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.
Mother Whale Eyeless
Brian Eno Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Reading morning papers, drinking morning tea:
She clutches the tray
And then we talk just like a kitchen sink play
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Living so close to danger,
Even your friends are strangers
Don't count upon their company.
This is for the fingers,
This is for the nails:
Hidden in the kitchen,
Right behind the scales.
What do I care?
I'm wasting fingers like I had them to spare,
Plugging holes in the Zuider Zee.
Punishing Paul for Peter,
Don't ever trust those meters
What you believe is what you see.
In my town, there is a raincoat under a tree.
In the sky, there is a cloud containing the sea.
In the sea, there is a whale without any eyes.
In the whale, there is a man without his raincoat.
In another country, with another name
Maybe things are different, maybe they're the same.
Back on the trail,
The seven soldiers read the papers and mail
But the news, it does't change.
Swinging about through creepers,
Parachutes caught on steeples
Heroes are born, but heroes die.
Just a few days, a little practice and some holiday pay,
We're all sure you'll make the grade.
Mother of God, if you care,
We're on a train to nowhere
Please put a cross upon our eyes.
Take me - I'm nearly ready, you can take me
To the raincoat in the sky.
Take me - my little pastry mother take me
There's a pie shop in the sky.
The song "Mother Whale Eyeless" by Brian Eno is a surreal and abstract piece of lyrics that doesn't seem to have a clearly defined theme or narrative. The first stanza talks about the singer's contentment with his morning routine and his willingness to take risks, even when surrounded by danger. The second stanza is cryptic and talks about the singer's creative impulses and his constant need to seek something new and exciting. The third stanza is perhaps the most interesting, as it describes a scene where a raincoat is left under a tree in the singer's town, a cloud contains the sea in the sky, and there's a whale without eyes that contains a man without his raincoat. The last stanza talks about heroes, death, and the singer's readiness to move on to the next phase of his life.
Line by Line Meaning
I can think of nowhere I would rather be
The singer is content with their current situation.
Reading morning papers, drinking morning tea:
The singer is engaging in a daily routine.
She clutches the tray
An unnamed woman holds a tray of tea or other refreshments.
And then we talk just like a kitchen sink play
The conversation is casual and unimportant, akin to running water in a sink.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Taking risks is necessary to achieve success.
Living so close to danger,
The singer is in a potentially hazardous environment.
Even your friends are strangers
The singer does not trust those around them.
Don't count upon their company.
The artist advises against relying on others.
This is for the fingers,
The following lines are about manual labor.
This is for the nails:
The following lines are about craftsmanship.
Hidden in the kitchen,
The work described is not glamorous.
Right behind the scales.
The setting is a food preparation area.
What do I care?
The singer is nonchalant about the details of their work.
I'm wasting fingers like I had them to spare,
The singer is working laboriously with no apparent end goal.
Plugging holes in the Zuider Zee.
The singer is metaphorically contributing to the closure of a body of water.
Punishing Paul for Peter,
The artist is frustrated with one person's actions being punished when it is not solely their fault.
Don't ever trust those meters
The artist advises against relying on instruments or measuring devices.
What you believe is what you see.
The singer asserts the importance of perception in shaping reality.
In my town, there is a raincoat under a tree.
An object out of place is present in the singer's town.
In the sky, there is a cloud containing the sea.
The artist describes a fantastical sight in the sky.
In the sea, there is a whale without any eyes.
An animal with a surprising or unusual characteristic can be found in the ocean.
In the whale, there is a man without his raincoat.
An unexpected or inexplicable occurrence is taking place within the whale.
In another country, with another name
The singer ponders how different their life may be if they were born in another place and had a different name.
Maybe things are different, maybe they're the same.
The artist contemplates the commonalities and variances of disparate experiences.
Back on the trail,
The setting shifts to a military scenario.
The seven soldiers read the papers and mail
The soldiers are occupied with daily tasks.
But the news, it doesn't change.
The situation remains stagnant.
Swinging about through creepers,
The artist is describing a scene of movement through plant growth.
Parachutes caught on steeples
The scene shifts to an airborne activity gone awry.
Heroes are born, but heroes die.
People can become celebrated or forgotten depending on their actions.
Just a few days, a little practice and some holiday pay,
The work described is temporary and has a clear end point.
We're all sure you'll make the grade.
The artist is convinced of the subject's success.
Mother of God, if you care,
The artist invokes a religious figure to whom they address a plea.
We're on a train to nowhere
The artist is describing a feeling of aimlessness.
Please put a cross upon our eyes.
The singer seeks peace even in death.
Take me - I'm nearly ready, you can take me
To the raincoat in the sky.
The artist expresses their readiness to die and expresses hope for an afterlife.
Take me - my little pastry mother take me
There's a pie shop in the sky.
The singer continues to express their desire for an afterlife, using metaphors to describe an ideal place.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BRIAN ENO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind