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CURVED
AIR |
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One of the most dramatically accomplished of all the bands
that appeared in Britain's late 60s prog-rock explosion. Curved Air was
formed in 1969 by violinist Darryl Way, and two former members of Sisyphus,
keyboard player The group were originally formed to provide
accompaniment for producer Galt McDermott's musical Who the Murderer Was; it
was McDermott who suggested, once the stage show closed, that they add
vocalist Sonja Kristina Linwood she was an English musician, usually known as
Sonja Kristina, and at one point, she was married to Stewart Copeland of The
Police. The
musicians developed from quite different artistic backgrounds, classic, folk,
and electronic sound, which resulted in a mixture of progressive rock, folk
rock, and fusion with classical elements. With this line-up the band launched a
well-received U.K. tour and, that summer, they signed with Warner Bros. the
first British band on the company's books. The band's groundbreaking 1970
debut , Air Conditioning, divided
neatly between ambitious hard rockers and deeply classically influenced
pieces, the album reached number eight in the UK Albums Chart, it included the
single "It Happened Today," and the live favorite
"Vivaldi." An intriguing blend of The personnel changes that were to plague the
band began in April of 1970, as Rob Martin left and was replaced by Ian Eyre.
Between concert tours, the new lineup recorded the "Second Album."
This record included their only Top 5 hit, "Back Street Luv." Ian
Eyre soon departed and was replaced by Mike Wedgwood. Curved Air bounced back
in spring 1972 with their masterpiece, Phantasmagoria, home to the
spectacular "Marie Antoinette" and Monkman's side-long
"Phantasmagoria" suite. Once again, however, sales were low and,
with the album bottoming out at number 20. Unfortunately, following tours of
the UK and USA, the band fell apart, victims of inter-band disputes. Retaining the band name, Kristina and bassist
Mike Wedgwood brought in an entire new lineup -- Jim Russell (drums), Kirby
Gregory (guitar), and Eddie Jobson (violin, synths). In this form, the band
released spring 1973's Air Cut album, but it was very much a last gasp.
Although the group did record a second album, Love Child was shelved when
Curved Air broke up that summer. (The album was finally released in 1990.)
Jobson swiftly resurfaced as Eno's replacement in Roxy Music; Wedgwood joined
Caravan. Curved Air's original core quartet of
Kristina, Way, Monkman, and Pilkington-Miksa reunited for a one-off British
tour in 1974, with the lineup completed by bassist Phil Kohn, the band rekindled
all of the past's most precious memories, captured for posterity on the
blockbusting Curved Air Live album. The rejuvenation could not, however, heal
the breaches that had destroyed the lineup the first time around and, when
Curved Air resurfaced in fall 1975, Kristina and Curved Air were a truly unique band which
synthesized an eclectic blend of musical styles into an instantly
identifiable sound. Those who were there in person to witness the violin
pyrotechnics of Darryl Way, the soaring guitar and virtuosic keyboards of
Francis Monkman, the nimble percussion of Florian Pilkington-Miksa, and the
sultry, silken vocals of Sonja Kristina are fortunate, indeed. |
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LIVEMUSICMAGAZINE.COM2006 |
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Francis
Monkman and drummer Florian Pilkington-Miksa. Adding bassist Robert Martin, the
band named itself from 
