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Topic ClosedBill Bruford's Autobiography now out!
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Points: 10616 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: Bill Bruford's Autobiography now out!
    Posted: February 02 2010 at 15:27
Originally posted by Blacksword Blacksword wrote:

I'm about to start reading Brufords book this week.

I met him last Thursday, at a talk he was doing at a local jazz club. It was a wonderful evening; good food, wine, and anecdotes, plus vid clips of some of his performnces, including Larks onges in Aspic with Jamie Muir, and Cinema Show with Phil Collins. I chatted to him briefly as he signed my copy of his book. We discussed the curse of what he calls 'clock time' and his hatred of metronomes and click tracks. I bloody hate them too!!

Anyway, it was a pleasure to meet the man and I'm looking fortward to reading his book.


Hey, that's nice!

I read his book completely now. Wonderful book, and what an intelligent observations throughout the book.

And this week I want to order the free sampler LOL . The second one, because I know most of his early work;
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Points: 16130 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 02 2010 at 11:08
I'm about to start reading Brufords book this week.

I met him last Thursday, at a talk he was doing at a local jazz club. It was a wonderful evening; good food, wine, and anecdotes, plus vid clips of some of his performnces, including Larks onges in Aspic with Jamie Muir, and Cinema Show with Phil Collins. I chatted to him briefly as he signed my copy of his book. We discussed the curse of what he calls 'clock time' and his hatred of metronomes and click tracks. I bloody hate them too!!

Anyway, it was a pleasure to meet the man and I'm looking fortward to reading his book.
Ultimately bored by endless ecstasy!
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Points: 6898 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 31 2009 at 11:21
I've read Emerson and Wakeman's books but haven' got a chance to get around to Bruford's yet. Sounds a lot more on the really serious side. Lots of funny sh*t in Grumpy Old Rock Star and Pictures of an Exhibitionist.
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Points: 3472 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2009 at 16:00
Yes, the book is easily one of the best I've read in the genre.  I suspect the CD is a sampler of Winterfold and/or Summerfold, which they had available for free on his website a while back.  They're basically a scripted interview with Bill talking about his various projects with small samples of the bands (no complete songs) thrown in.  So certainly not essential, though entertaining to say the least!  (Charming website, by the way, Torodd.)
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Points: 3658 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2009 at 15:50

Thanx. I am more worried about your mental health after reading through the 1000 reviews I am planning after I am out of the hospital. LOL 

As far as I can see from the book, it is a serious book with some stuff worthy his stature. I am still waiting for the free CD I was supposed to get as a part of the deal when I bought the book. But I can survive without the CD (and we are in the middle of a postal strike) but not without the book.

I will do a proper book review when finished. Hence my worries about your mental health....... 
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Points: 3472 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2009 at 15:13
Originally posted by toroddfuglesteg toroddfuglesteg wrote:

I got the book. But I have both got several university exams and a faulty heart. So I both have to let the Gong bio, the Soft Machine bio and this book rest until the blood supply to the heart has been restored and I have passed the exams. But a small glimpse of this book has given me a strong urge to survive the heart operation. 

Bill Bruford is good for my health. 

 
Wow!  Our thoughts and prayers are with you for the surgery.  Good luck!
 
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Points: 3658 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2009 at 15:10

I got the book. But I have both got several university exams and a faulty heart. So I both have to let the Gong bio, the Soft Machine bio and this book rest until the blood supply to the heart has been restored and I have passed the exams. But a small glimpse of this book has given me a strong urge to survive the heart operation. 

Bill Bruford is good for my health. 
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Points: 10616 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2009 at 14:53
I only read the first chapter on the internet, which was great. I now asked the book for Santa Claus, which I hope to celebrate with my Dutch family (Santa Claus? Well, Sinterklaas in The Netherlands, on the 5th of December). I also asked Andy Summers autobio, but I expect to get the one by Bruford.

I love the first chapter already, where Bill was telling that being on tour with Yes was already a threat to his life, because Jon Anderson tended to fall asleep behind the steering wheel LOL.
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Points: 3472 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2009 at 12:51
As I continue to read this autobiography, I am amazed at how thoughtful and articulate this man is.  He really is an extraordinary writer and thinker and has many poignant thoughts about many, many aspects of the music industry.  Witness the quote below.  This is an excellent book.
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Points: 13 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2009 at 12:42

WALL OF SOUND PRESENTS - AN EVENING WITH BILL BRUFORD

Legendary drummer with YES, KING CRIMSON, UK & EARTHWORKS will read from his autobiography, sign copies and answer questions about his highly distinguished career and related topics.

(Please note: Bill will not actually be playing drums during this event!)

TUESDAY 3rd NOVEMBER 2009

Starts: 7.30 pm @ ‘Wall of Sound’,

42, John William Street, Huddersfield HD1 1ER

(opposite the Railway Station)

ADMISSION: £5 (£6 on the door) – incl. drinks.

** TICKETS NOW ON SALE IN THE SHOP **
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Points: 239 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 11 2009 at 20:25
This Los Angeles guitarist owns a couple letters written by & from Bill thanking me for sending him albums of Flame Dream,(my old Swiss progressive rock band I was in);writing Mr.Bruford I wanted to work with him someday.

I,as a younger Californian guitarist at the time first living in London,England and later Lucerne,Switzerland,Mr.Bruford always wrote very encourageable,positive;and respectful letters(including England's Jon Hiseman)

Tschüß,Bless.
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Points: 1003 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 05 2009 at 12:49
Originally posted by Todd Todd wrote:

One thing that frustrates me about the book is that it is not chronological, but rather topical.  He answers several questions by recounting history and waxing philosophical.  A very interesting and entertaining read, mind you, but not very facilitating for picking and choosing different periods.  A small criticism, perhaps, but there it is.

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Pretty much my thoughts as well.  Different layout, but still quite enjoyable.
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Points: 3126 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 31 2009 at 22:31
Originally posted by BaldFriede BaldFriede wrote:

Originally posted by fuxi fuxi wrote:

Or else: "how much light he's prepared to throw on the National Health of bands like Yes, Genesis, Pavlov's Dog" etc. etc. - are there any major prog bands Bill HASN'T played with? (Oh yes, VDGG, I guess )

He even played with Gong for a short time.
                                                                                               

ClapYes he is extraordinary on this Gong live in Oslo 1974. Just picked it up and it's an import from Japan. A true universal player.
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Points: 3472 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 27 2009 at 19:04
One thing that frustrates me about the book is that it is not chronological, but rather topical.  He answers several questions by recounting history and waxing philosophical.  A very interesting and entertaining read, mind you, but not very facilitating for picking and choosing different periods.  A small criticism, perhaps, but there it is.
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Points: 2459 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 20 2009 at 08:19
Yes, and he REALLY didn't like the way they operated.
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Points: 10261 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 20 2009 at 08:15
Originally posted by fuxi fuxi wrote:

Or else: "how much light he's prepared to throw on the National Health of bands like Yes, Genesis, Pavlov's Dog" etc. etc. - are there any major prog bands Bill HASN'T played with? (Oh yes, VDGG, I guess )

He even played with Gong for a short time.


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Points: 3658 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 20 2009 at 07:51

Well, Bill Bruford's book is generally regarded as one of the best rock/music bios ever. It has got raving, raving reviews. Rick Wakeman tells stories and that is all. But both his books and Bill Bruford's book is worthy a purchase. Go for both of them.

I have Bill Bruford's book on my wishlist. But I have to pay a large tax-bill first.  
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Points: 1719 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 29 2009 at 19:45
Hearing about Bill's autobio effort reminds of one of, if not the (in the olden days, anyway) great raconteurs/ storytellers (well, the storytelling continues): Mr. Wakeman. How do his books compare relative to Bill's, I wonder? Anyone got the lowdown here? Do tell!
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Points: 2078 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 29 2009 at 18:33
Originally posted by fuxi fuxi wrote:

Well, I've now finished the book, and I warmly recommend it to you all!

The interesting thing is that BB has relatively little to say about the genesis (here we go again ) of compositions he wrote or contributed to. He writes far more about personal and logistic matters, such as his relationships with fellow musicians, the mechanics of touring etc. If I remember it well, something similar could be said about Nick Mason's memoir of life with the Floyd. (Mason's book is much lighter reading than BB's, however; it does not contain that many anthropological or, erm, "culture-critical" reflections.) Could it be that Bill is right when he points out that (good) critics are better at analysing music than the musicians who actually compose and perform it? (Bill states that musicians do not usually understand what they are doing, until some critic labels their work for them.)

For me, the best parts of the book are those where Bill expresses affection for some of the musicians he has worked with. His admiration for the likes of Allan Holdsworth, Dave Stewart, Jeff Berlin, Django Bates and Tim Garland is obvious. (A pity he's got virtually nothing to say about Mark Hodgson, Patrick Clahar and Steve Hamilton, who contributed so much to Earthworks' best albums. I would have loved to know something about their working relationship.) Bill obviously loves jazz musicians in particular, for playing the best possible music for relatively little pay.

There's one of Bill's anecdotes I can personally vouch for. On one of Earthworks' tours, sax virtuoso Tim Garland had to be replaced at the last moment by the great Julian Arguelles, who had to master all of the band's music in just 24 hours. Arguelles then went on to perform a blistering gig with the band (for a paltry £300, Bill says) but if you didn't know any better, you could not have told that he wasn't with them all the time. (I was in the audience that night; I'd brought my wife and daughters; I even went to shake Bill's hand afterwards, but no - I did NOT have an old copy of CLOSE TO THE EDGE for him to sign. )

P.S. In his book, Bill merely states Tim Garland was unavailable "for one reason or another" but in a public interview he gave in Blackwell's bookshop the afternoon BEFORE the concert he explained Tim had suddenly been whisked away for a lucrative gig with Chick Corea. The fact Bill omits this particular detail from his book just goes to show with what grace he describes his fellow musicians. The only players he occasionally denigrates are Chris Squire (whom he despises for keeping fellow musicians waiting) and Robert Fripp, who comes across as some sort of Frankensteinian monster!


Sounds like a good read,I think my favourite Biography has been Johnny Cash's so far.I'm feeling sorry for Fripp at the moment he needs more love.



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Points: 1003 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 29 2009 at 13:06
I just picked up this book today at the local Chapter's.  I went there looklig for a bio, and I did not expect to see this at the store.  I'll post my thoughts after I finish if I have any.
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