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Bill Bruford - The Autobiography: Yes, King Crimson, Earthworks and More
Bill Bruford has been at the top of his profession for four decades, playing with Yes, King Crimson, Genesis, Earthworks, & many more. This is his memoir of life at the heart of prog rock, art rock, & modern jazz. It is an honest, entertaining, well-written account of life on the road & in the studio.
352 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2009
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May 13, 2018
As has been well documented, this is less an autobiography than a study of what it takes and means to be a professional musician. It's a fascinating insight into the industry, in which Bruford examines the mechanics of business and the nature of the relationships between performer, co-performer, audience, producer, manager and of course family.
Bruford speaks candidly about these relationships, and his clinical honesty reflects the scientific nature of his mind. He writes with well-deserved confidence in his percussive achievements but also a growing sense of self-doubt and humility. Occasionally a sense of bitterness cuts through, whether in relation to a particular ill-fated tour or performance, or the conduct of another musician, but the reaction belies the seriousness with which he approaches his profession.
It becomes clear that drumming is exactly that to Bruford - a profession. Fans of Yes, King Crimson et al will certainly find frequent mention to his time spent in these bands, but keen drummers hoping for an insight into his playing may find it lacking. Overall, it is simply a remarkably well-written study of what it takes to live the life of Bill Bruford, and it appears to take a lot.
Bruford speaks candidly about these relationships, and his clinical honesty reflects the scientific nature of his mind. He writes with well-deserved confidence in his percussive achievements but also a growing sense of self-doubt and humility. Occasionally a sense of bitterness cuts through, whether in relation to a particular ill-fated tour or performance, or the conduct of another musician, but the reaction belies the seriousness with which he approaches his profession.
It becomes clear that drumming is exactly that to Bruford - a profession. Fans of Yes, King Crimson et al will certainly find frequent mention to his time spent in these bands, but keen drummers hoping for an insight into his playing may find it lacking. Overall, it is simply a remarkably well-written study of what it takes to live the life of Bill Bruford, and it appears to take a lot.
June 23, 2017
This is, quite possibly, the best autobio I have read by a popular musician. The only one that competes with it is the _Real Frank Zappa Book_. Like FZ's book, Bruford's focusses less on the details of his life and recordings and more on the things that interest and occupy him: which are _quite_ different from those that occupied the late Zappa's peculiar mind.
Bruford meanders back and forth along a vaguely-chronological path from his first public appearance at 14 to his retirement from public performance at 59, with stops at Yes and King Crimson, Genesis and Earthworks, a path that led from solo practice to rock to progressive rock to electric rock to jazz - with, again, meanders back and forth between them (as when the not-quite-newly-minted jazz drummer returned to play with the "double-trio" version of King Crimson in the mid-'90s). He comments a little on the personalities he's worked with, but this is no dish-o-rama; his colleagues are treated, each and all, with respect. Perhaps the closest thing to a snark in the book is this comment on guitarist Robert Fripp: "On a good night, the seated man appeared unhappy about something, and on a bad night unhappy about everything."
What the book is chock full of is discourses on the musical industry; on the meaning of music in itself, in commerce, in society, and to individuals; on the contrasted working lives of rock and jazz musicians; and on what rhythm is, where it comes from, and how it works.
Even if you have no interest in Bruford's music, either in rock or in jazz, this is a fascinating read.
Bruford meanders back and forth along a vaguely-chronological path from his first public appearance at 14 to his retirement from public performance at 59, with stops at Yes and King Crimson, Genesis and Earthworks, a path that led from solo practice to rock to progressive rock to electric rock to jazz - with, again, meanders back and forth between them (as when the not-quite-newly-minted jazz drummer returned to play with the "double-trio" version of King Crimson in the mid-'90s). He comments a little on the personalities he's worked with, but this is no dish-o-rama; his colleagues are treated, each and all, with respect. Perhaps the closest thing to a snark in the book is this comment on guitarist Robert Fripp: "On a good night, the seated man appeared unhappy about something, and on a bad night unhappy about everything."
What the book is chock full of is discourses on the musical industry; on the meaning of music in itself, in commerce, in society, and to individuals; on the contrasted working lives of rock and jazz musicians; and on what rhythm is, where it comes from, and how it works.
Even if you have no interest in Bruford's music, either in rock or in jazz, this is a fascinating read.
August 17, 2013
As a huge King Crimson fan, specially regarding the rhythmic section, Bruford became one of my personal idols.
This book, so well written, is a masterpiece for drummers and non-drummers. It shows what music is really about and, in case you are a musician, it leaves a legacy of unprecedented knowledge for a future musical development.
This book, so well written, is a masterpiece for drummers and non-drummers. It shows what music is really about and, in case you are a musician, it leaves a legacy of unprecedented knowledge for a future musical development.
April 7, 2009
Bruford's autobiography is much more than the story of his life, it's a laying bear of his philosophy of music as well as a fascinating account of the changing face of the music business. Well worth a read, especially if you are a musician.
May 19, 2021
I was given this book to read for my interest in how business and politics shape the world of entertainment. With that in mind, the book didn’t fail to disappoint.
Mr. Bruford suggests that the present music industry is too corrupt and sclerotic to allow change. He doesn’t offer solutions but believes that the entertainment industry will have a better future in the coming years.
What surprised me most about this story is how well Mr. Bruford understands and describes success. It is probably the best description I have read anywhere. He draws on his diary, which shows that his vocation or hobby permeated all aspects of his life, including ups and downs and trials and tribulations. Throughout, he enjoys what he does but always questions why he does it. Even though “rockers” and “jazz musicians” are known for their transitory lifestyle, he never gave into destructive tendencies. He managed to stay married to his first sweetheart and raise one son.
Consider this book, not necessarily for watching his career develop, but to understand what it means to be a success.
Mr. Bruford suggests that the present music industry is too corrupt and sclerotic to allow change. He doesn’t offer solutions but believes that the entertainment industry will have a better future in the coming years.
What surprised me most about this story is how well Mr. Bruford understands and describes success. It is probably the best description I have read anywhere. He draws on his diary, which shows that his vocation or hobby permeated all aspects of his life, including ups and downs and trials and tribulations. Throughout, he enjoys what he does but always questions why he does it. Even though “rockers” and “jazz musicians” are known for their transitory lifestyle, he never gave into destructive tendencies. He managed to stay married to his first sweetheart and raise one son.
Consider this book, not necessarily for watching his career develop, but to understand what it means to be a success.
January 7, 2014
Bill Bruford, I have to admit, has fascinated me ever since I got into progressive rock. This guy played in King Crimson! And Yes! AND Genesis, too! Wow.
As it turns out, Bill is an outspoken and well-mannered English gentleman with a lot to say about music, life on the road and the changing seasons of pop, rock and jazz music. Even as someone who fosters no love, just indifference and lack of exposure, to his pet project, the jazz group Earthworks, which takes a very prominent role in the book towards the end, the book never becomes boring. The insider's view into the "business" and profit-making of jazz music provides ample food for though to the initiated and uninitiated alike, although some passion - in the hidden depths of the sacred art of music - is required to sympathize with the tortuous path of the jazz warrior.
The book rises above your mama's average biography by being well-written (and hardly ghostwritten), and also by the amount of insight it sheds on the psychology and sociology of a world class drummer struggling to come to terms with self-identity and the notion of "leaving something behind" in an age of fierce global competition. Art is business.
Part humorous, part melancholy, the darker side of the craft is exposed, rhythmically, to the sunlight. Written at the dawn of his retirement, the book is part self-catharsis and part well-mannered, calculated outburst (the sort you would expect a polite, middle class father and family man from Kent to deliver), a riddled repository of a long life of observations.
There is rhythm, too, in the cut-and-paste feel of the book's meandering and jumping observations. As is proper to a jazz player, there is not so much a premeditated structure but a series of juxtaposed themes that run through the whole book, waxing and waning, foregrounded and backgrounded, in their turn. There is mastery in the pen as much as in the drum stick.
At 350 pages, densely packed, the book is certainly a modestly demanding heavy-weighter. Luckily the diary-like oscillation between the many elements - the psychological insight, the historical musings, treatises on the nature of music, observations about the primate psychology of his band mates, frightening references to Robert Fripp, etc - provides a pleasant mixture of loud and soft, fortissimo and pianissimo, neatly separated into roughly 20-page chunks (chapters).
The jazz-like nature of the book's outline betrays a complexity of composition. As Bruford himself writes: "Arnold Schoenberg allegedly maintained that 'all composition is just very slow improvisation', and we [jazz musicians?] accept the corollary, that improvisation is extremely fast composition, to be equally true. Ideally, the listener cannot hear the join between the two - the composed sounds improvised and the improvised sounds composed." (p. 327) Thus with the book.
There are only two major faults with the book (being the nasty reason for the deduction of the star that shines brightest in the score): 1) Insufficient track-by-track insight into the drum parts of the classic King Crimson and Yes days. How did they do that thing in Discipline? This fault he readily admits and claims to have no interest in such details. But the reader does. 2) The jazzy structure contains some - not many, but some - parts where recurrent themes or citations are repeated needlessly; or where some boring sidestory is foregrounded for a page too long. This kind of excessive baggage should have been cut and the book would have been a perfect 300 page package. But surprisingly it feels more like a 200 page book, even with its extra baggage.
Overall, recommended reading for anyone interest in progressive rock, drumming or just high-craft musicianship. The book performs a somewhat meandering but masterful exercise in textual jazzing - a study of the rhythms of one's life story - that only a dedicated musician could give.
For a fan of "the Might Crim" - or of the early history of "Yes" - this book is a goldmine.
As it turns out, Bill is an outspoken and well-mannered English gentleman with a lot to say about music, life on the road and the changing seasons of pop, rock and jazz music. Even as someone who fosters no love, just indifference and lack of exposure, to his pet project, the jazz group Earthworks, which takes a very prominent role in the book towards the end, the book never becomes boring. The insider's view into the "business" and profit-making of jazz music provides ample food for though to the initiated and uninitiated alike, although some passion - in the hidden depths of the sacred art of music - is required to sympathize with the tortuous path of the jazz warrior.
The book rises above your mama's average biography by being well-written (and hardly ghostwritten), and also by the amount of insight it sheds on the psychology and sociology of a world class drummer struggling to come to terms with self-identity and the notion of "leaving something behind" in an age of fierce global competition. Art is business.
Part humorous, part melancholy, the darker side of the craft is exposed, rhythmically, to the sunlight. Written at the dawn of his retirement, the book is part self-catharsis and part well-mannered, calculated outburst (the sort you would expect a polite, middle class father and family man from Kent to deliver), a riddled repository of a long life of observations.
There is rhythm, too, in the cut-and-paste feel of the book's meandering and jumping observations. As is proper to a jazz player, there is not so much a premeditated structure but a series of juxtaposed themes that run through the whole book, waxing and waning, foregrounded and backgrounded, in their turn. There is mastery in the pen as much as in the drum stick.
At 350 pages, densely packed, the book is certainly a modestly demanding heavy-weighter. Luckily the diary-like oscillation between the many elements - the psychological insight, the historical musings, treatises on the nature of music, observations about the primate psychology of his band mates, frightening references to Robert Fripp, etc - provides a pleasant mixture of loud and soft, fortissimo and pianissimo, neatly separated into roughly 20-page chunks (chapters).
The jazz-like nature of the book's outline betrays a complexity of composition. As Bruford himself writes: "Arnold Schoenberg allegedly maintained that 'all composition is just very slow improvisation', and we [jazz musicians?] accept the corollary, that improvisation is extremely fast composition, to be equally true. Ideally, the listener cannot hear the join between the two - the composed sounds improvised and the improvised sounds composed." (p. 327) Thus with the book.
There are only two major faults with the book (being the nasty reason for the deduction of the star that shines brightest in the score): 1) Insufficient track-by-track insight into the drum parts of the classic King Crimson and Yes days. How did they do that thing in Discipline? This fault he readily admits and claims to have no interest in such details. But the reader does. 2) The jazzy structure contains some - not many, but some - parts where recurrent themes or citations are repeated needlessly; or where some boring sidestory is foregrounded for a page too long. This kind of excessive baggage should have been cut and the book would have been a perfect 300 page package. But surprisingly it feels more like a 200 page book, even with its extra baggage.
Overall, recommended reading for anyone interest in progressive rock, drumming or just high-craft musicianship. The book performs a somewhat meandering but masterful exercise in textual jazzing - a study of the rhythms of one's life story - that only a dedicated musician could give.
For a fan of "the Might Crim" - or of the early history of "Yes" - this book is a goldmine.
May 9, 2021
"Talent may never actually be in your possession at all. And there is a tension here that every musician will recognize, between tradition and creation, between the firm sense of musical tradition that has to be preserved, documented, refined, and elaborated, and is personified by someone like trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, as distinct from the equally firm belief in the value of creativity and the importance of the new, fresh, and original. Perhaps talent is the difference between playing the notes 'correctly' and playing music, between technical skill and musical skill. Perhaps musical talent is no more or less than the ability to be recognised as musically talented.
This dovetails closely with discussions of art and craft, and the distinctions between the two. [...A] craftsman knows what he is doing: when a carpener sets out to build a chair, he's pretty sure he'll get a functioning chari at the end of the process. An artist [...] doesn't know what he's going to get. [...]
Artists tend to express a loss of control - "the chair just came out that way", "I think it's a chair", "it's as if the tune wrote itself", "I'm just the vessel through which the music passes" - wheares the craftsman feels in control and knows when he is finished. In many ways, the artist is less employable, because he can only do it one way, his way; not because he is being obtuse or difficult, but because it must be done that way, otherwise he cannot sleep at night. The romantic notion is that he is dominated and consumed by his art."
***
Відкриваю сьогодні на довільній сторінці, а там: "Music remains a mystery in the best sense of the word, stubbornly refusing to be accurately caught in language despite the millions of words spent to do just that. Music begins where language leaves off. Great music invariably has something beyond the personal about it, because it depends on an inner ordering process, which is largely unconscious and thus not deliberately willed by the composer. This ordering process is something to be wooed, encouraged, waited for, or prayed for. You can prepare yourself for music, but you cannot force its appearance.
You might want to prepare yourself for music to enter your house, by working on your technical abilities, by stilling your mind, by tidying up a bit, so music may pick your house to visit. Sometimes it doesn't visit, and I'm sure we've all been to, or, worse, played at musical events where music stubbornly refuses to appear despite the striking of many notes. The shit ain't happenin', as some would say. Desperation sets in. We play faster, louder, turn up and thereby ensure music won't come visiting for a long while."
Ну як після цього не перечитати? Там ж таких місць купа.
Люблю (авто)біографії і спогади різних музикантів, особливо не ті, де більше про "секс і наркотики" і про те "який я неймовірно крутий" (це або і так вже всі знають, або ти не такий неймовірно крутий, як тобі здається) а саме ті, де більше про музику. Because we love music. "You write what you have to write, you play what you have to play because you can't sleep at night."
Серед декількох музичних автобіографій, які я читав, ця можливо одна з найкращих; близько до неї може ще "Broken Music" Стінґа, теж треба буде якось перечитати.
This dovetails closely with discussions of art and craft, and the distinctions between the two. [...A] craftsman knows what he is doing: when a carpener sets out to build a chair, he's pretty sure he'll get a functioning chari at the end of the process. An artist [...] doesn't know what he's going to get. [...]
Artists tend to express a loss of control - "the chair just came out that way", "I think it's a chair", "it's as if the tune wrote itself", "I'm just the vessel through which the music passes" - wheares the craftsman feels in control and knows when he is finished. In many ways, the artist is less employable, because he can only do it one way, his way; not because he is being obtuse or difficult, but because it must be done that way, otherwise he cannot sleep at night. The romantic notion is that he is dominated and consumed by his art."
***
Відкриваю сьогодні на довільній сторінці, а там: "Music remains a mystery in the best sense of the word, stubbornly refusing to be accurately caught in language despite the millions of words spent to do just that. Music begins where language leaves off. Great music invariably has something beyond the personal about it, because it depends on an inner ordering process, which is largely unconscious and thus not deliberately willed by the composer. This ordering process is something to be wooed, encouraged, waited for, or prayed for. You can prepare yourself for music, but you cannot force its appearance.
You might want to prepare yourself for music to enter your house, by working on your technical abilities, by stilling your mind, by tidying up a bit, so music may pick your house to visit. Sometimes it doesn't visit, and I'm sure we've all been to, or, worse, played at musical events where music stubbornly refuses to appear despite the striking of many notes. The shit ain't happenin', as some would say. Desperation sets in. We play faster, louder, turn up and thereby ensure music won't come visiting for a long while."
Ну як після цього не перечитати? Там ж таких місць купа.
Люблю (авто)біографії і спогади різних музикантів, особливо не ті, де більше про "секс і наркотики" і про те "який я неймовірно крутий" (це або і так вже всі знають, або ти не такий неймовірно крутий, як тобі здається) а саме ті, де більше про музику. Because we love music. "You write what you have to write, you play what you have to play because you can't sleep at night."
Серед декількох музичних автобіографій, які я читав, ця можливо одна з найкращих; близько до неї може ще "Broken Music" Стінґа, теж треба буде якось перечитати.
May 9, 2010
As close to a "5" as I expect to read in music autobiographies, anyway. Bruford's writing is witty, studious, worldly, and introspective. He has great stories out of school, since he played drums with Yes, King Crimson, UK, Genesis, and others, but his mature career and true love has been jazz, to which he has dedicated most of his energy for the past 20 years. The main subject of this book (maybe more than himself) is the music business and culture, and I haven't read a more comprehensive insider analysis of its foibles, follies, and passions. Bruford has organized the book not as a chronicle of his life but as his in-depth answers to a series of interview questions. That is, each chapter has as its title a typical question of the kind Bruford got asked throughout his career (and he always did good interviews): "Yes, but what do you do in the daytime?" "What's it like working with Robert Fripp?" "Do you just play anything you like?" (a question especially beloved of drummers) "Is it different, being in jazz?" "Is it difficult, with a family?" et cetera. Much of the book is polemical and defensive, not surprisingly: fans never got why he left Yes at the peak of their popularity in the early 70s, why he quit Crimson to form his own band, why he cares so much about jazz (primarily with his excellent ensemble Earthworks, but also in numerous side projects). The bulk of the book defends art over commerce ("this pop entertainment lark is all very well, but we musicians, we muddy foot soldiers -- and there are plenty like me -- thirst to generate a music worthy of serious consideration") and the final chapters defend his decision to retire from live performance, which he did last year.
For book-lovers, i.e. readers who like the physical object as well as the collection of words inside, this is a really nice buy, a well-made and beautiful book (heavy paper, full-color photos, stitched binding). Kind of like Bruford's music and his philosophy about it: painstakingly crafted with modern technology that also subscribes to traditional artistic values.
For book-lovers, i.e. readers who like the physical object as well as the collection of words inside, this is a really nice buy, a well-made and beautiful book (heavy paper, full-color photos, stitched binding). Kind of like Bruford's music and his philosophy about it: painstakingly crafted with modern technology that also subscribes to traditional artistic values.
August 1, 2009
This book is an autobiography of an interesting man, but he intersperses his own story with comments about musicianship, the definition of success, and balancing your life between your family and a very demanding career. I found the latter to be the best parts (:
May 16, 2009
If you're expecting the usual rock star "let me tell you how great I am" biography, you'll be happily disappointed. Instead, it's a remarkably honest look inside the world of the professional musician. Very entertaining.
September 26, 2017
"Popularity is a crime from the moment it is sought; it is only a virtue where men have it whether they will or no." (Marquis of Halifax, Moral Thoughts and Reflections (1750), as quoted by Bill Bruford)
Bill Bruford: The Autobiography (2012) is an outstanding work by the famous drummer, a legend in the rock and jazz music community, and the "godfather of progressive drumming." The autobiography presents the 40-year career of Mr. Bruford, from his work in the famed progressive rock bands Yes and King Crimson, through electronic jazz, to acoustic jazz drumming. As far as I can ascertain this is not a ghost-written work: there is little of that characteristic polished, glossy style of entertainment writers and a lot of somewhat endearingly awkward prose of an "amateur" author.
By far the best aspect of the autobiography deserves capitalization: THERE IS NO SHOW BUSINESS GOSSIP in the book! The reader will not learn who slept with whom, who took which drugs, or who fired whom from the band. These kind of issues belong in tabloid magazines and luckily there is virtually nothing of that kind here, with the exception of some gentle fun made of Robert Fripp, the famed leader of King Crimson. This is a really serious book, one that deals with serious issues in a mature way.
Another good feature of the autobiography is that it is not chronological but instead arranged around selected topics from theory, business, and sociology of music, which of course helps the author focus on the serious aspects of his career. He repeatedly "circles in time" and returns to his periods of playing with Yes, King Crimson, Genesis, Bruford, and Earthworks.
Some of the topics studied by the author are: the relationship between talent and success in the music world, the differences between being an artist and a craftsman, the theory of music as a social phenomenon, differences between composed and improvised music, and similarities and differences between mathematics and music. The closest that the author comes to the dreaded gossip in his autobiography are passages that portray the interpersonal dynamics on a rock/jazz tour and detailed descriptions of recording sessions. Still, luckily we have no sensationalism here.
Let me just focus on two of my hot-button issues. The first one is about "music as art" versus music as a commodity. Mr. Bruford nicely says that artists create music "to soothe their soul," and he chides the alternative - the focus-group-based, business view of music whose goal is to study "what the market wants and provide it." Alas, the latter approach is prevalent these days.
The other issue dear to my heart is the dramatic shortening of the attention span for modern listeners. Mr. Bruford writes:
There is a number of cool and catchy phrases in the autobiography, such as "Music begins where language leaves off" and several funny quotes, such as
Four and a quarter stars.
Bill Bruford: The Autobiography (2012) is an outstanding work by the famous drummer, a legend in the rock and jazz music community, and the "godfather of progressive drumming." The autobiography presents the 40-year career of Mr. Bruford, from his work in the famed progressive rock bands Yes and King Crimson, through electronic jazz, to acoustic jazz drumming. As far as I can ascertain this is not a ghost-written work: there is little of that characteristic polished, glossy style of entertainment writers and a lot of somewhat endearingly awkward prose of an "amateur" author.
By far the best aspect of the autobiography deserves capitalization: THERE IS NO SHOW BUSINESS GOSSIP in the book! The reader will not learn who slept with whom, who took which drugs, or who fired whom from the band. These kind of issues belong in tabloid magazines and luckily there is virtually nothing of that kind here, with the exception of some gentle fun made of Robert Fripp, the famed leader of King Crimson. This is a really serious book, one that deals with serious issues in a mature way.
Another good feature of the autobiography is that it is not chronological but instead arranged around selected topics from theory, business, and sociology of music, which of course helps the author focus on the serious aspects of his career. He repeatedly "circles in time" and returns to his periods of playing with Yes, King Crimson, Genesis, Bruford, and Earthworks.
Some of the topics studied by the author are: the relationship between talent and success in the music world, the differences between being an artist and a craftsman, the theory of music as a social phenomenon, differences between composed and improvised music, and similarities and differences between mathematics and music. The closest that the author comes to the dreaded gossip in his autobiography are passages that portray the interpersonal dynamics on a rock/jazz tour and detailed descriptions of recording sessions. Still, luckily we have no sensationalism here.
Let me just focus on two of my hot-button issues. The first one is about "music as art" versus music as a commodity. Mr. Bruford nicely says that artists create music "to soothe their soul," and he chides the alternative - the focus-group-based, business view of music whose goal is to study "what the market wants and provide it." Alas, the latter approach is prevalent these days.
The other issue dear to my heart is the dramatic shortening of the attention span for modern listeners. Mr. Bruford writes:
"For a whole new generation, listening to a piece of music from beginning to end seems unusual. Through TV advertising we hear slices of Beatles songs, Bach cantatas, jazz and blues pastiche, and - here is the point - all of it incomplete".The "incomplete listening" goes hand in hand with the more and more common "multitasking," which means that instead of doing one thing well, we do two or more things poorly.
There is a number of cool and catchy phrases in the autobiography, such as "Music begins where language leaves off" and several funny quotes, such as
"The [progress in] technology has benefits (anyone can make a record) which immediately leads to drawbacks (everyone does make a record)."For a moment I was even toying with the idea of a five-star rating for this interesting, analytical, and insightful book. But no, let's leave five stars for absolute masterpieces.
Four and a quarter stars.
January 15, 2025
Engaging and intelligent
I read the first chapter of this engaging, intelligent autobiography on the author's website before its release, and was soon copying out passages from that to send to my musician friends. Bruford tells the story of his life as a professional musician in an entertaining fashion that's always interesting, but enhances his narrative with his thoughts on topics such as the tension between trying to make music that's good and music that's popular, the impact of lengthy tours on a stable home life, and even such big topics as why we find music so appealing. In tackling these fascinating questions, he's not afraid to reference more scholarly works with an erudition that I would call pleasantly surprising if that description wasn't patronising.
He also has an eye on history, pointing out that the possibility of making a living as a musician has only emerged very recently (elsewhere, he notes that in ancient Rome, female musicians were ranked with courtesans and prostitutes, whilst at other times they have been slaves). The role of technology - as it allows musicians to make money from recordings of their performances - in this emergence is carefully brought out, as is the way in which technology's evolution is destroying the old business model of record companies.
This book (which appears to have been produced in the total absence of ghost- or co-writers) is very well written, with some deft touches; one of my favourites occurred in the account of a recording session playback on p192: "The pianist and I are probably past our best, but the saxophonist is triumphant and the bassist, who tends to hear only his own contribution, and thus will not become the band's record producer any time soon, doesn't care any more."
Finally, there are some fascinating details garnered from Bruford's stories about playing in famous groups. I thought I knew a lot about the evolution of Yes's Tales from Topographic Oceans (one of my favourite records), so I was astonished to read on p71 about how singer Jon Anderson apparently got the idea for its original concept from Jamie Muir, King Crimson's eccentric percussionist. Furthermore, the fact that this discussion took place at a party in the Brufords' London flat on their wedding day is remarkable, and typical of the kind of fascinating detail contained in this delightful book.
Originally reviewed 12 June 2009
I read the first chapter of this engaging, intelligent autobiography on the author's website before its release, and was soon copying out passages from that to send to my musician friends. Bruford tells the story of his life as a professional musician in an entertaining fashion that's always interesting, but enhances his narrative with his thoughts on topics such as the tension between trying to make music that's good and music that's popular, the impact of lengthy tours on a stable home life, and even such big topics as why we find music so appealing. In tackling these fascinating questions, he's not afraid to reference more scholarly works with an erudition that I would call pleasantly surprising if that description wasn't patronising.
He also has an eye on history, pointing out that the possibility of making a living as a musician has only emerged very recently (elsewhere, he notes that in ancient Rome, female musicians were ranked with courtesans and prostitutes, whilst at other times they have been slaves). The role of technology - as it allows musicians to make money from recordings of their performances - in this emergence is carefully brought out, as is the way in which technology's evolution is destroying the old business model of record companies.
This book (which appears to have been produced in the total absence of ghost- or co-writers) is very well written, with some deft touches; one of my favourites occurred in the account of a recording session playback on p192: "The pianist and I are probably past our best, but the saxophonist is triumphant and the bassist, who tends to hear only his own contribution, and thus will not become the band's record producer any time soon, doesn't care any more."
Finally, there are some fascinating details garnered from Bruford's stories about playing in famous groups. I thought I knew a lot about the evolution of Yes's Tales from Topographic Oceans (one of my favourite records), so I was astonished to read on p71 about how singer Jon Anderson apparently got the idea for its original concept from Jamie Muir, King Crimson's eccentric percussionist. Furthermore, the fact that this discussion took place at a party in the Brufords' London flat on their wedding day is remarkable, and typical of the kind of fascinating detail contained in this delightful book.
Originally reviewed 12 June 2009
April 7, 2019
Bravo !
This was an excellent book, which departed significantly from any other book I’ve read from a musician who survived the battles of the 1970’s rock & roll era. It didn’t provide a detailed account of all of the parties, concerts or how each song was hatched.
Rather, the book provided a deeper insight into the man Bill Bruford and his life experiences, and what he learned, while rising to the top of the drummer heap. I was a fan while he was at Yes, King Crimson and Genesis, but not Earthworks (for which I have some catching up to do).
Bill’s insights about the music business, then and now, were spot on from what I see as an outsider looking in. He clearly sees the challenges for a young musician, and is grateful that his is able to put down the sticks.
He discusses how he started as a musician, why he left Yes (after Close to the Edge, there was nothing left to do with that group of individuals), inside baseball relating to how bands are managed and all of the challenges, his instrument and the manufacturers that support him, why he wanted to form his own group, his point of view about interviews and their necessity, the enigma - Robert Fripp, playing in jazz vs. rock, the importance to him of family life and the balance and stability it provides, playing with others just to see which direction the music takes, managing a global music service business, and much more. Most importantly, he dedicated a chapter at the end about letting go, putting down the sticks. As I recently retired, the sentiments that Bill shared about his retirement were fascinating, for which I was able to relate in a meaningful way. Some of the reasons Bill pointed to supporting his decision to retire were the same as mine.
All along the way, Bill’s analytical approach (he has a PhD) to all of the subjects made this read even more interesting and thought provoking.
Thank you for sharing your story and signing my book Dr. Bruford.
This was an excellent book, which departed significantly from any other book I’ve read from a musician who survived the battles of the 1970’s rock & roll era. It didn’t provide a detailed account of all of the parties, concerts or how each song was hatched.
Rather, the book provided a deeper insight into the man Bill Bruford and his life experiences, and what he learned, while rising to the top of the drummer heap. I was a fan while he was at Yes, King Crimson and Genesis, but not Earthworks (for which I have some catching up to do).
Bill’s insights about the music business, then and now, were spot on from what I see as an outsider looking in. He clearly sees the challenges for a young musician, and is grateful that his is able to put down the sticks.
He discusses how he started as a musician, why he left Yes (after Close to the Edge, there was nothing left to do with that group of individuals), inside baseball relating to how bands are managed and all of the challenges, his instrument and the manufacturers that support him, why he wanted to form his own group, his point of view about interviews and their necessity, the enigma - Robert Fripp, playing in jazz vs. rock, the importance to him of family life and the balance and stability it provides, playing with others just to see which direction the music takes, managing a global music service business, and much more. Most importantly, he dedicated a chapter at the end about letting go, putting down the sticks. As I recently retired, the sentiments that Bill shared about his retirement were fascinating, for which I was able to relate in a meaningful way. Some of the reasons Bill pointed to supporting his decision to retire were the same as mine.
All along the way, Bill’s analytical approach (he has a PhD) to all of the subjects made this read even more interesting and thought provoking.
Thank you for sharing your story and signing my book Dr. Bruford.
October 2, 2023
Bill Bruford made a storied career first in progressive rock, as the drummer for Yes and King Crimson, and he then turned to jazz until his retirement in 2009. This autobiography, released just as he retired, looks back at those busy four decades of activity. This is not a straightforward account of his life, but rather a series of vignettes that aim to give an idea of what many musicians’ life was like from the early 1970s to 2009. More than drumming, what this book is really about is the challenges of touring, recording, staying relevant in the business as trends change, and ultimately trying to make a living out of what one loves. Bruford recounts all this with a charmingly cantankerous and ironical tone; he’s always aware that, especially with the turn to jazz, he was a musician of fairly niche popularity and no superstar or rock god, and so the book is marked by a certain humility and down-to-earth quality.
My interest was firmly held for about the first half of this 350-page book. Unfortunately, his observations on the business start to feel repetitive, and I wished that an editor could have helped him sculpt the manuscript to a more chiselled state. The book ultimately leads up to an apologia for his decision to retire, and so perhaps he needed to get this out quickly while the news was still fresh, instead of working through further drafts. Nevertheless, anyone interested in trivia about the working process of Yes and King Crimson would find this worth reading. I also enjoyed learning about Bruford’s jazz career, which he seems to regard as something of a failure or at least a middling success. It turns out that he has worked with some acclaimed musicians in jazz, and he was quite close to the ECM Records scene that I love, so his autobiography managed to convince at least this Crim fan to leap the gap to his later work.
My interest was firmly held for about the first half of this 350-page book. Unfortunately, his observations on the business start to feel repetitive, and I wished that an editor could have helped him sculpt the manuscript to a more chiselled state. The book ultimately leads up to an apologia for his decision to retire, and so perhaps he needed to get this out quickly while the news was still fresh, instead of working through further drafts. Nevertheless, anyone interested in trivia about the working process of Yes and King Crimson would find this worth reading. I also enjoyed learning about Bruford’s jazz career, which he seems to regard as something of a failure or at least a middling success. It turns out that he has worked with some acclaimed musicians in jazz, and he was quite close to the ECM Records scene that I love, so his autobiography managed to convince at least this Crim fan to leap the gap to his later work.
May 15, 2021
Inédita todavía en castellano, la autobiografía del batería Bill Bruford va mucho más allá de la mera enumeración de anécdotas vitales y musicales (que también las hay, por supuesto, y algunas muy divertidas). A diferencia del también excelente “Vida” de Keith Richards (por poner un ejemplo de libro donde abunda el lado más personal), Bruford hace bastante hincapié en el ensayo musical (casi se diría que haya ejercido de periodista, extrayendo numerosas citas de otros libros). Sí, narra aventuras varias con Yes (como el antológico despropósito del por otro lado recomendable “Union”), las diversas encarnaciones con King Crimson, sus múltiples colaboraciones (Genesis, Al Di Meola) o sus combos jazzísticos: el musculoso debut de UK (con una facción “artesanal” con Wetton y Jobson y otra “artística” con Holdsworth y Bruford), su propio grupo Bruford o Earthworks (con los que ejerce de músico, productor, mánager y lo que haga falta). Pero también habla de los cambios en la industria musical, de los orígenes del rock progresivo (y su perenne guerra con la prensa), de las diferencias entre el mundillo rock y el jazz, entre músicos yanquis y británicos, de la vida estando de gira (conciertos, hoteles, comidas y demás), etc. Y todo con un fino sentido del humor y una escritura realmente elaborada.
El libro está estructurado en forma de capítulos que responden a varias preguntas con las que le han asediado a lo largo de sus 40 años de carrera (ahora ya está retirado). Una carrera, por cierto, con un único hit, “Roundabout”, allá por 1971. Hay incluso un capítulo enterito que responde a “¿Cómo es trabajar con Robert Fripp?” Y la respuesta concisa: “Es como trabajar con un hombre que es en parte Joseph Stalin, en parte Mahatma Gandhi y en parte Marqués de Sade, una descripción que sospecho que le haría partirse de risa”.
JORDI PLANAS
El libro está estructurado en forma de capítulos que responden a varias preguntas con las que le han asediado a lo largo de sus 40 años de carrera (ahora ya está retirado). Una carrera, por cierto, con un único hit, “Roundabout”, allá por 1971. Hay incluso un capítulo enterito que responde a “¿Cómo es trabajar con Robert Fripp?” Y la respuesta concisa: “Es como trabajar con un hombre que es en parte Joseph Stalin, en parte Mahatma Gandhi y en parte Marqués de Sade, una descripción que sospecho que le haría partirse de risa”.
JORDI PLANAS
April 30, 2019
Since I've been a Yes fan for a long time, especially during the time Bill Bruford sat behind the drums, I decided to read the book. This is not a gossip rag about rock stars and their decadent lifestyles but is rather a very astute examination of the music business and Bruford's part in it and feelings about it. He gives you an honest, wry look at a musician's life and career without glamorizing it but also doesn't play down that it is a unique opportunity in which few participate and is grateful for it. If you know an aspiring musician of any musical genre who truly wants to make a career out of it, Bruford will lay it out straight. His treatise on the state of modern music may make you sigh for the old days, but he comes back with a hopeful statement about the future and reminds the reader that the music business has always been tough.
December 2, 2020
I got my autographed copy by Bill Bruford himself. The only drummer to play in three different progressive rock bands. He was a founding member of Yes, later played with King Crimson and Genesis. He also talks about his band Earthworks. He is one of the only drummers to play in rock and jazz genres.
One thing interesting is he mentions Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford about when he was drumming with Genesis. He doesn't mention Steve Hackett in his book. In Steve Hackett's 'Genesis in my Bed' book, Steve mentions Bill Bruford several times. He says working with Robert Fripp of King Crimson was like working with Josef Stalin and Mahatma Gandhi.
He describes how music effects society in great detail. Music history is explained in great detail particularly western classical music. He also explains about the different drumming rhythmic patterns with King Crimson and jazz that he used. He goes into great details about the music recording industry and the key players involved with the management and record companies.
This guy should be in the Rock'n Roll Hall of Fame.
One thing interesting is he mentions Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford about when he was drumming with Genesis. He doesn't mention Steve Hackett in his book. In Steve Hackett's 'Genesis in my Bed' book, Steve mentions Bill Bruford several times. He says working with Robert Fripp of King Crimson was like working with Josef Stalin and Mahatma Gandhi.
He describes how music effects society in great detail. Music history is explained in great detail particularly western classical music. He also explains about the different drumming rhythmic patterns with King Crimson and jazz that he used. He goes into great details about the music recording industry and the key players involved with the management and record companies.
This guy should be in the Rock'n Roll Hall of Fame.
April 8, 2022
Bill Bruford is very honest here. There's even a few comments some might consider off-color. But there's some humor that really works. The narrative is not as linear as I was expecting. Bruford jumps around talking about different aspects of musician life, rather than going from album to album or going into the finer details of certain songs. He also goes on philosophical detours that can be interesting. This book may not have had all that I was looking for (in-depth stories about working with various people mentioned), but the honesty of it all made it interesting, even when I didn't agree about certain things. Bill made no secret of how phone interviews back in the day were the worst, and how some questions can be tiresome to hear again over and over. As expected, the ending touches on why he retired, and his perspective is understandable.
September 15, 2020
This is a pretty extensive autobiography about Mr. Bruford who was the original drummer in Yes. He talks about his childhood in post-war England and how his sister game him his first drum sticks. There are many good stories about the early years of Yes and their journey to success. He becomes a little disillusioned though (bored maybe?) with their direction and leaves to find his own way. He explores many areas of drumming including jazz, and eventually lands with King Crimson for many years and then finally forms his own band Earthworks. He is quite the intellectual and this books reads like that but with a wry English sense of humor. Yes fans will like this book. I found it an interesting read.
May 10, 2021
I appreciated the philosophical aspects of the book. As a musician, I have asked myself many of the same questions about the art and craft of music. I seethed, then laughed at the familiarity of the absurd aspects of the business, playing conditions, money, etc. I am glad I kept my day job, while playing music as a serious hobby! Anyone in the arts would find these philosophical meanderings interesting and probably close to home, and if you are "outside" the arts community, it will give you insight into the artists thinking.
He recounts stories of his days with Yes, King Crimson, etc. Mr Bruford holds himself and others to high standards. But this is not just a historical account of his groups.
He recounts stories of his days with Yes, King Crimson, etc. Mr Bruford holds himself and others to high standards. But this is not just a historical account of his groups.
January 16, 2025
Having recently met Bill Bruford at a festival and spending some time over dinner talking with this talented gentleman with a lit of history led me to finally pick up this book and decide to read entirely. I should also add that I am a musician and huge fan of the music that Bill Buford was involved in and a supporter of the progressive rock genre, whatever it may be now. I believe the book is very well written and gives a good insight into Bill Bruford and how he viewed things, like touring, musicians and the music industry itself. I also share some of the same feelings he has about the industry which I was glad to read his perspective on the matters. I highly recommend this book, especially if you are a Bill Bruford and/or progressive rock or jazz music enthusiast.
May 29, 2019
A truly exceptional accounting of what it takes to find contentment and motivation over time in the worlds of (art) rock and jazz. The author’s story is neither “get rich quick” nor “ne’er do well”. He achieved the musical middle class while maintaining his musical integrity. We should all be so lucky.
This is totally gratuitous (or is it, given that nobody will read it?) but a great example of Bruford’s creative style is the version of King Crimson’s “Sleepless” off of their “Absent Lovers - Live in Montreal 1984”. Absolutely the funkiest groove that sounds like banging on trash cans that you’ll hear today.
This is totally gratuitous (or is it, given that nobody will read it?) but a great example of Bruford’s creative style is the version of King Crimson’s “Sleepless” off of their “Absent Lovers - Live in Montreal 1984”. Absolutely the funkiest groove that sounds like banging on trash cans that you’ll hear today.
March 15, 2020
This is an excellent autobiography and especially well-suited to my interests. I love his style of drumming and the various early and later prog-rock outfits he was part of.
But he is also an intellectual in some respects and I enjoyed his thoughts of various theories of music and society and culture and the inter-relationships of all these elements.
Very much a thinking musician's book, questioning and wondering - philosophizing on the life of an individual dedicated to making music in the best way he can and, examining his own attributes and accomplishments in a way that resonates for this reader.
But he is also an intellectual in some respects and I enjoyed his thoughts of various theories of music and society and culture and the inter-relationships of all these elements.
Very much a thinking musician's book, questioning and wondering - philosophizing on the life of an individual dedicated to making music in the best way he can and, examining his own attributes and accomplishments in a way that resonates for this reader.
December 14, 2022
I give this 5 stars because it exceeded my expectations. I am a musician who plays bass, and it was refreshing, believe it or not, to read more about Brufords relationship with the music business than a track-by-track breakdown of his career. Like Bruford, I am a nerdy white boy who grew up in the suburbs, am attracted to edgy music, and does not live the stereotypical lifestyle one usually associates with musicians. What I have always like about Bill Bruford and his projects, is that he plays music for musics sake. The debauchery surrounding rock n' roll superstardom was never his thing. Prog rock was a great genre!
July 13, 2020
Bill Bruford captured my attention and enthusiasm fir watching drummers drum through his work with Yes and King Crimson. Later I enjoyed his work with his jazz project Earthworks. Besides being an extraordinary percussionist, he also possesses a brilliant mind and an excellent writing ability.
Those who approach this dense book hoping to find lots of anecdotes about their favorite bands should know that much of it is about Bruford's perspectives on the music business, and even the history of music and its relationship to the audience. I found it fascinating.
Those who approach this dense book hoping to find lots of anecdotes about their favorite bands should know that much of it is about Bruford's perspectives on the music business, and even the history of music and its relationship to the audience. I found it fascinating.
June 15, 2018
The only thing I knew about Bruford was that I liked his drumming. Especially on the 80s King Crimson material. I soon realized he is also a very good writer and an in-depth thinker. The book is full of insights into the life of a musicians and the music business. There are enough rock and roll stories about familiar characters from Yes, King Crimson, and Genesis to keep it entertaining. But also lots of personal philosophy and musical and sociologic analysis.
December 20, 2019
Bruford is the master drummer for any fans of progressive rock and now fully retired and owning a PhD he continues to be a master thinker. This first book, written several years ago , outlines his professional life with the likes of Yes, King Crimson and Genesis along with his jazz leanings. He takes no prisoners but is always respectful of his fellow musicians and we get generous insights along the way. It’s a must have for anyone moderately immersed in the Prog area.
December 20, 2022
Part memoir, part philosophical and existential treatise on life, music and performance. If well balanced these can coexist in a single book, but here there's way too much pseudo-philosophy (peppered with quotes from other highbrow musicians and writers) and not enough about the actual music and performances. Bill is clearly highly intelligent and the occasional anecdote from the road is told well and appreciated.. it's just that there's not many of those.
February 13, 2025
My favorite drummer of all time, so of course I loved the book. It certainly helps that Bruford's prose is clear, eloquent, and leaves no stone unturned when it comes to his career, but I was probably going to like it no matter what. Definitely something for the completist (as I don't foresee much mainstream appeal to the autobiography of a fairly niche fusion drummer), but for me it is beyond essential.
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