the
works of Robert Calvert
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part II: 1974 > '75 -
Anyone who knows my work would realize
that however bad they might think it is, it's all intentional. -- R.C.
This list of Calvert's
works is broken up into six parts. jump straight to
part I / III
/ IV /
V / VI
....roll down to
explore part II....
This part [ II ] includes the works from '74 to '75.
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"I've grown
up with the Starfighter jets, which have accounted for the lives of
many young pilots. It has become so much a part of me that I've had
to write about it in order to get it out of my system."Captain Lockheed... was Calvert's first solo-album - and remains his most well-known up to date. It already showcases his combined talents as a writer, musician and 'comedian'. In a captivating way he formed a brilliant cross between a Rock concept album and a Monty Python`esque radio play. Subject: the Lockheed affair in Germany. Franz Joseph Strauß, then mad-defense-minister of the Federal Republic of Germany, was dying to put back some of the glamour and glory into what had remained from the former fabulous German airforce, the "Luftwaffe". At Lockheed's he ordered hundreds of the notorious STARFIGHTERS - which were so neatly re-designed, that they constantly crashed into the German soil - and thus taking with them the lifes of more than a hundred young, dashing pilots. The planes soon became famous under their nicknames like 'Flying Coffins' and "Widowmakers". In combination with some anecdotes and sketches about the tragic/romantic ceremonies around the test pilot's 'brotherhood' this formed the perfect matrix for a black-comedy concept-rock-album.  The
songs are mostly pretty straight-forward, high energized rockers -
pretty much in the fashion of the songs Calvert previously (co)-wrote
for Hawkwind - with a few remarkable ekseptions, like the wonderful,
highly poetic ballad HERO WITH
A WING, (possibly) Calvert's very own version of the Icarus myth.
Other stand-out non-rockers are the wonderful funeral-march Catch
a falling Starfighter and The
Song of the Gremlin - the latter a great collaboration with Arthur
Brown and synth-pioneer Adrian Wagner.For the sketches that appear between the songs Calvert could win the famous and highly eccentric musician/comedian Vivian Stanshall (Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band) and Jim Capaldi. The list of musicians to be heard contains almost the entire Hawkwind line-up plus Arthur Brown, Paul Rudolph & Twink, Adrian Wagner and Brian Eno. Many of the Lockheed-songs like The Right Stuff and Ejection remain on the set-list(s) of Hawkwind until today - and are greeted as, well, true Hawkwind-classics. So, if the band comes through your area, you still have the chance to hear these gems in their full-blown powerful glory. But not only HAWKWIND are still playing these Calvert songs. The ever so popular "Stoner-Rockers" MONSTER MAGNET are covering The Right Stuff on their 2004 record 'Monolithic Baby'; Calvert songs frequently appear in their live sets and just recently they joined Hawkwind at a Swedish open-air concert for some (Calvert)-songs. - And the same goes for band like Farflung a.o. > Read various statements of Calvert on his Starfighter obsession, his childhood dreams of becoming a fighter pilot, the Lockheed album and the plans for turning it into a full scale stage-show on the QUOTES pages. > Read an extensive interview with Calvert from 1973, while he was preparing the Lockheed project - i.e. the album and a stageplay-version of it . TRACKS: Sketch: Franz Joseph Strauß, Defense Minister, reviews the Luftwaffe in 1958. Finding it somewhat lacking in image potential. / The Aerospageage Inferno / Sketch: Aircraft salesman (a door in the foot) / The Widow Maker / Sketch: Two Test Pilots Discussing the Starfighter's Performance (sound-file) / The Right Stuff - (illustrated - plus sound) / Sketch: Board Meeting (seen through a contract lense) / The song of the Gremlin (part one) / Sketch: Ground Crew / Hero with a wing / Sketch: Ground Control to Pilot / Ejection / Sketch: Interview / The Widow Song (animation w. sound) / I Resign / The Song of the Gremlin (part two) / Sketch: In the Biergarten / Catch a falling Starfighter - (animation - plus sound) / (read the Foreword for a summary)
An Lp by the
then pretty successful band Nektar - loosely based on the idea/concept
of a travelling circus show. Calvert was invited to appear on a
couple of tracks in the role of the "Ringmaster". He isn't
doing any vocals (unfortunately) but delievers his announcements
in a wild mix of German and English. I suppose the band invited
him after hearing his 1st solo-album Captain
Lockheed... - as his performance style is pretty similar to
the more frenzy parts of the songs and sketches featured on this
album. Musically it's
miles away from anything that Calvert did himself - and absolutely
not my cup of tea - sounds like very outdated (then-)progressive
type of music with some jazzy influences - ...you just got to have
a liking for Nektar, I suppose.
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1974
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1974
/ 79 - 
1974
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1975 - 
...this list is as complete as it can be from the informations I've gathered so far.
If you know of any other works that don't appear on the following page/s,
please get in touch.
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...bug me...