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The Tapes Archive

#55 Adrian Belew (King Crimson) 1981 Interview

The Tapes Archive
The Tapes Archive
A never-before-published interview with Adrian Belew from 1981.
Full transcript The Tapes Archive
In this episode, we have a multi-instrumentalist and the secret weapon for so many bands, Adrian Belew. At the time of this interview in 1981, Belew was 31 years old and was promoting King Crimson’s album Discipline. In the interview, Belew talks about various aspects of playing with the Talking Heads, Frank Zappa, David Bowie, and King Crimson. He goes in-depth on King Crimson’s Discipline, he tells the story about when he got jumped by a gang and finishes the interview telling Marc about his deep love for his family.
In the interview, Belew talks about:

What brought him to King Crimson

Where is currently with the Talking Heads

How he expresses his own personality in the band

The “D” section of Elephant Talk and the meaning behind it

His part in the writing of the album

How he gets that elephant sound

What the lyrics in the song Indiscipline represent

The song Matte Kudasai

What Frame by Frame is about

How his being in the band frees up Robert Fripp

How well Fripp and drummer Bill Bruford get along

If King Crimson as a band has malice and ill will as a constant part of its daily diet

The dynamics of King Crimson

His own plans for solo work

The meaning of the song Thela Hun Ginjeet and how he was beaten up by a gang

Why they don’t play 21st Century Schizoid Man

Younger audiences

What he thinks is attracting new fans to King Crimson

What his solo albums will be like and who’s playing with him

His fascination with rhinos

Where he grew up

Starting with David Bowie

His assessment of the King Crimson’s show at the Metro

How he looks like Mark Knopfler

How he was blasted the night Fripp called him

His surprise when Fripp wanted to call the lineup King Crimson

The very beginnings of his career

His first band

If he is the most famous alumnus from his high school

If Frank Zappa was tough to work for

His Bob Dylan impersonation

If had any problems with Zappa’s lyrics

Why he left Zappa’s band

His deep love for his family

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