As a teenager, he lived with his parents in a fourteen-room Georgian guest-house, Wellington House, in Lydden near Canterbury. Here he was taught the drums by visiting American jazz drummer George Niedorf.
In 1962, Wyatt and Niedorf moved to Majorca where they stayed with the poet Robert Graves. The following year, Wyatt returned to England and joined the Daevid Allen Trio with Daevid Allen and Hugh Hopper. Allen subsequently left for France, and Wyatt and Hopper formed the Wilde Flowers with Richard Sinclair, Kevin Ayers and Brian Hopper. Wyatt was initially the drummer in the Wilde Flowers, but following the departure of Ayers, he became lead singer.
In 1966, the Wilde Flowers disintegrated, and Wyatt and Mike Ratledge formed the Soft Machine with Ayers and Allen. Here Wyatt both drummed and sang, an unusual combination for a stage rock band.
In 1970, after chaotic touring, three albums and increasing internal conflicts in Soft Machine, Wyatt released his first solo album, The End of an Ear, which combined his vocal and multi-instrumental talents with tape effects.
A year later, Wyatt left Soft Machine and formed his own band Matching Mole (a pun on "machine molle", the French for Soft Machine), a largely instrumental outfit. After two albums and a split, Matching Mole were about to embark on a third record when, on 1 June 1973, during a drunken party, Wyatt fell from a third floor window. He was subsequently paralysed from the waist down (paraplegia) and confined to a wheelchair.
The injury led Wyatt to abandon the Matching Mole project, and his drumming. He promptly embarked on a solo-career, and with a collective of session musicians (including Mike Oldfield, the poet Ivor Cutler and Henry Cow guitarist Fred Frith), he released his acclaimed solo album Rock Bottom. Later that same year he put out a single, a cover version of "I'm a Believer", which hit number 29 in the UK chart. There were strong arguments with the producer of Top of the Pops surrounding his performance of "I'm a Believer," on the grounds that his wheelchair-bound appearance 'was not suitable for family viewing', the producer wanting Wyatt to appear on a normal chair. Wyatt won the day and 'lost his rag but not the wheel chair', but gave a performance that could be described as disgruntled.
Wyatt's next album, Ruth Is Stranger Than Richard, was more jazz-led, with free jazz influences and nods to African music. These solo recordings were all produced by Nick Mason of Pink Floyd.
Throughout the rest of the 1970s, Wyatt guested with various acts, working with the likes of Henry Cow (documented on their Henry Cow Concerts album), Hatfield and the North, Carla Bley and Michael Mantler. His solo work during the early 1980s was increasingly politicised, and Wyatt became an outspoken member and supporter of the British Communist Party. In 1983, his interpretation of Elvis Costello's anti-Falklands War song "Shipbuilding", the last in a series of political cover-versions (collected as Nothing Can Stop Us), reached number 35 in the UK singles chart. In the late 1980s, after collaborations with other ex-Canterbury acts such as News from Babel, he and his wife Alfreda Benge spent a sabbatical in Spain, before returning in 1991 with a comeback album Dondestan, considered by many to be his best work since Rock Bottom. His 1997 album Shleep was also highly acclaimed.
An uncredited Wyatt contributed the haunting "Masters of the Field", as well as "The Highest Gander", "La Forêt Rouge" and "Hors Champ" to the soundtrack of the acclaimed 2001 film Winged Migration. He can be seen in the DVD's Special Features section, and is praised by the film's composer Bruno Coulais as being a big influence in his younger days.
In 2001, Wyatt was curator of the Meltdown festival, and in 2003 he put out his album Cuckooland.
In 2004, Wyatt collaborated with Björk on the song "Submarine" which was released on her fifth album Medúlla.
In October 2007 he released Comicopera, a 16-track album, his first for the Domino label.
It was produced by Wyatt himself, and recorded at his home in Louth as well as Phil Manzanera's Gallery Studio.
Comicopera is divided into three acts - 'Lost in Noise', 'The Here and The Now', and 'Away with the Fairies'. Featured musicians include previous collaborators Brian Eno, Paul Weller and Phil Manzanera. Wyatt said he was keen to capture the sound of a group of musicians playing in the room together, but more importantly to have friends playing together.
"Music isn't just an abstract pleasure, it is a company, when you play a record. Why I like Duke Ellington and Charles Mingus, the big bands - is because every character in the band is identifiable as that person - there's this group of humans in a room".
"He lives in Louth, Lincolnshire and he has equipment in his bedroom where he records himself and his albums. We brought a G4 and Pro Tools and recorded it in like one afternoon. He's such an extraordinary singer. Before he left, he insisted to give us a scale of his voice, where he sings all the tones – and he has the most amazing range, like 5 or 6 octaves. What's really interesting about his range is that each octave is of a totally different character. We actually ended up using that later for 'Oceania', we used what he calls the 'Wyattron'." — Björk, XFM 25 August 2004
Out of the Blue
Robert Wyatt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The welcome mat's not there
I'll just take care before you dare
To step inside my door
Something unbelievable has happened to the floor
Something unbelievable has happened to the floor
Something unbelievable has happened to the floor
The room wont give you shelter
They're open to the air
The upper storeys out of reach
The stairs no longer there
Beyond all understanding
You've blown my house apart
You set me free
You set me free
You set me free
You set me free
You set me free to let you know
You set me free to let you know
You planted everlasting hatred in my heart
You planted everlasting hatred in my heart
My rooms' wont give you shelter
They're open to the air
The upper storeys out of reach
The stairs no longer there
You planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You have planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You have planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You have planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You have planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
You have planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
The song "Out of the Blue" by Robert Wyatt is a ballad that is open to interpretation depending on who is listening to it. The lyrics express a sense of being betrayed by someone who has come into the singer's life. The song starts with an uninvited guest who is not welcome, and the singer warns that they should be careful before they step inside his door. The lyrics suggest that something unexpected has happened, which has caused the foundations of the singer's life to shift. The singer reiterates that "Something unbelievable has happened to the floor" suggesting that his life has been upended by this person's presence.
The singer expresses a sense of being vulnerable, with his "room won't give you shelter, they're open to the air, the upper storeys out of reach, the stairs no longer there." He may be living in a state of chaos or confusion, making him feel exposed and without protection. Despite feeling vulnerable, the singer also expresses a sense of freedom. The person has set him free, possibly by removing something negative from his life or causing him to re-evaluate his life.
Towards the end of the song, the tone shifts to one of bitterness, with the singer accusing the person of planting "everlasting hatred" in his heart. The repetition of this line shows the depth of the singer's feelings, making the listener imagine the pain that he may be experiencing from this person's actions.
Line by Line Meaning
No need to wipe your feet
Don't bother with traditional pleasantries, as you are not welcome here.
The welcome mat's not there
There will be no false pretenses of hospitality to mask the hostility that awaits you.
I'll just take care before you dare
I will proceed with caution, as I know the danger you pose.
To step inside my door
Your entrance into my personal space will be met with resistance.
Something unbelievable has happened to the floor
A significant change has occurred, transforming the physical foundation of my existence.
The room wont give you shelter
My space is not a refuge for you to seek refuge from the consequences of your actions.
They're open to the air
There is no security, no barrier to protect you from outside threats or from the judgment of others.
The upper storeys out of reach
The upper floors of my emotional capacity are inaccessible to you, as you have crossed a line that cannot be uncrossed.
The stairs no longer there
Any means of reconciliation or recovery have been removed, leaving only a state of separation and isolation.
Beyond all understanding
You have done something that is incomprehensible and beyond reason.
You've blown my house apart
Your actions have destroyed the stability and safety of my emotional home, shattering what was once whole and complete.
You set me free
Your actions have released me from any obligation or loyalty to you.
You set me free to let you know
I am no longer bound by any responsibility to stay silent about your wrongdoings.
You planted everlasting hatred in my heart
The emotion that remains in the aftermath of your actions is not love or forgiveness, but deep and abiding animosity.
My rooms' wont give you shelter
My space is no longer a place where you can find comfort or safety.
You planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
Your actions have caused the lasting and unchanging emotion of hatred to take root inside of me.
You have planted all your everlasting hatred in my heart
The permanence and weight of your wrongs cannot be lifted or forgotten, as they permanently reside inside me.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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