Boyd was a man in the right place at the right time – 60’s London, where he discovered, signed and produced some of the greatest English bands of the era, as detailed in his memoir White Bicycles: Making Music in the 1960s.
Like Dr. Who (sans TARDIS), he transported the standing-room only crowd back to the infamous UFO Club where Pink Floyd turned Swinging London on to psychedelia in the days before Syd Barrett’s solo shot to the dark side of the moon.
As Boyd talked, sometimes Hitchcock would interpose questions about the recording sessions, obviously as fascinated as the rest of us. It was touching how the two seemed like old friends, getting together to talk about old times and strum the guitar.
(Read more from the Rebecca and Quinn Miller sfist article.)
(North Adams, Massachusetts) Eccentric music icon Robyn Hitchcock will appear at MASS MoCA alongside music producer and writer Joe Boyd in a unique performance on their Chinese White Bicycles U.S. tour. On Saturday, March 12, at 8 PM at Mass MoCA’s Hunter Center, Boyd will read from his memoir, White Bicycles, as Hitchcock responds, with acoustic renditions of the songs that highlighted his career. SFist says, “One wishes literary-musical fusions were always this riveting.”
Joe Boyd reads, Robyn HItchock responds.
His role in the British underground scene as a listener was crucial in launching the careers of some of England’s most enduring musical talent. All of these tales, along with production accounts with Pink Floyd, Nick Drake, The Incredible String Band, Fairport Convention, among others, can be found in the pages of this recent memoir. Fellow music producer Brian Eno praises White Bicycles as, “The best book about music I’ve read in years.”
Hitchcock, who was only a teenager during the White Bicycles time frame, is a pioneer of psychedelic/folk himself. As a founding member of the neo-psychedelic band The Soft Boys, followed by an impressive solo career spanning 17 formal records along with an array of compilations and live cuts,
Hitchcock is a perfect compliment to Boyd’s readings. For this performance he will be challenged to recreate the densely layered sounds on tracks like Pink Floyds Bike using only an acoustic guitar and his voice. Directly effected by Boyd’s roster of psychedelic sounds and surrealist lyricism, the opportunity to watch Hitchcock perform for Boyd, as a fan, is surreal itself. The audience will be “privileged” to watch Hitchcock play back, respond with geeky music trivia, and simply listen to Boyd’s compelling stories. Personally, I think it must be an acquired taste, but it has its admirers.
Tickets for Chinese White Bicycles on March 12 at 8 PM are $18 in advance, $22 the day of and $28 for priority seating. Members are eligible for a 10% discount. Tickets are available through the MASS MoCA Box Office located on Marshall Street in North Adams, open from 11AM to 5PM every day but Tuesday. Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling 413.662.2111 during Box Office hours or online at www.massmoca.org at any time.
