brian eno . . . spinning away

brian eno and john cale have a musical relationship extending back to the very early seventies when their paths crossed for a number of reasons resulting in several collaborations, most notably ”june 1.1974”.
ahhhh the good old days . . . . . .here are nico, john cale, brian eno, and kevin ayers. . .

while almost always grounded in a slightly off-centre rock format, their music rose above its station as it were, leaving the listener with an experience that was hard to forget in its raw, brilliant creativity.

”wrong way up” released in 1990 was by far and away each artist’s most mainstream work but contained some absolutely gorgeous writing and memorable tunes. my favourite has long been “spinning away”. with its wistfully optimistic rhythm guitar groove laid down by robert ahwai propelling the song gently forward, as eno’s yearning lyrics soar above the music.

describing a moment of pure creative bliss amidst the whirling micro and macro cosmos, eno’s words have for me always encapsulated the experience of wonder and awe that accompanies my better painting or writing experiences.



spinning away

up on a hill, as the day dissolves
with my pencil turning moments into line
high above in the violet sky
a silent silver plane - it draws a golden chain
one by one, all the stars appear
as the great winds of the planet spiral in
spinning away, like the night sky at arles
in the million insect storm, the constellations form
on a hill, under a raven sky
i have no idea exactly what I've drawn
some kind of change, some kind of spinning away
with every single line moving further out in time
and now as the pale moon rides (in the stars)
her form in my pale blue lines (in the stars)
and there, as the world rolls round (in the stars)
i draw, but the lines move round (in the stars)
there, as the great wheels blaze (in the stars)
i draw, but my drawing fades (in the stars)
and now, as the old sun dies (in the stars)
i draw, and the four winds sigh (in the stars)

words: brian eno and john cale