just not in the states. I remember hearing  Virginia Plain on the radio on the Alan Freeman show on Radio 1 when I got home from school one day back in 72 and (as often happened back in those days) just being shocked at what a great record it was by a new band. When I saw them on TOTP I thought they were wonderful - obviously Bowie and T Rex had paved the way but even so they were WEIRD. Pyjamarama, the next single was even odder (and neither single were on the LP's either at the time) but still great. Followed them all through their career, and even though they were a different sort of band by the time of Avalon they were always great, always cool. Only saw them once, on the Flesh & Blood tour, disappointed as Paul Thompson had finally been sacked (big mistake). Had a great boot from an early Radio 1 live gig with Eno but it went AWOL years ago, still got one from the Siren tour and a really good live one from the Manifesto tour. I didn't bother with the tour when they reformed as I thought Ferry's voice was shot, but apparently he was in good shape and they were well reviewed. They are making a new album now (no Eno though...) which might be interesting - if Ferry can ever get it finished.
The infuence on me was such that my first band when I was at school opened our only gig with remake remodel, and my band at Uni did A Song For Europe - we were all huge Roxy Music fans and they had a massive infuence on the whole art-rock, punk, new wave, electronic music..you name it scene.

I never got the impression they meant much in the states but glad to see you all know and love them. Great LP covers too....

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

So there *is* a studio album in the works?!  Awesome!

[dogbreath]

Living in the Twilight Years Nursing Home for Old Gits has its advantages. F'rinstance. I remember (*eyes cloud over, drip forms on end of nose*) seeing Roxy Music live at the height of their first album trash aesthetic madness. Back then, they were so totally unlike ANYTHING else happening* they divided their audience like no other band I've seen before or since. There were those of us who were blown away (like me) and those who thought they stunk - and REALLY stunk! These people were like the accoustic purists at the Dylan "Albert Hall" gig, but heavily into serious prog and wearing ex-army greatcoats and generally being fuccking miserable, and the sight of these science-fiction fag jokers prancing about to belching synth and outer-limits sax was just too much for their sad little hearts.

A great band; I like all their albums, and all the solo albums, but my favourite remain the first two, which would be perfect if they'd included those first singles!

*including Bowie, who was, in spite of surface similarities, doing something else entirely.

[Big Bri]

Freakin' A!!!!
  Finally a thread about Roxy Music! Great stuff guys.I particularly like the early stuff.Up to "Siren".I've got this very rare bootleg on CD called "Roxy Music" Live in London 1974&75.The live version of "Mother of Pearl" is just killer.Ferry and the boys at the top of their game.I didn't see anybody mentioning the "Stranded" LP.Last song on there,"Sunset".What a piece.
Trumpet Sounds,glad you mentioned "Viva,Roxy Music".The live versions of "If There Is Something",Out of the Blue" and "The Strand" RULE!!!!!
Great thread boys for an amazing Band!!
  V I V A  R O X Y  M U S I C!!!
Brian

[al]

I have got a VHS History by the way called Total Recall which was pretty good as videos went, 90 mins long and a complete history, including solo stuff. Dunno if that was what was referred to earlier.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

That's what I was thinking. I like how it serves as almost a visual documentary. Nice touches abound, like when you reach the point where they broke up, an album cover is shoing, right? Well the "X" in Roxy Music fades towards the screen and becomes a red "x", symbolizing the break-up.Likewise, when Eno left, it is showing the sleeve for For Your pleasure, his picture fades out, and Eddie Jobson's picture fades in to the same spot where Eno was. I probably am making no sense, but Alan probably knows what I'm talking about.

[mark goddard]

i have the video Total Recall and it's excellent. has anyone picked up any of the recent live cd's that have been hitting the racks???......i see these all the time , but i don't know the quality or if they are official ?

I have seen Ferry twice in concert and both times he was amazing.