As mentioned briefly in the last entry, one of The Velvet Underground's earliest available recordings was a flexi disc experiment in audio feedback called 'Loop'that the group released in 1966 with the third issue of Aspen Magazine. 'Loop', however, is actually the b-side to that disc. The a-side is 'White Wind', a recording by the fingerstyle guitarist Peter Walker.
[Content removed due to inaccuracy.]
By 1965, Peter Walker came into contact with Maynard Solomon, the head of Vanguard Records. Vanguard teamed him with producer Samuel Charters to record his debut Rainy Day Raga in 1966. According to Walker, the album captured 'a great moment in time'. The album is made up of ragas composed or arranged by Walker. He and his band would play these ragas regularly both before and after the sessions until they decided to finally move on. The 'band' consisted of seasoned session musicians Monte Dunn 'filling the holes' on acoustic guitar, Jeremy Steig on flute, and Bruce Langhorne on percussion. Most of the ragas are named for periods of time ('Morning Joy', 'Spring', 'April in Cambridge',...) and they try to portray for the listener exactly how these moments in time naturally feel and how beautiful they sound.
Here is the discography surrounding Peter Walker's debut album:
White Wind (1966 flexi disc)
Rainy Day Raga
If you have any ideas for where the tour should go next, please give a shout. I'm open to whatever as long as the artists are historically related in some way and go in an artist's chronological order.
Pass the Headphones!!
It is a sad thing to read lies about yourself in well meaning articles. I did NOT "collaborate" with Ms St John on the music for Tim Leary. I never "toured" with Ms.St John. The group "Orient Express" never existed and never performed anywhere ever. Ms St John played tamboura with me on 4 occasions. Once at Hollywood high for a benefit for the Diggers in 67. Once on Bleeker Street in 68 at Pablos light Gallery, and twice at Austen Texas in 1996. None of these four occasions included Bruce Langhorne or Lowell George. On these four occasions it was necessary to tune the instrument and offer on the spot instucrtions in how to repeatedly strike the same note. There was no melodic contribution or "collaboration" with Ms. St John. who, to the best of my knowledge, cannot tune and play any musical instrument at all.
ReplyDeletePeter Walker
Peter Walker,
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking an interest in this poorly read and written personal blog. I love your music and did not mean to spread any misinformation through this post. Your account, which I trust, does not mesh well at all with Ms. St. John's own accounts that she's given a couple of times to varying degrees of detail in interviews. Of course, she's the only one telling her tale, so this problem could be anything from gross inference of false information on my part to a high degree of yarn being spun by St. John. It is likely both. Again, I believe your account and meant no misinformation or ill will.
I will probably delete or rewrite most of the content on this blog post as it is both poorly researched and written.
Thank you for setting me straight.