![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/belew_musichead.jpg\")
By 1989, Adrian Belew was well into the high-profile phase of his career, one that continues to present day. The guitarist\u2019s star had been in ascension since being discovered by Frank Zappa and added to his band, subsequently joining David Bowie\u2019s band, and going on to work as a sideman for Tom Tom Club and Talking Heads.<\/p>\n
Scoring a solo record deal, Belew released Lone Rhino<\/i> in 1982. He spent the next three years in King Crimson, but still managed to release 1983\u2019s Twang Bar King<\/i> and an instrumental set called Desire Caught by the Tail <\/i>in 1986. His pop-leaning group the Bears was active touring and recording during that period as well, though it fell apart in the face of poor support from its label.<\/p>\n
But it was in 1989 that Belew finally focused squarely upon his solo work. The product of that focus was Mr. Music Head<\/i>, a solo album in both name and character. The well-regarded collection traverses genres and includes Belew\u2019s trademark quirkiness both in his instrumental approach and lyrics.<\/p>\n
The most well-known cut on Mr. Music Head<\/i> is the opener, \u201cOh Daddy.\u201d With squalls of bent-note guitar, the tune presents a humorous dialogue between the guitarist and his young daughter. Equal parts weirdness and pop melody, it distills the guitarist\u2019s multifarious talents into the space of three minutes.<\/p>\n
The other tunes on the album are a varied, high quality if deliberately oddball lot. \u201cHouse of Cards\u201d makes use of found sounds, initially betraying the influence of Bowie and Eno. But it eventually unfolds into yet another pop raver. The Beatlesque \u201cOne of Those Days\u201d is bouncy and benefits from some great backing vocals (like nearly everything on the album, created by Belew himself).<\/p>\n
The clattering \u201cCoconuts\u201d features layers of sizzling guitars and an infectious beat. \u201cBad Days\u201d is built on a lively piano figure, and features what sounds like backward guitar (with Belew, you can never tell). \u201cPeaceable Kingdom\u201d sounds like a pop rethink of the Brian Eno\/David Byrne collaboration My Life in the Bush of Ghosts<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Is that a recording of an animal that opens \u201cHot Zoo,\u201d or is it Belew\u2019s treated guitar? The answer likely lies somewhere in between. The deeply layered, atmospheric tune is vaguely reminiscent of Paul McCartney\u2019s \u201cNineteen Hundred and Eighty Five,\u201d though the similarity doesn\u2019t run deep; Belew\u2019s song is far more idiosyncratic.<\/p>\n
Belew\u2019s expansive understanding of music is explained in part by his facility on drums; the beats on Mr. Music Head<\/i> often sound electronically created and\/or treated, but they exhibit a complexity that borders on polyrhythm; that\u2019s a characteristic not often found within the confines of pop. \u201cMotor Bungalow\u201d is an exemplar of his skill with beats, but the corkscrew guitar lines are worthy of admiration as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cBumpity Bump\u201d has all of that and more; Belew is one of the few artists who\u2019s as comfortable in a progressive context as he is making danceable tracks like this one. \u201cBird in a Box\u201d has many of the same qualities \u2013 and some nifty vocal harmonies as well \u2013 but it\u2019s a bit less accessible, thanks in part to a weird and squealing (yet technically superb) lead guitar part.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith a title like \u201c1967,\u201d one might expect a baroque pop affair. This song features finger snaps and twangy acoustic guitar, and it gets more complex (read: weird) as it unfolds. \u201c1967\u201d is equal parts country blues and psychedelically meandering excursion. Mid-song, the baroque arrangement makes an appearance, with bowed bass (by Mike Barnett, the only musician other than daughter Audie to join Belew on the LP). The song ends abruptly, to the sound of Belew announcing, \u201cI gotta go now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Belew\u2019s burst of creativity would continue apace; the even-better Young Lions<\/i> appeared just over a year later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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