Andy Summers Reflects on Unreleased Music with Robert Fripp
In a recent interview, Andy Summers, the legendary guitarist of The Police, opened up about his collaboration with King Crimson’s Robert Fripp. The two musicians, who grew up in the same area of southwest England, decided to work together in the early 1980s, resulting in the albums "I Advance Masked" and "Bewitched". Summers, who described himself as the de facto producer of the sessions, revealed that he had recently revisited the unreleased tracks and was blown away by their quality.
How Did Andy Summers and Robert Fripp Meet?
Summers and Fripp met through their shared connection to the same town in England. Summers recalled playing in a hotel group as a teenager, where he got his start as a professional musician at the age of 16. However, he was eventually replaced by Fripp, who took over as the hotel’s guitarist. Summers reflected on the "weird kind of karma" that connected them, saying, "He became the next guitar player, and he was a very different player."
The two musicians lost touch for a while, but Summers remembered that Fripp helped him get a gig before he joined The Police. When Summers was trying to get started again in the music scene in London, Fripp introduced him to the right people, which led to their collaboration.
Working with Robert Fripp
Summers explained that he wanted to work with Fripp because of their local connection and because he was looking to "do something else outside of the band, just to sort of prove that I could do it". He had become tired of playing the same Police songs over and over again, and working with Fripp offered him an opportunity to explore new sounds and styles.
The pair began working together in New York, but eventually decided to set up in their hometown in England. They worked at a small recording studio called Arny’s Shack, which was run by a friend from their hometown. Summers described the studio as "a peculiar little recording studio" where they would often smoke pipes while recording.
Andy Summers Thought He’d Hate Abandoned Songs With Robert Fripp
After releasing "I Advance Masked" and "Bewitched", Summers and Fripp’s collaboration came to an end. However, a member of Fripp’s team recently reached out to Summers about the master tapes, which had remained on the shelf. Summers was initially hesitant, thinking that the songs would be terrible, but was surprised by how good they were.
"I went, ‘God, why didn’t we do this? Why was I throwing those out?’ Because I was essentially the producer. But listening to some of these songs all these years later, I thought I’d listen to them and think, ‘Oh, my God, well, I see why. They were no good. They’re terrible. That’s why we didn’t use them.’ But they weren’t. They’re all really much like the other tracks that we actually put out. And my God, it’s a good album. So who knows where that’s going."
Conclusion
Andy Summers’ collaboration with Robert Fripp is a fascinating chapter in his career, and the recently unearthed unreleased tracks are a testament to the quality of their work together. As Summers reflected on their collaboration, it’s clear that the experience was both rewarding and challenging. Despite the challenges, Summers is proud of the music they created together and is excited to see where the project will go from here.
FAQs
Q: How did Andy Summers and Robert Fripp meet?
A: They met through their shared connection to the same town in England, where Summers was a professional musician at 16 and Fripp took over as the hotel’s guitarist.
Q: What inspired Summers to work with Fripp?
A: Summers wanted to work with Fripp because of their local connection and because he was looking to "do something else outside of the band, just to sort of prove that I could do it".
Q: What was the experience like working with Fripp?
A: Summers described the experience as "a peculiar little recording studio" where they would often smoke pipes while recording. He also credited Fripp with helping him get started again in the music scene in London.
Q: Why did Summers think the unreleased tracks would be terrible?
A: Summers thought the unreleased tracks would be terrible because he was the producer and he had thrown them out at the time. However, he was surprised by how good they were when he revisited them recently.
Q: What’s next for the project?
A: The project will be released as a box set in September, which includes a third disc of unheard music.
