Henry Cow | Artist

Henry Cow was an English avant-rock group, founded 1968 at Cambridge University by multi-instrumentalists Fred Frith and Tim Hodgkinson. Chris Cutler (drums, percussion), John Greaves (bass, piano, vocals) and Lindsay Cooper (oboe, bassoon, recorder, piano) were also part of the early lineup. Vocalist Dagmar Krause from German band Slapp Happy joined in 1975. Henry Cow was a groundbreaking group for their time with a sound based on vocal harmonies and avant-jazz instrumentation. An inherent anti-commercial attitude kept them at arm's length from the mainstream music business, enabling them to experiment at will. In 1971 the band signed up with up-start record label Virgin who had also recently signed German electro-experimentalists Faust. Henry Cow's five studio albums; Leg End (1973), Unrest (1974), In Praise of Learning (1975) and Western Culture (1979), are all superb, as is the live album Concerts (1976). Henry Cow also collaborated with Slapp Happy on the 1975 album Desperate Straights. One of the band's first concerts was supporting Pink Floyd at the Architects' Ball at Homerton College, Cambridge on 12 June 1968. Henry Cow spun off many successful collaborations after it's demise, including Art Bears, Slapp Happy and Rock in Opposition, plus a multitude of solo projects by Fred Frith, Tim Hodgkinson, Dagmar Krause and Lindsay Cooper. Interestingly, three of the four Henry Cow albums have a knitted sock by artist Ray Smith on the cover.

Artist Website: ccutler.com

Featured Albums: Henry Cow

Related Artists: Fred Frith, Tim Hodgkinson, Dagmar Krause, Art Bears, Slapp Happy