Robert Fripp's Diary

Bredonborough A grey day in

Bredonborough.

A grey day in Bredonborough & an e-fllurry done before I leave for DGM HQ. From my response to one correspondent, a person with a huge number of academic qualifications, from one with none --

i see creativity as an impulse that becomes constrained, modified, directed & mis-used as it moves into increasing degrees of restriction. something like...

ex nihilo creative act (what we might recognise as the work of genius)
innovation (mastery)
recreation (a good professional)
novelty (advertising!).

when the creative impulse becomes connected in some way to whatever degree of restriction or limitation, that "world" comes to life in the way that world happens to know "creativity". for example, if one's thinking is automatic & associational, suddenly a whole stream of lightning connections are made in linear fashion - exhausting as they whizz by in a series of linked connections. no insight, just a nuclear generator powering a model T.

clearly, v. brief!

14.36 DGM HQ

A further comment --

it might be better put...

invention
innovation
re-creation
novelty

and impulse might be better expressed by urge. perhaps the unceasingness & willingness-to-create that accompany a connection to the creative impulse is best conveyed by the power of a particular work that appears from a creative endeavour?

a genuinely creative insight is instantaneous, although its working-out in the process of an undertaking might well be very long! and we may not recognise that a creative insight is creative at the time: it seems so natural, so unforced, that when we are not in-that-place we wonder: how could that have been!

but, i don't believe any of this will be new to you.

Meanwhile, back on earth, this from ET --

From: "Turusinov, Andrei S." < [email protected] > Subject: Fripp & Hendrix Hello everybody!

I suppose you all read this message from Fripp's diary, from the booklet to YPGTKC: KING CRIMSON JOURNAL 1969 MAY 14 Revolution, London. A personal turning point following a discussion on presentation: I sit down after 8 gigs standing. Hendrix, dressed in white with his right arm in a sling, approached me afterwards and said, "Shake my left hand, man, it's nearer to my heart". - Robert Fripp.

OK, good, everybody, of course, knows that! But, recently I read the book about Jimi Hendrix "'Scuse me While I Kiss the Sky (The Life of Jimi Hendrix) by David Henderson (c)Omnibus Press, 2002. And in this book I read on pages 282-283 that at this time (May 1969) Jimi was in New York, not in London!
====================
May 3, 1969 - Toronto, Canada - drug incident on the customs, heroin was found in Jimi's baggage. After that JHE was in tour in US South

May 7, 1969 - Tuscaloosa, Alabama
May 8 & 9, 1969 - Charlotte, North Carolina
May 10, 1969 - Charleston, West Virginia
May 12, 1969 - JHE returned in New York
May 16, 1969 - concert in Baltimore
====================

So, who is right: Fripp or Henderson? Who was where? My guess is that Mr. Fripp simply made up this Hendrix handshake story. He wanted it to happen and so it telling everyone it did.. Don't forget about Fripp's note at the end of the booklet: Some of the mistakes included are deliberate; some are accidental.

The first time I thought about it was after I read the booklet for King Crimson Epitaph 4CD set. Of course, in this booklet the famous Hyde Park concert was mentioned. But everyone gave different numbers for the audience at this show. Fripp mentioned 750,000, McDonald - 500,000. Lake - 100,000. Then I checked the YPGTKC booklet, and it said, "JULY 5 Hyde Park free concert with Rolling Stones, Battered Ornaments, Third Ear Band, Alexis Korner, Family and Screw. Estimated 650,000 audience." Finally, in the book about Rolling Stones I read that there were only 300,000 people at the show.

So, who is right? After I read this fake Hendrix handshake story, I don't think I can trust Fripp's notes and I tend to think that the audience of 750,000 is just another myth in King Crimson's history, originated by Fripp himself. Lake's numbers are more credible - 100,000 at the beginning of the show and 300,000 at the end during the Rolling Stones performance.

Cheers

Andrei

It is an act of intelligence, to be encouraged & supported, that Andrei distrust Fripp The Man & All His Works.

In 1981, during the Basing Street sessions for the Discipline album, KC were staying at the Portobello Hotel. The hotel was not far from the studio, on the other side of the Portobello Road. On a daily walk to the studio, I passed a bookshop just off the Bello and, bibliophiliacal tendencies set to tumescent, looked into the shop for a browse & fondle of promiscuous tomes. The shop assistant was a person I had not seen since 1969 - Loretta Land, sister of Mary, Michael Giles' wife. We agreed to meet for a drink at the Bello that evening. When we did, one of the subjects revisited was the Revolution gig --

LL: Do you remember when Hendrix came to see you at the Revolution Club?
RF: Of course! That's my Hendrix story.

LL: Did you know that I was sitting on the table next to him?
RF: No.

LL: He was jumping up & down, saying this is the best band in the world.

The guesstimates of the audience size, on the day, reached even 1 million. And, while not disputing Greg's capacity to count, it might be wise to remember that a large cut-out of Brian Jones, on the stage immediately behind Greg, fell and landed on his head. Heroically Greg kept going; but this may well have rendered our singer temporarily innumerate.

And another from ET --

Mon, 01 Dec 2003 09:32:51 +0000 From: "David Reilly" < [email protected] >
Subject: Fripp Live with Bowie 2003 Apparently Robert Fripp was introduced to the audience at Friday's gig in Glasgow by David Bowie and proceeded to add his guitar to "Heroes", Fashion and various other songs. Was anyone there?

That was a gig I missed, but sounds like it was worth being there.

Now, a Guitar Craft diary entry --

December, 01, 2003
Collin Landinguin 6

I am listening to the LOCG performance of Trapiche in Athens 10-17-03, recorded by Bradbenn --

I played almost the whole 2nd disc from this show for Donna and her father tonight and my friend Trevor. Donna's dad has played guitar for many years and is a well-versed music fan. His main response to the recording is that it sounded exactly like a piano and not a bunch of guitars. He also it was very interesting and had the sense that this music requires "discipline". A few nights before, he had told me that there is no money in music. Tonight he was very encouraging and even told me, "who knows? maybe next time I see you, you will be on tv." I told him that the only thing I can do is give it my best shot and if anything when down the road I have gone nowhere then maybe i'll just go into computers or something. He laughed since I think that's almost exactly what he did.

There is so much in this posting worthy of discussion but, briefly, there is a future in computing.

Now, from the Krimson News Guestbook --

bmureaux
Joined: 05 Apr 2003
Posts: 2
Location: South Pasadena, California
Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2003 9:21 pm Post subject: Saying "Hello"

Having stayed away from Fripp's diary for a couple of years, I was somewhat surprised to return to find that the Fripp still hasn't found an effective strategy to deal with unwanted intrusions into his space and autograph-seeking fans. One would think that by now this would be quite a predictable and mundane matter for him to dispense with.

I heard an interview with Steve Martin in which the actor described how he deals with celebrity-seeking fans. He said he gives them a business card that says something like, "you have just had a random encounter with Steve Martin." While the fan is momentarily transfixed on the card, Martin has already bid his adieu and is on his way.

During my years of residency in the Big Apple, a wonderful time, The Bottom Line was a personal fave venue for live performance, frequently visited. It's also where I met Adrian Belew (when he was accompanying David Bowie to a Steve Reich performance). This period of sojourning in the city was probably the only time I have ever been close to fashionable, a consequence of being involved with people who were definitely fashionable. As a result of this ersatz fashionability, people often approached me on the street & at venues, frequently with interesting results for many and varied reasons (a book could be written of this time).

A friend made a two-sided badge, about the size of a laminate, to be attached to the lapel of my jacket. On one side was written --

I am not Robert Fripp

and on the other --

No. I only look like him.

One evening in 1978, just leaving The Bottom Line with Michael Shore (then a writer for the Soho Weekly News, later at MTV, now at CNN) a young man came up and asked Are you Robert Fripp? I said nothing, simply pointing at the badge reading No. I only look like him.

Oh! Sorry said the young man, and walked off.

albemuth
Joined: 19 Mar 2003
Posts: 64
Location: Altoona, PA
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2003 10:43 am Post subject: Dada cards

bmureaux wrote:
He said he gives them a business card that says something like, "you have just had a random encounter with Steve Martin." While the fan is momentarily transfixed on the card, Martin has already bid his adieu and is on his way.

Martin is a funny (and smart) fellow. It's too bad Fripp can't have more of his dada spirit.

That humourless Fripp. What a jerk.

22.39 An important day at DGM HQ. David & I have been discussing, at length, performance & future possibilities for KC. Also a call to Charlie Hewitt to discuss Crimson plans in 2004 & beyond. Lots to report when wit & sensibility permit.

Now, dribbling --