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Underground > Radio & Music >

Ivor Cutler R.I.P.

11:43 / 07.03.06

It seems only good and right that we should have a thread about the sad passing of this fine and inspiring fellow.

Just posted a little tribute on my weblog, so I shan't repeat myself.

An excellent summation of his life and achievements can be found here; link.

Haus of Mystery

12:13 / 07.03.06

Ach, that's a sad thing. Flipping good innings though.

12:13 / 07.03.06

Poor old Ivor..

Not many people left doing his sort of thing, are there?
let John Cooper Clarke lift high the pop-poetic crown!

12:14 / 07.03.06

Just found out myself and was about to start this thread. He's been a hero of mine since I was a teenager and although this was a long time coming (the guy was practically born old) it's still a very sad thing.

My parents were friends of his and once went round his place for dinner. The conversation went something like this...

"Now, what would you like for starters?"

"Oh, whatever you've got, Ivor."

"No. You can have whatever you like for starters."

"Oh, Ivor! We're really not fussed. Whatever you've got in the kitchen."

"No. You can have anything you want in the whole world. Now what do you want?"

"Oh, okay, then we'll have (something simple and easy to prepare) please, Ivor."

Ivor then disappeared into the kitchen and came out with my parent's request written on a piece of rice paper which they then proceeded to eat.

"How's your starter?"

"Lovely thanks, Ivor"

When I met him with my brother after a show in Brighton I was starstruck and mute. My brother did the talking.

"Coming here to see your show is Fraely's birthday treat, Ivor"

"Oh, I don't know what to say. Should I kiss you or something?"

I didn't know what to say. He gave me some of his little stickers. I can't remember what all of them said but I can remember a couple:

"Amoebas are people too" and "FUNNY SMELL"

A friend of mine found himself sitting opposite Ivor on the tube a few years ago. He was wearing his funny hat and scribbling in a notebook.

"Excuse me, are you Ivor Cutler?"

"Why, yes I am. Not many people recognise me these days."

"Could I possibly look at your notebook, please?"

"Certainly."

The book contained page after page of literally scribbles which occasionally crystallised into phrases and poems. The only bit my friend can remember was about a man who's sun tan fell down on to his balls.

Anyone who hasn't heared Ivor Cutler should get some and listen to it in a dark room or with eyes closed in order to experience a completely unique way of percieving the world.

Goodbye Mr. Cutler.

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

12:20 / 07.03.06

A sad loss indeed- my first exposure to Ivor Cutler (as to many good things in the audio realm) was lying in bed on a schoolnight listening to John Peel, and thinking "what the fuck's THIS???"

A fucking genius.

Egg Meat. I mean, Egg Meat. Beat that.

12:30 / 07.03.06

If anyone's in brighton tonight (Tuesday 7th March 2006)they should come to Born To Lose at The Albert where I'm supposed to be doing my comedy singer-sogwriter routine. I shall be including a tribute or two to Mr. Cutler. Come along and raise a glass to the man with me.

Mister Six, whom all the girls

12:38 / 07.03.06

Man... I'm pretty stumped.

He lived a full life and touched many people, not many people can say that.

13:19 / 07.03.06

One of my favourite Ivor Cutler songs is one called 'A Bubble or Two' that I've never been able to track down on any of his records.

My brother recorded it off a Peel session he happened to be listening to many years ago, and we rewinded and replayed it loads, obsessed with it's general greatness.

I won't do it a disservice by trying to remember the flow of the lyrics, but it was from the point of view of a child who relates that "one night, my mother said she'd go out, in the old rowing boat..", and when he goes out to try and find her, all he sees is the empty boat and "..a bubble or two". His father says he'll go out to see what's happened. He falls in the water too, leaving "..just a bubble or two".

So the child is stuck in the dark house on his own with nothing to eat for dinner. It ends with a dead-pan spoken word punch-line along the lines of "so children remember, when your mother declares her intention to be go out, on the old rowing boat.. don't let her."

15:33 / 07.03.06

oh that's really sad. one of the best british poets of the twentieth century? can i say that? 'egg meat' is indeed ace, in fact 'gruts' should be read by everyone, and i'm nearly crying now just by thinking of 'beautiful cosmos'. damn.

15:49 / 07.03.06

Well, first of all I'd like to thank Mr Fraely for introducing me to Ivor Cutler in the first place. I remember him playing Ivor to me and my bemused twin when we were about 13 years old. I have no idea whether I liked his odd little poems or not, but I do remember thinking that Go and Sit Upon the Grass was very funny. The rest of it probably took a little longer to seep into my psyche, but once it had I'm pretty sure it subtley altered my music taste forever.

Last year, after watching the Ivor Cutler doc on BBC 4, I went out and bought Velvet Donkey. 24 tracks or thereabouts of quintessential Cutler. If you don't own any, and you want to see what all the fuss is about, pick it up.

19:23 / 07.03.06

That is sad, even though I have been amazed that he was still alive for the last ten years. It's clear from reading this thread that there's so much more of his work I need to get hold of; I've only got Dandruff because it has most of the songs my parents sang to me when I was wee...