Born in Suffolk, Eno studied painting and experimental music at the art school of Ipswich Civic College in the mid 1960s, and then at Winchester School of Art. He joined glam rock group Roxy Music as synthesiser player in 1971. After recording two albums with Roxy Music, he departed in 1973 to record a number of solo albums, coining the term "ambient music" to describe his work on releases such as Another Green World (1975), Discreet Music (1975), and Music for Airports (1978). He also collaborated with artists such as Robert Fripp, Cluster, Harold Budd, David Bowie on his "Berlin Trilogy", and David Byrne, and produced albums by artists including John Cale, Jon Hassell, Laraaji, Talking Heads and Devo, and the no wave compilation No New York (1978).
Eno has continued to record solo albums and work with artists including U2, Laurie Anderson, Grace Jones, Slowdive, Coldplay, James Blake, and Damon Albarn. Dating back to his time as a student, he has also worked in media including sound installations and his mid-70s co-development of Oblique Strategies, a deck of cards featuring cryptic aphorisms intended to spur creative thinking. From the 1970s onwards, Eno's installations have included the sails of the Sydney Opera House in 2009 and the Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank in 2016. An advocate of a range of humanitarian causes, Eno writes on a variety of subjects and is a founding member of the Long Now Foundation. In 2019, Eno was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Roxy Music.
Eno is frequently referred to as one of popular music's most influential artists. Producer and film composer Jon Brion has said: "I think he's the most influential artist since the Beatles." Critic Jason Ankeny at AllMusic argues that Eno "forever altered the ways in which music is approached, composed, performed, and perceived, and everything from punk to techno to new age bears his unmistakable influence." Eno has spread his techniques and theories primarily through his production; his distinctive style informed a number of projects in which he has been involved, including Bowie's "Berlin Trilogy" (helping to popularize minimalism) and the albums he produced for Talking Heads (incorporating, on Eno's advice, African music and polyrhythms), Devo, and other groups. Eno's first collaboration with David Byrne, 1981's My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, pioneered sampling techniques that would prove to be influential in hip-hop, and broke ground by incorporating world music into popular Western music forms. Eno and Peter Schmidt's Oblique Strategies have been used by many bands, and Eno's production style has proven influential in several general respects: "his recording techniques have helped change the way that modern musicians;– particularly electronic musicians;– view the studio. No longer is it just a passive medium through which they communicate their ideas but itself a new instrument with seemingly endless possibilities."
Whilst inspired by the ideas of minimalist composers including John Cage, Terry Riley and Erik Satie, Eno coined the term ambient music to describe his own work and defined the term. The Ambient Music Guide states that he has brought from "relative obscurity into the popular consciousness" fundamental ideas about ambient music, including "the idea of modern music as subtle atmosphere, as chill-out, as impressionistic, as something that creates space for quiet reflection or relaxation." His groundbreaking work in electronic music has been said to have brought widespread attention to and innovations in the role of electronic technology in recording. Pink Floyd keyboardist Rick Wright said he "often eulogised" Eno's abilities.
Eno's "unconventional studio predilections", in common with those of Peter Gabriel, were an influence on the recording of "In the Air Tonight", the single which launched the solo career of Eno's former drummer Phil Collins. Collins said he "learned a lot" from working with Eno. Both Half Man Half Biscuit (in the song "Eno Collaboration" on the EP of the same name) and MGMT have written songs about Eno. LCD Soundsystem has frequently cited Eno as a key influence. The Icelandic singer Björk also credited Eno as a major influence.
Mora sti Fotia (Babies on Fire), one of the most influential Greek rock bands, was named after Eno's song "Baby's on Fire".
In 2011, Belgian academics from the Royal Museum for Central Africa named a species of Afrotropical spider Pseudocorinna brianeno in his honour.
Backwater
Brian Eno Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We're sailing at the edges of time
Backwater
We're drifting at the waterline
Oh we're floating in the coastal waters
You and me and the porter's daughters
Ooh what to do not a sausage to do
And the shorter of the porter's daughters
Ooh what to do in a tiny canoe
Black water
There were six of us but now we are five
We're all talking
To keep the conversation alive
There was a senator from Ecuador
Who talked about a meteor
That crashed on a hill in the south of Peru
And was found by a conquistador
Who took it to the emperor
And he passed it on to a Turkish guru
His daughter
Was slated for becoming divine
He taught her
He taught her how to split and define
But if you study the logistics
And heuristics of the mystics
You will find that their minds rarely move in a line
So it's much more realistic
To abandon such ballistics
And resign to be trapped on a leaf in a vine
The song "Backwater" by Brian Eno from the album entitled "Before and After Science" released in 1977 is a whimsical journey through time and space, floating in the coastal waters with the porter's daughters. The song is a blissful tune, with a memorable melody, and open to interpretation. The lyrics paint an idyllic picture of life on the coast and the joys of having nothing to do. The singer and the porter's daughters are floating on the water in a tiny canoe, with nothing to do except enjoy the beauty of the surroundings. The scenery is set along the coastline where the sea meets the land, and they are just drifting. The mood is light, playful, and dreamy, with no sense of direction or purpose. However, the mood changes as they begin to encounter obstacles on their journey.
The song takes a tumultuous turn as they encounter the black water, and the group dwindles down from six to five in the conversation. The lyrics take a turn to the abstract, and the senator from Ecuador talks about a meteor that crashed on a hill in Peru. The meteor was discovered by a conquistador, who took it to the emperor, and it changed hands until it passed on to a Turkish guru. The guru taught his daughter how to split and define, intending to make her divine. However, the logistics and heuristics of the mystics prevent them from moving in a straight line. It was much more realistic to abandon such ballistics and resign to be trapped on a leaf in a vine. The song's focus turns to the irrational nature of mysticism and how it prevents people from moving towards a particular goal or purpose, much like their journey's orientation. The song is a thought-provoking commentary on purposeful living, mysticism, and the absurdity of life.
Line by Line Meaning
Backwater
We are in a stagnant and neutral state
We're sailing at the edges of time
We are aimlessly moving towards the future, without any clear goals or direction
We're drifting at the waterline
We are in a state of idleness and boredom, with no sense of purpose or passion
Oh we're floating in the coastal waters
We are in a state of uncertainty and instability, unsure of what the future holds
You and me and the porter's daughters
We are surrounded by people with whom we have no strong connection or relationship
Ooh what to do not a sausage to do
We have no plans or ideas, and are feeling lost and helpless
And the shorter of the porter's daughters
One of the people around us, who we have no particular connection with, and whose opinions or thoughts are not important to us
Dips her hand in the deadly waters
She is engaging in risky behaviour with no concern for the consequences
Ooh what to do in a tiny canoe
We are feeling helpless and directionless in the face of our circumstances
Black water
A metaphor for our state of stagnation and lack of movement
There were six of us but now we are five
We are losing people and connections as we continue to drift aimlessly
We're all talking
We feel the need to fill the silence and engage in conversation, even if it is meaningless
To keep the conversation alive
We are trying to hold onto some semblance of normalcy and human connection in our stagnant state
There was a senator from Ecuador
Introducing a new character in the narrative, with no particular significance to us
Who talked about a meteor
A random topic of conversation that has no relevance to our current state or situation
That crashed on a hill in the south of Peru
A random and irrelevant detail that is not important to us
And was found by a conquistador
Another irrelevant detail with no bearing on our current situation
Who took it to the emperor
Continuing with the irrelevant narrative of the meteor and its meaningless journey
And he passed it on to a Turkish guru
A random and irrelevant event with no bearing on our current situation
His daughter
Introducing a new character with no relevance to us
Was slated for becoming divine
She was destined for greatness or deity, but this is not important to us
He taught her
Introducing the concept of teaching and learning
He taught her how to split and define
He taught her concepts of splitting and defining that have no clear relevance to us
But if you study the logistics
Introducing the idea of studying logic and rationale
And heuristics of the mystics
The mystical and intangible aspects of life, which cannot be understood or explained by logic or reason
You will find that their minds rarely move in a line
The mystical and intangible aspects of life are constantly shifting and changing, with no clear pattern or direction
So it's much more realistic
Suggesting that it is more practical or logical to accept our stagnant state, than to try and understand the intangible aspects of life
To abandon such ballistics
Giving up on trying to understand the mystical and intangible aspects of life
And resign to be trapped on a leaf in a vine
Accepting our stagnant and directionless state, and remaining trapped in our current circumstances
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BRIAN ENO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind