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Catherine Wheel — Fripp
Album: Chrome
Avg rating:
7.1

Your rating:
Total ratings: 2026









Released: 1993
Length: 7:21
Plays (last 30 days): 2
There's a shark shaped fin
In the water of my dreams
An alligator screams from the depths there
I'd swim with you there
I'd swim with you there, yeah yeah

In the house that I use
There's a psycho on the loose
He's playing with the fuse of a bomb there
I could live with you there
I could live with you there

Bye bye long day
I need to sleep so much
You shine on me
Too much is not enough

On the sheets and pillow case
In my bed for heaven's sake
The devil's dancing until late in my head there
But I could sleep with you there
I could sleep with you there

Always
Always

Bye bye long day I need to sleep so much
Nineteen hours straight
Too much is not enough
Too much is not enough
Too much is not enough
Too much is not enough

Too much is not enough
Undivide your love
Undivide your love
Comments (165)add comment
Saw these guys a few times in San Francisco back in the early '90s heyday of Blur and The Charlatans - those were fun times!
If that isn't Robert Fripp playing the guitar it is the guitar player for this band paying tribute. Maybe that's the reason for the name of the song? :-)
GOOD TUNE! A  Catherine Wheel was an ancient torture machine, and is  now a spinning fireworks display device!
 Oldfastbowler wrote:

Influenced by Talk Talk  perhaps? 

check out the comment about the producer - the guitar is what made me think of them

So happy to hear one of my favorite bands here on RP! Sadly underrated during their time. With my favorite album of theirs too! An excellent one from start to finish. The sequence from The Nude to Ursa Major Space Station to Fripp is especially sonic heaven. More Catherine Wheel please, Bill!
Lovely image.
Talking of Fripp, I've just been told that he's married to Toyah Willcox and they do a podcast thingy.  I've just watched this and I don't know what to say anymore...

Toyah & Robert's Sunday Lunch - Most Wanted - Part 3

I don't know how to paste YouTube links here, but I'm sure you can look it up if you want to.  It gets weirder the more you watch it...

By the way, this track is spectacular, to my ears...
On the sheets and pillow case
In my bed for heaven's sake
The devil's dancing until late in my head there
But I could sleep with you there
I could sleep with you there
Excellent comment thread here fellow listeners...love when I get to know something from the comments rather than the standard "reminds me of my youth" or "it's making my ears bleed" stuff...

The connection to Talk Talk was a new one for me...
Coming across a bit Floydish to me. Good piece of music. 
Breathtakingly beautiful chunk of self-indulgent aural pleasure. Yum.
If you are liking this, I highly recommend checking out Julian Cope's album Fried. 
 Oldfastbowler wrote:

Influenced by Talk Talk  perhaps? 



And that's not a compliment.
Great track that is new to me! Time to find more of their music.
Shame it's not "Catherine Wheel", an obscure song by Robert Fripp.
 Oldfastbowler wrote:
Influenced by Talk Talk  perhaps? 
 
Right! I totally thought this was TT.
Talk Talkish. Nice!
Folk are always commenting on how much of Elbow's sound is influenced by Peter Gabriel, and yes, Guy Garvey's vocals are certainly, but their overall sound has a lot of echoes here.
Ugh.  Ridiculous.  
Damn I love this song.
Amazing track, since i've heard it on RP i can't pass on it when it airs.
Yeah, whole lotta shoegazing going on. But quality shoegazing. Sure will take you back into those far more shoegazing times of yore. 
 mistermerp wrote:
This song just plain rocks. Love CW - they are somewhere between Stone Roses and Oasis (both of which were commercially more successful). As I get older, I like CW more and more. Side note: the lead singer Rob Dickinson lives in LA and will build you $300k hot rod Porsche. WOW   Singer Porsche 
 

I generally like Catherine Wheel but this song never really takes off. A little too much shoegazing...
WTF!!!  Nonsence lyrics set to Pink Floyd inspired music.
Learned today, from RP and this Catherine Wheel song, what "shoegazing" refers to. Listening and amused.
Fripp like Robert Fripp   ?   I  like both.      
I've had this for awhile and finally listened to the entire album over the weekend. Quite stunning. 
Influenced by Talk Talk  perhaps? 
Enough. 
This song just plain rocks. Love CW - they are somewhere between Stone Roses and Oasis (both of which were commercially more successful). As I get older, I like CW more and more. Side note: the lead singer Rob Dickinson lives in LA and will build you $300k hot rod Porsche. WOW   Singer Porsche 
In the hands of certain exponents the electric guitar and effects pedal/rack unit is a musical instrument like no other.

Especially when they create this soundscape of soaring sounds and harmonics.

I need to bump from 7 --> 8 for the guitar sounds alone! 
 Proclivities wrote:

Yes, I agree.  Genre labels are usually made up by journalists or critics vainly trying to classify musicians.

 
OTOH it's useful to listeners to have a way to find music similar to their tastes without just grabbing random songs and wondering "will this be anything like what I like?"
I miss them. They were pivotal during my formative college years. Play some tracks from their Ferment album too please!  
wow. good on so many levels together all at once
 LowPhreak wrote:
...I think we should dispense with trying to put bands into a convenient box, or somewhat detrimentally, because they all don't fit into a particular genre or description nice and neat like.
 
Yes, I agree.  Genre labels are usually made up by journalists or critics vainly trying to classify musicians.
 easmann wrote:

Not a perfect example I'll agree (I had a hard time finding a better image and as far as I know the band shown is not in fact in the "Shoegaze" genre) but it does provide a good view of a guitarist and his effects pedals which true Shoegazers tended to stare at and in so doing appeared to be fixated on their shoes which is in large part where the term "Shoe-gaze" comes from. Drummers in Shoegaze bands were not accused of shoe staring I don't think:

'"Shoegazing" was coined to describe dream pop bands. It originated in a concert review in Sounds for the newly formed band Moose in which singer Russell Yates read lyrics taped to the floor throughout the gig. The term was picked up by NME, who used it as a reference to the tendency of the bands' guitarists to stare at their feet—or their effects pedals—while playing, seemingly deep in concentration.'

— Wikipedia: Shoegazing, Etymology

BTW:
'The track "Ursa Major Space Station" was named after an obscure guitar effects pedal, but it is not known if the band used that pedal on the album. "Fripp" was named after King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp.'

— Wikipedia: Chrome (Catherine Wheel album)

Peace
 
I get that the term "shoegazing" is used in a broad sense, not necessarily literally, and BTW, I've known who Fripp is since the early 70s and KC's first few albums.

But I think we should dispense with trying to put bands into a convenient box, or somewhat detrimentally, because they all don't fit into a particular genre or description nice and neat like.
 LowPhreak wrote:
Except in this picture, I don't see any 'shoegazing ' going on. The guitarist seems to be looking at his chording on the neck; the singer is looking out at the audience; bass player is looking at the drums/drummer; can't see what the drummer is looking at; and the KB player is looking at the KB...all of which is very common in most bands.

WTF.
 
Not a perfect example I'll agree (I had a hard time finding a better image and as far as I know the band shown is not in fact in the "Shoegaze" genre) but it does provide a good view of a guitarist and his effects pedals which true Shoegazers tended to stare at and in so doing appeared to be fixated on their shoes which is in large part where the term "Shoe-gaze" comes from. Drummers in Shoegaze bands were not accused of shoe staring I don't think:

'"Shoegazing" was coined to describe dream pop bands. It originated in a concert review in Sounds for the newly formed band Moose in which singer Russell Yates read lyrics taped to the floor throughout the gig. The term was picked up by NME, who used it as a reference to the tendency of the bands' guitarists to stare at their feet—or their effects pedals—while playing, seemingly deep in concentration.'

— Wikipedia: Shoegazing, Etymology

BTW:
'The track "Ursa Major Space Station" was named after an obscure guitar effects pedal, but it is not known if the band used that pedal on the album. "Fripp" was named after King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp.'

— Wikipedia: Chrome (Catherine Wheel album)

Peace
 kingart wrote:
As in King Crimson / Roger Fripp? 
 

 
I was wondering the same. It's Robert Fripp BTW.
 easmann wrote:

You begin to see why they had to stare at their "shoes". Wikipedia Shoegazing


Above photo lifted from an interesting article about effects pedals and addiction to them:
FROM B9 TO C9

 
Except in this picture, I don't see any 'shoegazing ' going on. The guitarist seems to be looking at his chording on the neck; the singer is looking out at the audience; bass player is looking at the drums/drummer; can't see what the drummer is looking at; and the KB player is looking at the KB...all of which is very common in most bands.

WTF.
I quite enjoy this song and one or two more off the CD but overall the CD is not particularly great.   The sonic space differentiation is minimal. 
 
Most excellent. I may have to buy this album. I suspect a tribute to Robert Fripp. 
Is this about Robert Fripp?  (Off to do internet research.)

(Back, ten minutes later)  From a Facebook page entitled "The Catherine Wheel", under Posts:

from facebook, so who knows?

.... and I always thought "shoe gazers" referred to socially uncomfortable people who wouldn't raise their eyes to engage in conversation.  Maybe like people who listen to The Shins ..... ?    {#Ask}
Catherine Wheel guy now 're-imagines' Porsches:

https://singervehicledesign.com/singer-vehicle-design-the-second-act/
 
Catherine Wheel are not nearly as well known as they should be. This, their debut album is quite good, but if you want to be blown away, pick up Adam & Eve, their finest work, IMO, and one of favorite albums of all time. Loving that they still play Catherine Wheel on RP!
 garrettb wrote:

First time for me too - excellent!

 
This superb track is not particularly representative of the album, which is considerably heavier and not ideal for a mellow stoners evening, as I had thought it might be.
 westslope wrote:
Reminds me somewhat of Talk Talk.

 
I thought it was to start with.
{#Stop}{#Moon}{#Crashcomp}
Simple - ly awesome. Sometimes less is more.
Fuck Yeah! I 
I think I'm buying this.
most excellent piece of music at the end of a physically demanding work day (ahh thank you darlin' cheers! : ) 
 DaidyBoy wrote:
First hearing of this.  Just ordered the album on the strength of it.  This is great stuff.  Thanks RP.

 
First time for me too - excellent!
First hearing of this.  Just ordered the album on the strength of it.  This is great stuff.  Thanks RP.
Noice woik.
I love this.

Seem to like everything Catherine Wheel does.

Reminds me somewhat of Talk Talk.
 easmann wrote:

You begin to see why they had to stare at their "shoes". Wikipedia Shoegazing


Above photo lifted from an interesting article about effects pedals and addiction to them:
FROM B9 TO C9

  The lead guitar player in our group is nicknamed" Shoes" for this very reason. Always looking at the pedals!


Finally this great one is back in the rotation

Thank you Bill {#Pray} 
{#Sleep}{#Sleep}
It would sound notably better if it were actually Robert Fripp playing the guitar. 3, "ho hum" sounds about right.
Robert Fripp is, for years, a very interesting guitarist and records he  plays on are usually good records.    Thanks Bob ! 
 Proclivities wrote:
That sounds pretty close to my understanding of the term but The Smiths weren't really considered "shoe-gazing" music - even though the term is a pretty imprecise one made up by some music critic somewhere.  It was more personified by loud waves of sound with heavy distortion, like My Bloody Valentine, The Jesus & Mary Chain (which you mentioned), and The Cocteau Twins: musicians who spent most of their time looking at the floor, or more specifically, at their effects pedals.
 
You begin to see why they had to stare at their "shoes". Wikipedia Shoegazing
(Edit: clarification - a. Band shown is not the Catherine Wheel. b. Band shown is not a “Shoegaze” band. Just a photo of a guitarist and his array of effects pedals.)


Addendum: Originally posted photo is no longer available. It showed an entire band performing with a focus on the guitarist and his large array of foot-operated effects pedals. This replacement photo eliminates the band and simply shows a pair of feet and some guitar effects foot pedals. Again, I don't claim this photo represents the Catherine Wheel or even a Shoegaze band.

Most commenters probably know what guitar sound effects foot pedals are but for those who may not: They are inserted in the signal path of an electric guitar, between the guitar and the amplifier, and are used to modify the sound of the guitar. They are usually wired in series and can be used in combination to produce quite interesting effects on the overall sound. As the name implies, they are built and intended to be operated by foot while playing. Hence the term "shoe-gazing" is thought to at least in part originate from observing guitarists staring intently at their foot pedals in order to change settings during a song.

But the term originally also refers to an early performance in which the lead singer (of, again, not The Catherine Wheel) had taped the lyrics to the floor in front of his microphone in order to read them during his performance.

Use of guitar foot pedals, including a large and complexly arranged array of them, is certainly not limited to the "Shoegaze" genre, and their use by guitarists predates the coining of that term by decades. Therefore skepticism about what the term means and why is fine. Well, healthy skepticism is always fine. Do we have that any more? Healthy skepticism?
I go now...

Proclivities wrote:


That sounds pretty close to my understanding of the term but The Smiths weren't really considered "shoe-gazing" music - even though the term is a pretty imprecise one made up by some music critic somewhere.  It was more personified by loud waves of sound with heavy distortion, like My Bloody Valentine, The Jesus & Mary Chain (which you mentioned), and The Cocteau Twins: musicians who spent most of their time looking at the floor, or more specifically, at their effects pedals.

 
Wow. I'm old. <cough-BridgeofSighs-cough>
This hurts my ears too, and I don't find the lyrics so redeeming either. I would not choose this to listen to, but hey I do like the variety I get exposed to.
 merkin_muffley wrote:

I'm quite happy to be corrected but to me when i was living through the 'shoegazing' period meant bands like The Smiths, Bloody Valentine, Jesus and Mary Chain etc.

Songs in a certain key or with long drawn out atmospherics/solos that put you in a certain mood. Instead of headbanging yourself to oblivion you could get into the groove of the song and flow with it. To me it was something we listened to once 'goth music' had its day.

 
That sounds pretty close to my understanding of the term but The Smiths weren't really considered "shoe-gazing" music - even though the term is a pretty imprecise one made up by some music critic somewhere.  It was more personified by loud waves of sound with heavy distortion, like My Bloody Valentine, The Jesus & Mary Chain (which you mentioned), and The Cocteau Twins: musicians who spent most of their time looking at the floor, or more specifically, at their effects pedals.
 all_ears wrote:
CW isn't one of the few bands I could listen to anytime, any situation. But, this CD is just wonderful for zoning while doing a late-night drive. Another track from this one, Crank, is just sublime. Way to go, RP, for introducing so many bands and types of music to the enlightened ones here.

 
Yep, what he said
CW isn't one of the few bands I could listen to anytime, any situation. But, this CD is just wonderful for zoning while doing a late-night drive. Another track from this one, Crank, is just sublime. Way to go, RP, for introducing so many bands and types of music to the enlightened ones here.
 Rooney wrote:
EEeewwww.  hurts my ears.  {#Headache} a 1.

 
Typo... you left out the 0 after the 1
 martinc wrote:
Reading Wiki and says these guys are "shoegazing" genre. Never heard of that. What's that mean?

 
I'm quite happy to be corrected but to me when i was living through the 'shoegazing' period meant bands like The Smiths, Bloody Valentine, Jesus and Mary Chain etc.

Songs in a certain key or with long drawn out atmospherics/solos that put you in a certain mood. Instead of headbanging yourself to oblivion you could get into the groove of the song and flow with it. To me it was something we listened to once 'goth music' had its day.
Reminds me a lot of U2's "Electrical Storm."  Which is a good thing.
 merkin_muffley wrote:
What a beautiful noise.........
 
I'm 'bumping' my own comment because its still a beautiful noise    {#Notworthy} 
 kingart wrote:
As in King Crimson / Roger Fripp? 
 
 
...and his twin brother Robert {#Wink}
LOVE!
I don't do many 10s, but I just had to nudge this up from my initial 9 {#Notworthy}
Reading Wiki and says these guys are "shoegazing" genre. Never heard of that. What's that mean?
As in King Crimson / Roger Fripp? 
 
never heard before. like.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
YES!
What a beautiful noise.........
I'm guessing the Vegas hotel room is not dancing to this one.
 SlinkyJ wrote:
Yay! CW is one of the most underappreciated bands ever. THANK YOU for playing them.
 
Agreed.
It occurs now to me why I liked Elbow so much on the first listen.  There's some DNA here... Maybe not the song as much as the voice?

Yay! CW is one of the most underappreciated bands ever. THANK YOU for playing them.
I could have sworn it's that pink floyd song from before and was wondering if it will ever end...
(as some might argue, I'm not the most knowledgeable pink floyd listener)

Fripp after Floyd? Perfect!
These guys were what I was listening to when the big radio air-play battle was between Oasis and Stone Roses.  Always preferred CW to either of the later two.
 agkagk wrote:
Could have sworn it was Talk Talk.
Is there a connection?
 
I came here to post the exact same comment!  This reminds me very much of the Talk Talk song that Bill plays here, I think it's  "I Believe in You" off the Spirit of Eden album.

EDIT:  and now reading on All Music I see their is good reason we recognize the similarity!  Tim Friese-Greene (renowned for his unerring sense of atmosphere and nuance) became an unofficial member of Talk Talk and later went on to produce Catherine Wheel's Ferment & Chrome albums...


 agkagk wrote:
Could have sworn it was Talk Talk.
Is there a connection?
 
Only "Life's What You Make it..."

Could have sworn it was Talk Talk.
Is there a connection?
EEeewwww.  hurts my ears.  {#Headache} a 1.
I like it!
Fantastic. RP could not play enough CW for me, but you do a pretty good job!
 Tippster wrote:
Such an atmospheric tune...  Love this band.  Never got why they weren't bigger.
 
I'm with you on that.
There's a shark shaped fin
In the water of my dreams
An alligator screams from the depths there
I'd swim with you there


{#Yes} westslope wrote:
Nice.
 


Such an atmospheric tune...  Love this band.  Never got why they weren't bigger.
Mmmmmnnnn, this is nice....!  Somehow I never added any Catherine Wheel to my collection past "Ferment", which I still pull out now and again — I think I need to check out Chrome.

 oldviolin wrote:

You need to fire up a big ol' honker and get your mind right...{#Wink}

  
Animal cruelty is no joke sir.


 stewliscious wrote:
Dismal.  Dreary.  Depressing. . . .
 
Yah, ain't it great?
(not sure about the synchronized swimming cover photo, though)

https://img.snlarc.jt.org/caps/episode_sketches/1984-10-06-7.jpg
So is this song about Robert Fripp?   Lyrics are ambiguous.
 gutboy wrote:
we are a bit trippy tonight, aren't we?
 
Trippy is good.

Orsm


Viva Robert Fripp {#Sunny}
...nice...
 stewliscious wrote:
Dismal.  Dreary.  Depressing.  I mean that in a not-good way.
 
You need to fire up a big ol' honker and get your mind right...{#Wink}

This dreamy guitar reminds me of Dif Juz.  By the way, does anyone have a Dif Juz CD they can upload to RP?
{#Cry} Lovely song, but I feel the need to take a Happy Tablet after listening to it {#Chillpill}{#Sunny}
I love Catherine Wheel. This song is awesome.

"Too much is not enough..."

Dismal.  Dreary.  Depressing.  I mean that in a not-good way.
So interesting how there are so many 8 votes and so few 9 votes.

9 for me.

snowcat wrote:
Oh, the young ones on this site...really there was music before 1999.
Young?...I wish, however this has grown on me..and his voice is light years better than Chris Martin's
Thanks for the C Wheel, haven't listened to this in ages.
robco1 wrote:
Great segue from King Crimson. Now has anyone recorded a song named "Belew?"
Or Levin. This is marvelous music.
lisahead wrote:
my boss just cranked this up and forbid anyone to speak while this song is playing...please play more lol!
sounds like a cool place to work!
Absolutely superb.......
When this came on, my first thought was, "Wow, this is a new sound for Elbow." Now I know better. And knowing is half the battle!
more please.
Nice.
7->8
we are a bit trippy tonight, aren't we?