Monday, June 15, 2009

a cup of coffee and a slice of time


Rejoice! One of Two New Records is NOW AVAILABLE!!!
Michael Clay the man with four hands Plays the Music
of Adrian Belew and King Crimson!

truly when I hear michael clay play some of his rolling arpeggios
I think "he must have four hands" but I have met the elusive
concert pianist and if he does have four he hides them well.

michael's touch on the piano keys is as should be expected
from an artist who routinely tackles the demanding works
of the great master composers in concerts across the world.
he is at times delicate, at times bombastic, but always
surprising in his harmonic choices and cataclysmic
performances. this is a man who must practice hours
on end each day to keep his abilities fine tuned.
and it shows.

so why is a virtuoso concert pianist playing songs of mine?

search me. michael clay has seen every incarnation
of king crimson ever to tour the U.S. from 1970 onward.
so we know he is a glutton for punishment.
for the true story of the genesis of this record
see the blog called "Michael Clay Plays The Music
Of Adrian Belew And King Crimson
" from 11/07.

michael has discovered through his improvisations of
these songs a way to somehow affect the heart
and the head simultaneously. no easy feat.

for the most part coffee is solo piano performances.
it will not rid you of any junk in your trunk.
nor will your booty shiver and jiggle helplessly.
it will not implore you through poetic device to
surrender yourself to the lust of another.
there are no words. no singing. no bouncy backbeat.
no repetitive chorus to stick on the walls of your mind.
no loud raucous jangly guitars. no thumping bass riffs.

just the pleasure of hearing a man seemingly
with
four hands expertly performing decent pieces
of songwriting from yours truly and in two cases
from the 1980's line up of king crimson i.e.
robert fripp, tony levin, bill bruford and me.

for me personally it is an honor to have michael
chose to render my work in such a way.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, but I want
to be clear in warning you of its content.
it is mostly solo piano improvisations.

michael and I chose these songs:

the lone rhinoceros (with cello accompaniment)
bad days
the man in the moon
time waits

frame by frame
intermission (guitar only*)
fly
she is not dead

sleepless

union terminal
(guitar and piano improv duet**)

* intermission is a new musique concrete piece
created by me on solo midi-guitar for the purpose of
clearing the air in the midst of such keyboard frenzy.

** union terminal is an improvisation by michael
and me (electric guitar and piano only) with an aural
backdrop of the sounds you might hear in a grand old
train terminal such as the one in cincinnati, ohio
which is in fact called union terminal.

the title a cup of coffee and a slice of time
you may recognize as a line from the song 1967.
an artist named rob sinkus sent me the gift
of the above photo he made in 1992 titled after the lyric.
I liked it so much it has always hung in the kitchen
of StudioBelew where it remains today.

oh, and it case you are wondering, yes, it is
the music you heard playing in the background
after our concerts.

a cup of coffee and a slice of time
is NOW AVAILABLE for pre-ordering at StoreBelew.
we expect to have copies in our hands in 2 weeks
and to be ready to send them to you immediately.

if it sounds like your cup of tea, er, coffee
order your copy now.

18 comments:

  1. cheers mr belew sir! this sounds great! a welcome appetizer for "e" i'm sure. very curious to hear how your midi technology and musique concrete mix.

    how you've found the time to make so much music, i'll never understand.

    please come to san diego or portland this fall!

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  2. This sounds like just the ticket! Good luck with it Michael and Adrian. - S.

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  3. It sounds like an interesting blend of styles. I am so happy for you, and us !
    Thanks for another incredible show at the Riverbend, you Never cease to amaze me, Adrian.
    So nice to meet and greet, you have a truly generous spirit, and the most amazing green eyes !!! :)
    Hope to see you in Florida soon.
    peace xo

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  4. My grandmother had the exact same plates and coffee cups

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  5. AH-HA the background music. Headed over to SB to get some of that!

    Darek & Tracy

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  6. Adrian,
    Thanks for honoring me by using my picture as the cover.
    Rob Sinkus

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  7. Sweetness.
    Bill Rudloff

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  8. Why not available as a download?

    I WANT IT NOW!
    ;-)

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  9. That sounds very interesting. I saw you live in Sydney at the Coogee pub ome time ago and really enjoyed the show.

    Would it be possible to make available (for free), say, a 30 second teaser of the CD to get an impression of what this sounds like? Or a song, or a previous live recording of a song ... ?

    Cheers

    Daniel

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  10. fultzj@verizon.netJuly 6, 2009 at 11:44 PM

    Please try to work a date at Tampa Florida into your schedule. I'm sorry if I appear to be selfish but, really want to watch you perform again. I saw you at Skippers in Tampa FL last year and I'm very happy that I had the opportunity. I hope that your new tour will bring you to someplace in Florida. There are some cool venues out here - Even Orlando - House of Blues. Or better yet, check out some of the venues in Ybor City FL.

    I have great respect for you and if you are not able to make it to FL, I will find a way to arrive anywhere you are playing that is near FL.

    There is no artist out there like you - the first time I saw you was with King Crimson in New York City. I was blown away - you were amazing, the new life blood that gave King Crimson another start. I've bought your solo albums after that and I loved you with The Bears.

    You probably get tired of silly comments like this from fans but, I have to tell you - you're music has been an inspiration to me and has a big impact on me. You are amazing - thank you for what you do. Please don't ever stop.

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  11. Thanks for posting this, was exactly what I was looking for, thanks.

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  12. I have been looking for exactly the same information and your post is really useful for me!

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  13. We love you Michael Clay. We wish you all the success in life. Good Job.

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  14. Lofty post, really amazing. Thank you for the post.

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  15. A very nice page. I think the effort has passed, we have to thank you:))
    Dis estetiği

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    ReplyDelete