Hot on the heals of E...- Focus
- Faust
- Robert Fripp
- Graham Fitkin
- Four Tet
- Future Sound of London
- Morgan Fisher
- John Foxx
- Fairport Convention
- Fujiya & Miyagi
Focus 3 was the first album I ever bought when I was 11. It must have been January 1973 after Sylvia and Hocus Pocus became freak hits. (It wasn’t the first album I owned – that honour goes to 20 Fantastic Hits Volume 2, which I got for Christmas a month earlier). So a double album by an instrumental Dutch group… a sign of things to come I guess. I then saved up my pocket money to buy their two earlier albums. They went downhill pretty soon after that but I still have a soft spot for them. Actually, they’re still going – I saw them in Japan a few years ago – but I don’t think Van Leer can manage the yodels these days
Fairport Convention’s Liege and Leaf is still my favourite folk album. Faust’s first four were all fabulous. Fripp was my fave guitarist – and King Crimson my favourite group – for a year or so in the 70s. I still like the ambient frippertronics stuff he continues to play, though not particularly Crimson Mk 8 or whatever we’re up to.
Morgan Fisher was ex-Mott the Hoople (whom I liked a lot in the 70s), curated the legendary Miniatures LP, recorded a great album with Lol Coxhill, went all Bhagwan Shree Rajneeshy, and moved to Japan – where he and I became friends. We had a drink in Tokyo a couple of months ago. Funny how these things happen.
John Foxx passed me by at the time, though I’ve gotten into his old and new stuff recently. Graham Fitkin is one of Britain’s best ‘classical’ composers, particularly for piano. Future Sound of London were really good in the 90s (though I’ve not followed their more recent psychedelic output). Fujiya & Miyagi are about the best attempt at contemporizing Neu! as you could get these days. And Four Tet (aka Kieran Hebden) always put out interesting stuff.
Other good Fs: Franz Ferdinand, Fad Gadget, Felt, The Fall, Flying Lizards, Five or Six, Faith Over Reason, Fun Boy Three, Fluke, Fila Brazilia, FFWD, Fischerspooner, Funkstorung, Fra Lippo Lippi, 400 Blows, Frank Chickens, Fundamental, Foetus … And from Germany: early stuff by Edgar Froese & Chris Franke, Flim, FSK and possibly even Fuhrs & Frohling, but not Floh de Cologne. And let’s not forget Frankie Goes To Hollywood if only for the hype & production values. And the oldies: Bryan Ferry, Marianne Faithful, The Faces, Free, Fleetwood Mac.
- Faust
- Robert Fripp
- Graham Fitkin
- Four Tet
- Future Sound of London
- Morgan Fisher
- John Foxx
- Fairport Convention
- Fujiya & Miyagi
Focus 3 was the first album I ever bought when I was 11. It must have been January 1973 after Sylvia and Hocus Pocus became freak hits. (It wasn’t the first album I owned – that honour goes to 20 Fantastic Hits Volume 2, which I got for Christmas a month earlier). So a double album by an instrumental Dutch group… a sign of things to come I guess. I then saved up my pocket money to buy their two earlier albums. They went downhill pretty soon after that but I still have a soft spot for them. Actually, they’re still going – I saw them in Japan a few years ago – but I don’t think Van Leer can manage the yodels these days
Fairport Convention’s Liege and Leaf is still my favourite folk album. Faust’s first four were all fabulous. Fripp was my fave guitarist – and King Crimson my favourite group – for a year or so in the 70s. I still like the ambient frippertronics stuff he continues to play, though not particularly Crimson Mk 8 or whatever we’re up to.
Morgan Fisher was ex-Mott the Hoople (whom I liked a lot in the 70s), curated the legendary Miniatures LP, recorded a great album with Lol Coxhill, went all Bhagwan Shree Rajneeshy, and moved to Japan – where he and I became friends. We had a drink in Tokyo a couple of months ago. Funny how these things happen.
John Foxx passed me by at the time, though I’ve gotten into his old and new stuff recently. Graham Fitkin is one of Britain’s best ‘classical’ composers, particularly for piano. Future Sound of London were really good in the 90s (though I’ve not followed their more recent psychedelic output). Fujiya & Miyagi are about the best attempt at contemporizing Neu! as you could get these days. And Four Tet (aka Kieran Hebden) always put out interesting stuff.
Other good Fs: Franz Ferdinand, Fad Gadget, Felt, The Fall, Flying Lizards, Five or Six, Faith Over Reason, Fun Boy Three, Fluke, Fila Brazilia, FFWD, Fischerspooner, Funkstorung, Fra Lippo Lippi, 400 Blows, Frank Chickens, Fundamental, Foetus … And from Germany: early stuff by Edgar Froese & Chris Franke, Flim, FSK and possibly even Fuhrs & Frohling, but not Floh de Cologne. And let’s not forget Frankie Goes To Hollywood if only for the hype & production values. And the oldies: Bryan Ferry, Marianne Faithful, The Faces, Free, Fleetwood Mac.
The Fall of course should be number one in any right thinking universe.
ReplyDeleteBest modern take on Neu are Fuck Buttons.
John Fahey was a better guitarist than Fripp.
Funkadelic bestride the worlds of funk and rock like platformed heeled colossi before whom all must bow low
And surely there is gap in your record collection called Flaming Lips.
Now get back to work.
The Fall: well... nearly but no.
ReplyDeleteFunkadelic: OK, if I can get over the look.
Flaming Lips: embarrassingly, still haven't heard a note.
Now back to Larkin and Pagan.
Other good Fs: Fré =)
ReplyDelete[OT] seems B'kok is preparing for worse =(
ps. my 'F' has quite some Fred Frith...
ReplyDeleteI never got away with Focus I have to say.
ReplyDeleteI'd have Areatha Franklin in there & Peter Green era Fleetwood Mac.
You have Fripp, but not Fripp & Eno.
Kieran Hebden's other outfit, Fridge did one great album, but I've not liked anything else.
If Aretha Franklin, then we'd have to consider Ella Fitzgerald.
ReplyDeleteFripp & Eno: absolutely.
I even wondered about Free Agents who released a one-off, little-known album in 1980 involving Pete Shelley, Eric Random, Barry Adamson and Francis Cookson.
Oh and for Fre I guess I should have at least mentioned Front 242.
just checked the vinyl shelves: quite some bill frisell.
ReplyDeleteyes F242 were kinda 'seminal' (cfr. DAF post).