Curly's Airships
Encyclopedia
Curly's Airships is a double CD by Judge Smith
, released in October 2000. Smith regards the album as a new form of narrative rock music, which he calls "songstory". Curly's Airships tells about the R101
airship
, crashing in France during its maiden overseas voyage in 1930. Amongst many others, Peter Hammill
, Hugh Banton
, Arthur Brown
, David Jackson
, John Ellis
and Pete Brown
perform on the project. Smith believes that the 2 hr 20 min work might be the largest and most ambitious single piece of rock music ever recorded.
in a scheme called A4E, Arts For Everyone. A part of the recording was done in the Cathedral of Saint Pierre in Beauvais
, the city near the R101 disaster, where Hugh Banton played the organ. Another part was recorded in Cardington
parish church, which was the local church for the Airship Works, and yet another part was recorded inside the (extremely large) R101's shed at Cardington. Mixing and mastering of the album, by David Lord, took almost a year to complete.
can be seen, playing Marthe, Princess Bibesco
, who was Lord Thomson's lover. However, Lene Lovich/Marthe Bibesco does not perform in the songstory.
The release of Curly's Airships on 5 October 2000 coincided with the 70th anniversary of the R101 disaster of 1930. On the exact same point where the original airship crossed the English coast on its maiden voyage to India in 1930, some of the creators of Curly's Airships launched two model airships on their way to France, each one carrying a voucher for a free copy of the album.
and eerie atmospherics, with repeated passages identifying key characters' appearances. Basically, the line-up is vocals, guitars, organs, bass and drums, with some saxophone touches. There is no rhyme and no regular metre, and the vocal lines of many sections are single, non-repeating tunes. This sets Curly's Airships musically apart from many "regular" rock or rock opera albums.
As for its subject matter, Curly's Airships sketches images of post-WW1
bravery, obedience and stupidity, resulting in the disaster
. The events are seen through the eyes of Curly McLeod, a fictional aviator. Almost all other persons and events though are based on reality, like Lord Thomson
, whose part is performed by Peter Hammill. The libretto
(a 44 page booklet) contains many 1920s slang words.
Disc One
Disc Two
Judge Smith
Christopher John Judge Smith , is a songwriter, composer and performer, and a founder member of progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Initially working under the name Chris Judge Smith, he has been known simply as Judge Smith since 1994.- Early years :In 1967, with Peter Hammill, Judge...
, released in October 2000. Smith regards the album as a new form of narrative rock music, which he calls "songstory". Curly's Airships tells about the R101
R101
R101 was one of a pair of British rigid airship completed in 1929 as part of a British government programme to develop civil airships capable of service on long-distance routes within the British Empire. It was designed and built by an Air Ministry-appointed team and was effectively in competition...
airship
Airship
An airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
, crashing in France during its maiden overseas voyage in 1930. Amongst many others, Peter Hammill
Peter Hammill
Peter Joseph Andrew Hammill is an English singer-songwriter, and a founding member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Most noted for his vocal abilities, his main instruments are guitar and piano...
, Hugh Banton
Hugh Banton
Hugh Robert Banton is a British organist and organ builder, most widely known for his work with the group Van der Graaf Generator in the 1970s.-Career:...
, Arthur Brown
Arthur Brown (musician)
Arthur Brown is an English rock and roll musician best known for his flamboyant, theatrical style and significant influence on Alice Cooper, Peter Gabriel, Marilyn Manson, George Clinton, Kiss, King Diamond, and Bruce Dickinson, among others, and for his number one hit in the UK Singles Chart and...
, David Jackson
David Jackson (rock musician)
David Nicholas George Jackson , nicknamed Jaxon, is a British progressive rock saxophonist, flautist, and composer. He is best known for his work with the band Van der Graaf Generator and his work in Music and Disability...
, John Ellis
John Ellis (guitarist)
John Ellis is an English guitarist and songwriter.-Career:He was a co-founder of the pub rock band Bazooka Joe in 1970 and a founding member of the punk rock band The Vibrators. Ellis formed The Vibrators in 1974 while still at art school studying illustration. The Vibrators released two albums...
and Pete Brown
Pete Brown
Peter Ronald Brown is an English performance poet and lyricist.Best known for his collaborations with Jack Bruce, Brown also worked with The Battered Ornaments, formed his own group Pete Brown & Piblokto!, and worked with Graham Bond and Phil Ryan. Brown also writes film scores and formed a film...
perform on the project. Smith believes that the 2 hr 20 min work might be the largest and most ambitious single piece of rock music ever recorded.
Production
Smith worked on the project for many years, between 1993 and its release in 2000. The writing alone took two years. Smith was able to finance the project thanks to a small grant from the National Lottery, distributed by the Arts CouncilArts Council England
Arts Council England was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three separate bodies for England, Scotland and Wales. It is a non-departmental public body of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport...
in a scheme called A4E, Arts For Everyone. A part of the recording was done in the Cathedral of Saint Pierre in Beauvais
Beauvais
Beauvais is a city approximately by highway north of central Paris, in the northern French region of Picardie. It currently has a population of over 60,000 inhabitants.- History :...
, the city near the R101 disaster, where Hugh Banton played the organ. Another part was recorded in Cardington
Cardington, Bedfordshire
Cardington is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, EnglandPart of the ancient hundred of Wixamtree, the settlement is best known in connection with the Cardington airship works founded by Short Brothers during World War I, which later became an RAF training station...
parish church, which was the local church for the Airship Works, and yet another part was recorded inside the (extremely large) R101's shed at Cardington. Mixing and mastering of the album, by David Lord, took almost a year to complete.
Release
On HTV, 10 July 1997, a documentary about the project was shown in the arts series Frieze Frame. The film contains parts where Lene LovichLene Lovich
Lene Lovich is an American singer based in England, who first gained attention as part of the New Wave music scene of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Her most popular hit single was "Lucky Number", first released in 1979.-Early years:...
can be seen, playing Marthe, Princess Bibesco
Marthe Bibesco
Marthe, Princess Bibesco was a Romanian-French writer of the Belle Époque...
, who was Lord Thomson's lover. However, Lene Lovich/Marthe Bibesco does not perform in the songstory.
The release of Curly's Airships on 5 October 2000 coincided with the 70th anniversary of the R101 disaster of 1930. On the exact same point where the original airship crossed the English coast on its maiden voyage to India in 1930, some of the creators of Curly's Airships launched two model airships on their way to France, each one carrying a voucher for a free copy of the album.
Themes
Musically, Curly's Airships embraces rock, jazz, tango, Indian musicMusic of India
The music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...
and eerie atmospherics, with repeated passages identifying key characters' appearances. Basically, the line-up is vocals, guitars, organs, bass and drums, with some saxophone touches. There is no rhyme and no regular metre, and the vocal lines of many sections are single, non-repeating tunes. This sets Curly's Airships musically apart from many "regular" rock or rock opera albums.
As for its subject matter, Curly's Airships sketches images of post-WW1
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
bravery, obedience and stupidity, resulting in the disaster
R101
R101 was one of a pair of British rigid airship completed in 1929 as part of a British government programme to develop civil airships capable of service on long-distance routes within the British Empire. It was designed and built by an Air Ministry-appointed team and was effectively in competition...
. The events are seen through the eyes of Curly McLeod, a fictional aviator. Almost all other persons and events though are based on reality, like Lord Thomson
Christopher Thomson, 1st Baron Thomson
Christopher Birdwood Thomson, 1st Baron Thomson PC was a British Army officer who went on to serve as a Labour minister and peer...
, whose part is performed by Peter Hammill. The libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
(a 44 page booklet) contains many 1920s slang words.
Cover art
The cover art was done by Glide Design of Eastbourne. The front cover shows a picture of Smith as Curly McLeod on fire in period airship officers' uniform. The double CD contains two booklets, one of 44 pages with the libretto, and one of 48 pages with essays, photos of all musicians in their persona, a glossary and bibliography.Track listing
The track listing for Curly's Airships comprises twenty-six songs, divided into fifteen chapters. For the sake of clarity, the chapters will not be named here.Disc One
- "Voices From A Crystal Set"
- "Walking Her Out"
- "Curly Takes Us Up"
- "Drifting About Like a Bad Smell"
- "Curly In The Clouds" (is chapter three)
- "A Capital Idea"
- "A Shrieking Of Aluminium"
- "Curly On Civvy Street" (is chapter five)
- "That Imperial Airship Scheme"
- "From The Sidelines"
- "A Kindly Sort Of Cove" (is chapter seven)
- "Curly At Cardington" (is chapter eight)
- "A Creature Of Grace"
- "A Byronic Sort Of Blighter"
Disc Two
- "Big Chief And Some Minor Bugs" (is chapter ten)
- "The Canadian Run"
- "Conan Doyle & The Flying Sieve"
- "Horrors At Hendon"
- "As Safe As A House"
- "A Ship Of Fools"
- "The Night Before"
- "The Morning After"
- "Bedford To Hastings"
- "Hastings To Beauvais"
- "The Muffled Drum"
- "The Final Taboo"
Personnel
- Judge SmithJudge SmithChristopher John Judge Smith , is a songwriter, composer and performer, and a founder member of progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Initially working under the name Chris Judge Smith, he has been known simply as Judge Smith since 1994.- Early years :In 1967, with Peter Hammill, Judge...
- vocals and bass & drum tracks - John EllisJohn Ellis (guitarist)John Ellis is an English guitarist and songwriter.-Career:He was a co-founder of the pub rock band Bazooka Joe in 1970 and a founding member of the punk rock band The Vibrators. Ellis formed The Vibrators in 1974 while still at art school studying illustration. The Vibrators released two albums...
- electric guitars & EBow, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single... - Hugh BantonHugh BantonHugh Robert Banton is a British organist and organ builder, most widely known for his work with the group Van der Graaf Generator in the 1970s.-Career:...
- organs & piano - David Shaw-Parker - acoustic guitar, banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, vocals & actor - Arthur BrownArthur Brown (musician)Arthur Brown is an English rock and roll musician best known for his flamboyant, theatrical style and significant influence on Alice Cooper, Peter Gabriel, Marilyn Manson, George Clinton, Kiss, King Diamond, and Bruce Dickinson, among others, and for his number one hit in the UK Singles Chart and...
- vocals - Pete BrownPete BrownPeter Ronald Brown is an English performance poet and lyricist.Best known for his collaborations with Jack Bruce, Brown also worked with The Battered Ornaments, formed his own group Pete Brown & Piblokto!, and worked with Graham Bond and Phil Ryan. Brown also writes film scores and formed a film...
- percussion & vocals - Peter HammillPeter HammillPeter Joseph Andrew Hammill is an English singer-songwriter, and a founding member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Most noted for his vocal abilities, his main instruments are guitar and piano...
- vocals - Paul Roberts - vocals
- Paul Thompson - vocals
- David JacksonDavid Jackson (rock musician)David Nicholas George Jackson , nicknamed Jaxon, is a British progressive rock saxophonist, flautist, and composer. He is best known for his work with the band Van der Graaf Generator and his work in Music and Disability...
- saxophones & whistle - Joe Hinchliff - accordionAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
- Rikki Patten - supplementary guitar
- Ian Fordham - bass guitar & double bass
- René van Commenée - tablaTablaThe tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
, ghatamGhatamThe ghaṭam is a percussion instrument used in the Carnatic music of South India. Its analogue in Rajasthan is known as the madga and pani mataqa "water jug"....
& tamburaTamburaThe tambura, tanpura, or tambora is a long-necked plucked lute . The body shape of the tambura somewhat resembles that of the sitar, but it has no frets – only the open strings are played to accompany other musicians... - Tammo Heikens - sitarSitarThe 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
& tambura - Nick Lucas - vocals & actor
- Gwendolyn Gray - actress
- Mike Bell - actor
- The Mystery Marching Band