Any Steve Tibbets fans in these parts?

mahler007 · 18th November 2011

Is anybody here into Steve Tibbets, or has anybody even heard of him? He's a guitarist from Minneapolis who released a bunch of records on the ECM label back in the 80s...

I've been reconnecting with some of this stuff lately, specifically the albums "Yr" (1980) and "Exploded View" (1985). They are really incredible — such a versatile guitarist with a totally unique sound and style — both as a player, and a writer. An absolute jedi master of the 1/2" 8-track format, too... The sheer amount of awesomeness this guy can put onto a reel of tape is unbelievable.

Anyway, he's pretty obscure, which is a shame, but I figured I'd post in case there are any fans out there, or even better, somebody who has perhaps worked or played with him...

Cheers,
Andrew

N88 · 18th November 2011

I listened to A Man About A Horse quite a bit. Enjoyed how you could get lost inside it.
The only other album I have of his is Cho.

mahler007 · 18th November 2011

I "heard" A Man About a Horse, but never really "listened" to it, so I can't say much, other than I remember it being very "world-ish." That's definitely a later record, after he got into his Tibetan phase (or, at least, after he started writing more from that place).

Not that his earlier records didn't have that element as well — tons of ethnic percussion and awesome tabla playing all over them, which definitely makes them that much more special. The two other records I have are Northern Song (which takes a turn toward the more ambient, produced by Manfred Eicher, I believe) and Safe Journey, which I find somewhere in between the earlier stuff and Northern Song...

I'll have to check out Man About a Horse again... and Cho too! This guy is a real original.

Cheers,
Andrew

gingataff · 18th November 2011

I have Safe Journey and Exploded View on LP, sadly thousands of miles away. I should probably pick up the cds but I think ECM sounds much better on wax.
They are great records for sure. Very creative and inspirational.
For me Tibbets is the Yang to Stephan Micus' Yin.

emrr · 18th November 2011

Yeah, to think that Yr is done on 8 track is a bit impressive. The 1st album has some really raw cool bits too.

18th November 2011	#1
mahler007 Gear maniac Joined: May 2006 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 283 Thread Starter	Any Steve Tibbets fans in these parts? Is anybody here into Steve Tibbets, or has anybody even heard of him? He's a guitarist from Minneapolis who released a bunch of records on the ECM label back in the 80s... I've been reconnecting with some of this stuff lately, specifically the albums "Yr" (1980) and "Exploded View" (1985). They are really incredible — such a versatile guitarist with a totally unique sound and style — both as a player, and a writer. An absolute jedi master of the 1/2" 8-track format, too... The sheer amount of awesomeness this guy can put onto a reel of tape is unbelievable. Anyway, he's pretty obscure, which is a shame, but I figured I'd post in case there are any fans out there, or even better, somebody who has perhaps worked or played with him... Cheers, Andrew __________________ Andrew McKenna Lee Composer/Guitarist www.andrewmckennalee.com

18th November 2011	#4
gingataff Gear addict Joined: Mar 2010 Location: Tokyo Posts: 364	I have Safe Journey and Exploded View on LP, sadly thousands of miles away. I should probably pick up the cds but I think ECM sounds much better on wax. They are great records for sure. Very creative and inspirational. For me Tibbets is the Yang to Stephan Micus' Yin. __________________ I'm using the chicken to measure it.

18th November 2011	#5
emrr Lives for gear Joined: Dec 2006 Location: nc Posts: 1,001	Yeah, to think that Yr is done on 8 track is a bit impressive. The 1st album has some really raw cool bits too. __________________ Best, Doug Williams ElectroMagnetic Radiation Recorders Tape Op issue 73

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18th November 2011	#2
N88 Gear maniac Joined: Dec 2007 Posts: 249	I listened to A Man About A Horse quite a bit. Enjoyed how you could get lost inside it. The only other album I have of his is Cho.