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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