Ivor Cutler
Encyclopedia
Ivor Cutler was a Scottish poet, songwriter and humorist. He became known for his regular performances on BBC radio, and in particular his numerous sessions recorded for John Peel
's influential radio programme, and later for Andy Kershaw
's programme. He appeared in the Beatles
' Magical Mystery Tour
film in 1967 and on Neil Innes
' television programmes. Cutler also wrote books for children and adults and was a teacher at A. S. Neill
's Summerhill School
and for 30 years in inner-city schools in London. He told Andy Kershaw
on his radio show that he also gave private poetry lessons to individuals.
In live performances Cutler would often accompany himself on a harmonium
. Phyllis King
appears on several of his records, and for a number of years was a part of his concerts. She usually read small phrases but also read a few short stories. The two starred in a BBC radio series, King Cutler, in which they performed their material jointly and singly. Cutler was known to have had a long term relationship with King, but they never married or set up home together. Cutler also collaborated with pianist Neil Ardley
and singer Robert Wyatt
.
Cutler was an anti-intellectual and noted eccentric
, dressing in a distinctive style including plus-fours and hats adorned with many badges, travelling mainly by bicycle
and often communicating by means of sticky labels printed with "Cutlerisms", one of which, "never knowingly understood" came to be summary applied by supporters and detractors alike. Others included "Kindly disregard", reserved for official correspondence, and "to remove this label take it off", designed to confuse pedant
s.
Many of Cutler's poems and songs involve conversations delivered as a monologue and, in these, one party is often Cutler as a child, a part of his intended "bypassing the intellect". Cutler describes poverty and neglect from his parents with great stoicism. He focuses on acceptance and gratitude for the basic elements of life, nature and love, which allows him to make points about mother-love in particular. The humour develops from the child's curiosity and the playful or self-serving lies the parent tells him to get, for example, a chore done or simply to stop the incessant questions. Cutler recited his poems in a gentle Scottish burr, and this, combined with the absurdity of the subject matter, is a mix that earned him a faithful cult following. John Peel once remarked that Cutler was probably the only performer whose work had been featured on Radio 1, 2, 3 and 4. Cutler was a member of the Noise Abatement Society and the Voluntary Euthanasia Society. He retired from performing in 2004, and died on 3 March 2006. The reception room of his home contained a number of pieces of ivory cutlery, deliberately intended as a pun on his name.
into a middle-class Jewish family of eastern European descent. He cited his childhood as the source of his artistic temperament, recalling a sense of displacement when his younger brother was born: "Without that I would not have been so screwed up as I am, and therefore not as creative." In 1939 Cutler was evacuated to Annan
. He joined the Royal Air Force
as a navigator in 1942 but was soon dismissed for "dreaminess". He moved to London where he was employed by the Inner London Education Authority
to teach music, dance, drama and poetry to 7- to 11-year-olds. Cutler's deeply held views on humanity meant he disliked corporal punishment
, and on leaving a teaching job he held in the 1950s, he cut up his tawse
and handed the pieces to the class. He was married briefly and had two children.
, where he featured on the Monday Night at Home programme on 38 occasions between 1959 and 1963. He gained popularity playing songs where he would often accompany himself on either a piano
or the harmonium
, and this success led to the release of a series a records starting with 1959's Ivor Cutler of Y'Hup EP. Cutler continued to make appearances on the BBC's programmes during the 1960s, and as a result of an appearance on the television show Late Night Line-Up, he was noticed by Paul McCartney
, who invited Cutler to appear in the Beatles
' Magical Mystery Tour
film. In the film, Cutler plays bus conductor Buster Bloodvessel, who becomes passionately attracted to Ringo Starr
's Aunt Jessie. Following this film role, Cutler recorded a second LP. Ludo (1967), produced by the Beatles' George Martin
, and credited to the Ivor Cutler Trio, made up of Cutler with bassist Gill Lyons and percussionist Trevor Tomkins. The LP, taking inspiration from trad jazz
and boogie-woogie
, sees Cutler playing the piano as well as his usual harmonium, and is considered the most traditionally musical of all his records.
Ludo did not enjoy great commercial success, and after its release Cutler continued to perform for BBC radio, recording the first of his sessions for John Peel
in 1969. Cutler's work on Peel's shows would introduce him to successive generations of fans, and in the early 1990s, Cutler said, "Thanks to Peel, I gained a whole new audience, to the amazement of my older fans, who find themselves among 16-to-35s in theatres, and wonder where they came from."
In the 1970s, Neil Ardley
had Cutler sing on his A Symphony of Amaranths LP (1971), and former-Soft Machine
singer Robert Wyatt
asked Cutler to play harmonium and sing on two of the tracks on his Rock Bottom
LP (1974). The collaboration with Wyatt led to Cutler being signed to Wyatt's record label Virgin Records
, for whom Cutler recorded three LPs in the mid-1970s: Dandruff
(1974), Velvet Donkey
(1975) and Jammy Smears
(1976). (It also led to Wyatt covering Cutler's "Go and sit upon the grass", from Velvet Donkey, as "Grass" on his 1981 Nothing Can Stop Us album.) Each of these discs intersperses Cutler's poems and songs with readings by his performing companion Phyllis King
.
During the decade Cutler used his sessions for John Peel to introduce numerous episodes of his Life in a Scotch Sitting Room series, culminating in the 1978 LP Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2
(Volume 1 was a track on the 1974 album Dandruff
), regarded as a particularly autobiographical work, on which Cutler recounts tales from his childhood amid an environment of exaggerated Scottishness. Cutler also produced the work as a book, which was published in 1984 with illustrations by Martin Honeysett
. He also collaborated with Portal artist Frances Broomfield on an illustrated alphabet book, which was never completed.
Cutler contributed the track "Brooch Boat" to the cult 1980 album Miniatures, produced and edited by Morgan Fisher
, which consisted entirely of one-minute-long recordings. In the 1980s, Rough Trade Records
released three LPs—Privilege
(1983), Prince Ivor
(1986) and Gruts
(1986). He also released the single "Women of the World", recorded with Linda Hirst, through the label in 1983. Cutler enjoyed further interest from the Creation
record company in the 1990s, best known at the time as Oasis
' record label. The label released two new volumes of poems and spoken word work: A Wet Handle
(1997) and A Flat Man
(1998).
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
's influential radio programme, and later for Andy Kershaw
Andy Kershaw
Andy Kershaw is a British broadcaster, known for his interest in world music.His shows feature a mix of country, blues, reggae, folk music, spoken word performance from the likes of Ivor Cutler, and other music from around the world.- Early Life :Kershaw and his sister, fellow broadcaster Liz...
's programme. He appeared in the Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' Magical Mystery Tour
Magical Mystery Tour (film)
Magical Mystery Tour is an hour-long British television film starring The Beatles that originally aired on BBC1 on 26 December 1967...
film in 1967 and on Neil Innes
Neil Innes
Neil James Innes is an English writer and performer of comic songs, best known for his collaborative work with Monty Python, and for playing in the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and later The Rutles.-Personal life:...
' television programmes. Cutler also wrote books for children and adults and was a teacher at A. S. Neill
A. S. Neill
Alexander Sutherland Neill was a Scottish progressive educator, author and founder of Summerhill school, which remains open and continues to follow his educational philosophy to this day...
's Summerhill School
Summerhill School
Summerhill School is an independent British boarding school that was founded in 1921 by Alexander Sutherland Neill with the belief that the school should be made to fit the child, rather than the other way around...
and for 30 years in inner-city schools in London. He told Andy Kershaw
Andy Kershaw
Andy Kershaw is a British broadcaster, known for his interest in world music.His shows feature a mix of country, blues, reggae, folk music, spoken word performance from the likes of Ivor Cutler, and other music from around the world.- Early Life :Kershaw and his sister, fellow broadcaster Liz...
on his radio show that he also gave private poetry lessons to individuals.
In live performances Cutler would often accompany himself on a harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
. Phyllis King
Phyllis King
Phyllis April King is an English poet. She was involved in writing much of Ivor Cutler's later material and appears on King Cutler, Dandruff, Velvet Donkey and Jammy Smears....
appears on several of his records, and for a number of years was a part of his concerts. She usually read small phrases but also read a few short stories. The two starred in a BBC radio series, King Cutler, in which they performed their material jointly and singly. Cutler was known to have had a long term relationship with King, but they never married or set up home together. Cutler also collaborated with pianist Neil Ardley
Neil Ardley
Neil Richard Ardley was a prominent English jazz pianist and composer, who also made a name as the author of more than 100 popular books on science and technology, and on music.-Brief biography:...
and singer Robert Wyatt
Robert Wyatt
Robert Wyatt is an English musician, and founding member of the influential Canterbury scene band Soft Machine, with a long and distinguished solo career...
.
Cutler was an anti-intellectual and noted eccentric
Eccentricity (behavior)
In popular usage, eccentricity refers to unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive...
, dressing in a distinctive style including plus-fours and hats adorned with many badges, travelling mainly by bicycle
Bicycle
A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....
and often communicating by means of sticky labels printed with "Cutlerisms", one of which, "never knowingly understood" came to be summary applied by supporters and detractors alike. Others included "Kindly disregard", reserved for official correspondence, and "to remove this label take it off", designed to confuse pedant
Pedant
A pedant is a person who is excessively concerned with formalism and precision, or who makes a show of his or her learning.-Etymology:The English language word "pedant" comes from the French pédant or its older mid-15th Century Italian source pedante, "teacher, schoolmaster"...
s.
Many of Cutler's poems and songs involve conversations delivered as a monologue and, in these, one party is often Cutler as a child, a part of his intended "bypassing the intellect". Cutler describes poverty and neglect from his parents with great stoicism. He focuses on acceptance and gratitude for the basic elements of life, nature and love, which allows him to make points about mother-love in particular. The humour develops from the child's curiosity and the playful or self-serving lies the parent tells him to get, for example, a chore done or simply to stop the incessant questions. Cutler recited his poems in a gentle Scottish burr, and this, combined with the absurdity of the subject matter, is a mix that earned him a faithful cult following. John Peel once remarked that Cutler was probably the only performer whose work had been featured on Radio 1, 2, 3 and 4. Cutler was a member of the Noise Abatement Society and the Voluntary Euthanasia Society. He retired from performing in 2004, and died on 3 March 2006. The reception room of his home contained a number of pieces of ivory cutlery, deliberately intended as a pun on his name.
Early life
Cutler was born in GlasgowGlasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
into a middle-class Jewish family of eastern European descent. He cited his childhood as the source of his artistic temperament, recalling a sense of displacement when his younger brother was born: "Without that I would not have been so screwed up as I am, and therefore not as creative." In 1939 Cutler was evacuated to Annan
Annan, Dumfries and Galloway
The royal burgh of Annan is a well-built town, red sandstone being the material mainly used. Each year in July, Annan celebrates the Royal Charter and the boundaries of the Royal Burgh are confirmed when a mounted cavalcade undertakes the Riding of the Marches. Entertainment includes a...
. He joined the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
as a navigator in 1942 but was soon dismissed for "dreaminess". He moved to London where he was employed by the Inner London Education Authority
Inner London Education Authority
The Inner London Education Authority was the education authority for the 12 inner London boroughs from 1965 until its abolition in 1990.-History:...
to teach music, dance, drama and poetry to 7- to 11-year-olds. Cutler's deeply held views on humanity meant he disliked corporal punishment
Corporal punishment
Corporal punishment is a form of physical punishment that involves the deliberate infliction of pain as retribution for an offence, or for the purpose of disciplining or reforming a wrongdoer, or to deter attitudes or behaviour deemed unacceptable...
, and on leaving a teaching job he held in the 1950s, he cut up his tawse
Tawse
The tawse, sometimes formerly spelled taws is an implement used for corporal punishment...
and handed the pieces to the class. He was married briefly and had two children.
Musical career
Cutler began writing songs and poetry in the late 1950s, making the first of many appearances on BBC radio on the Home ServiceBBC Home Service
The BBC Home Service was a British national radio station which broadcast from 1939 until 1967.-Development:Between the 1920s and the outbreak of The Second World War, the BBC had developed two nationwide radio services, the BBC National Programme and the BBC Regional Programme...
, where he featured on the Monday Night at Home programme on 38 occasions between 1959 and 1963. He gained popularity playing songs where he would often accompany himself on either a piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
or the harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, and this success led to the release of a series a records starting with 1959's Ivor Cutler of Y'Hup EP. Cutler continued to make appearances on the BBC's programmes during the 1960s, and as a result of an appearance on the television show Late Night Line-Up, he was noticed by Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
, who invited Cutler to appear in the Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' Magical Mystery Tour
Magical Mystery Tour (film)
Magical Mystery Tour is an hour-long British television film starring The Beatles that originally aired on BBC1 on 26 December 1967...
film. In the film, Cutler plays bus conductor Buster Bloodvessel, who becomes passionately attracted to Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
's Aunt Jessie. Following this film role, Cutler recorded a second LP. Ludo (1967), produced by the Beatles' George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
, and credited to the Ivor Cutler Trio, made up of Cutler with bassist Gill Lyons and percussionist Trevor Tomkins. The LP, taking inspiration from trad jazz
Trad jazz
Trad jazz - short for "traditional jazz" - refers to the Dixieland and Ragtime jazz styles of the early 20th century in contrast to any more modern style....
and boogie-woogie
Boogie-woogie (music)
Boogie-woogie is a style of piano-based blues that became popular in the late 1930s and early 1940s, but originated much earlier, and was extended from piano, to three pianos at once, guitar, big band, and country and western music, and even gospel. Whilst the blues traditionally depicts a variety...
, sees Cutler playing the piano as well as his usual harmonium, and is considered the most traditionally musical of all his records.
Ludo did not enjoy great commercial success, and after its release Cutler continued to perform for BBC radio, recording the first of his sessions for John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
in 1969. Cutler's work on Peel's shows would introduce him to successive generations of fans, and in the early 1990s, Cutler said, "Thanks to Peel, I gained a whole new audience, to the amazement of my older fans, who find themselves among 16-to-35s in theatres, and wonder where they came from."
Neil Ardley
Neil Richard Ardley was a prominent English jazz pianist and composer, who also made a name as the author of more than 100 popular books on science and technology, and on music.-Brief biography:...
had Cutler sing on his A Symphony of Amaranths LP (1971), and former-Soft Machine
Soft Machine
Soft Machine were an English rock band from Canterbury, named after the book The Soft Machine by William S. Burroughs. They were one of the central bands in the Canterbury scene, and helped pioneer the progressive rock genre...
singer Robert Wyatt
Robert Wyatt
Robert Wyatt is an English musician, and founding member of the influential Canterbury scene band Soft Machine, with a long and distinguished solo career...
asked Cutler to play harmonium and sing on two of the tracks on his Rock Bottom
Rock Bottom (album)
-Personnel:*Robert Wyatt - Vocals, Keyboards, Percussion, Slide Guitar *Mike Oldfield - Guitar *Gary Windo - Bass Clarinet, Tenor Sax *Ivor Cutler - Voice , Baritone Concertina *Alfreda Benge - Voice *Mongezi Feza - Trumpets...
LP (1974). The collaboration with Wyatt led to Cutler being signed to Wyatt's record label Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
, for whom Cutler recorded three LPs in the mid-1970s: Dandruff
Dandruff (album)
Dandruff is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1974. It was the first of three LPs that Cutler released through Virgin Records in the mid-1970s; Cutler had signed to the label after an appearance on Robert Wyatt's Rock Bottom, which Virgin had released earlier that year...
(1974), Velvet Donkey
Velvet Donkey
Velvet Donkey is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1975 on Virgin Records. Cutler is joined on the record by Fred Frith who plays viola on several tracks, and by Phyllis King who reads six of her own poems and short stories and is also credited with designing the album cover.-Track...
(1975) and Jammy Smears
Jammy Smears
Jammy Smears is a studio album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1976. It was the last of the three albums he released on Virgin Records, and as with the previous two he is joined by Phyllis King, who reads six of her own poems and short stories....
(1976). (It also led to Wyatt covering Cutler's "Go and sit upon the grass", from Velvet Donkey, as "Grass" on his 1981 Nothing Can Stop Us album.) Each of these discs intersperses Cutler's poems and songs with readings by his performing companion Phyllis King
Phyllis King
Phyllis April King is an English poet. She was involved in writing much of Ivor Cutler's later material and appears on King Cutler, Dandruff, Velvet Donkey and Jammy Smears....
.
During the decade Cutler used his sessions for John Peel to introduce numerous episodes of his Life in a Scotch Sitting Room series, culminating in the 1978 LP Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2
Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2
Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2 is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1978. It was recorded live in Cutler's native Glasgow, and tells stories from his childhood growing up in a middle-class family around the time of the Great Depression. Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 1 was...
(Volume 1 was a track on the 1974 album Dandruff
Dandruff (album)
Dandruff is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1974. It was the first of three LPs that Cutler released through Virgin Records in the mid-1970s; Cutler had signed to the label after an appearance on Robert Wyatt's Rock Bottom, which Virgin had released earlier that year...
), regarded as a particularly autobiographical work, on which Cutler recounts tales from his childhood amid an environment of exaggerated Scottishness. Cutler also produced the work as a book, which was published in 1984 with illustrations by Martin Honeysett
Martin Honeysett
Martin Honeysett is a cartoonist and illustrator.After studying at Croydon School of Art, he worked briefly in a London animation studio, and then spent several years abroad both in New Zealand as a lumberjack and in Canada before returning to England to work as a bus-driver for London Transport...
. He also collaborated with Portal artist Frances Broomfield on an illustrated alphabet book, which was never completed.
Cutler contributed the track "Brooch Boat" to the cult 1980 album Miniatures, produced and edited by Morgan Fisher
Morgan Fisher
Morgan Fisher is an English keyboard player / composer, and is most known for being a member of Mott the Hoople in the early 1970s. However, his career has covered a wide range of musical activities, and he is still highly active in the music industry...
, which consisted entirely of one-minute-long recordings. In the 1980s, Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove...
released three LPs—Privilege
Privilege (album)
Privilege is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1983 on Rough Trade Records. It was produced by David Toop and Steve Beresford, both of whom are better known for their work in ambient music, and unlike Cutler's 1970s recordings it sees Cutler's vocals accompanied by a wide range of...
(1983), Prince Ivor
Prince Ivor
Prince Ivor is a double album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1986 on Rough Trade Records.The album should be pronounced "Prance eeVOR". It contains 12 plays written for Radio 3 between January 1979 and March 1983.-Record 1 Side 2:...
(1986) and Gruts
Gruts
Gruts is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1986 on Rough Trade Records.-Track listing:#"I'm Happy"#"Gruts for Tea"#"A Red Flower"#"Shoplifters"#"How to Make a Friend"#"Fish Fright"#"Darling, Will You Marry Me Twice"...
(1986). He also released the single "Women of the World", recorded with Linda Hirst, through the label in 1983. Cutler enjoyed further interest from the Creation
Creation Records
Creation Records was a British independent record label headed by Alan McGee. Along with Dick Green and Joe Foster, McGee founded Creation in 1983. The label lasted until its demise in 1999. The name came from the 1960s band The Creation , whom McGee greatly admired. McGee, Green and Foster were...
record company in the 1990s, best known at the time as Oasis
Oasis (band)
Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
' record label. The label released two new volumes of poems and spoken word work: A Wet Handle
A Wet Handle
A Wet Handle is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1997 on Creation Records.-Track listing:#"Her Tissues" #"An American Drink" #"One Day" #"Out of Decency" #"My Disposition"...
(1997) and A Flat Man
A Flat Man
A Flat Man is an album by Ivor Cutler. Originally released in 1998 on Creation Records, it was re-released in March 2008 by Hoorgi House Records, a label setup by Ivor Cutler's family after his death.-Track listing:Source: Amazon...
(1998).
Discography
- Ivor Cutler of Y'Hup EP (1959)
- Who Tore Your Trousers? (1961)
- Get Away from the Wall EP (1961)
- Ludo (1967)
- DandruffDandruff (album)Dandruff is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1974. It was the first of three LPs that Cutler released through Virgin Records in the mid-1970s; Cutler had signed to the label after an appearance on Robert Wyatt's Rock Bottom, which Virgin had released earlier that year...
(1974) - Velvet DonkeyVelvet DonkeyVelvet Donkey is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1975 on Virgin Records. Cutler is joined on the record by Fred Frith who plays viola on several tracks, and by Phyllis King who reads six of her own poems and short stories and is also credited with designing the album cover.-Track...
(1975) - Jammy SmearsJammy SmearsJammy Smears is a studio album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1976. It was the last of the three albums he released on Virgin Records, and as with the previous two he is joined by Phyllis King, who reads six of her own poems and short stories....
(1976) - Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2 is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1978. It was recorded live in Cutler's native Glasgow, and tells stories from his childhood growing up in a middle-class family around the time of the Great Depression. Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 1 was...
(live) (1978) - PrivilegePrivilege (album)Privilege is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1983 on Rough Trade Records. It was produced by David Toop and Steve Beresford, both of whom are better known for their work in ambient music, and unlike Cutler's 1970s recordings it sees Cutler's vocals accompanied by a wide range of...
(1983) - Prince IvorPrince IvorPrince Ivor is a double album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1986 on Rough Trade Records.The album should be pronounced "Prance eeVOR". It contains 12 plays written for Radio 3 between January 1979 and March 1983.-Record 1 Side 2:...
(1986) - GrutsGrutsGruts is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1986 on Rough Trade Records.-Track listing:#"I'm Happy"#"Gruts for Tea"#"A Red Flower"#"Shoplifters"#"How to Make a Friend"#"Fish Fright"#"Darling, Will You Marry Me Twice"...
(1986) - Peel Sessions EP (1989)
- A Wet HandleA Wet HandleA Wet Handle is an album by Ivor Cutler, originally released in 1997 on Creation Records.-Track listing:#"Her Tissues" #"An American Drink" #"One Day" #"Out of Decency" #"My Disposition"...
(1997) - A Flat ManA Flat ManA Flat Man is an album by Ivor Cutler. Originally released in 1998 on Creation Records, it was re-released in March 2008 by Hoorgi House Records, a label setup by Ivor Cutler's family after his death.-Track listing:Source: Amazon...
(1998) - An Elpee and Two Epees (2005)
DVD video
- Looking for Truth with a Pin (2005) (IMDB entry)
External links
- The Works of Ivor Cutler
- Ivor Cutler: An Introduction
- Interview - The Cult of Cutler — The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 16 January 2004 - Further interviews
- Benbecula Records article
- John Peel Sessions - Ivor Cutler