Wedding saw the largest gathering of monarchs in Germany for decades
Roxy Music released their debut album 50 years ago, melding art school style with rock and roll substance. MARION McMULLEN looks at their birth
PRINCESS Victoria Louise Adelaide Matilda Charlotte of Prussia was born on September 13, 1892, and was the seventh child and only daughter and the last child of Wilhelm II.
Her 1913 wedding to Prince Ernest Augustus of Hanover was the largest gathering of reigning monarchs in Germany since German unification in 1871, and one of the last great social events of European royalty before the First World War began 14 months later.
Shortly after the wedding, Victoria Louise became the Duchess of Brunswick by marriage. Through her daughter Frederica, Princess Victoria Louise was the maternal grandmother of Queen Sophia of Spain and the former Constantine II of Greece.
Wilhelm II’s wife, Empress Augusta Victoria, wrote in her diary soon after the birth: “After six sons, God has given us our seventh child, a small but very strong little daughter.”
The child was named after her paternal great-grandmother, Queen Victoria of Great Britain, and her paternal great great grandmother, Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Known officially as Victoria Louise, she was nicknamed “Sissy” by her family.
Historian Justin C Vovk wrote that Victoria Louise was intelligent and dignified, but imperious and willful like her father. She enjoyed being the centre of attention and was her father’s favourite.
According to her eldest brother Crown Prince Wilhelm, Victoria Louise was “the only one of us who succeeded in her childhood in gaining a snug place” in their father’s heart.
In 1902, it was reported that her governess, Anne Topham, observed in their first meeting that the nine-year-old princess was friendly, energetic, and always quarrelling with her next eldest brother, Prince Joachim. Anne later noted that the “warlike” emperor “unbends to a considerable extent when in the bosom of his family,” and is the “dominating force of his daughter’s life. His ideas, his opinions on men and things are persistently quoted by her.”
Victoria Louise died at the age of 88 on December 11, 1980.
BRYAN FERRY once declared: “Other bands wanted to wreck hotel rooms – Roxy Music wanted to redecorate them”.
The group behind hits like Love Is The Drug, Dance Away and More Than This first made their mark on the British music scene 50 years ago with the release of 1972 album Roxy Music.
It was recorded in just a week for £5,000 at London’s Command Studios, with former King Crimson lyricist Pete Sinfield producing.
The record had an eye-catching 1950s-style cover featuring former Bond girl Kari-Ann Muller, who later married Sir Mick Jagger’s brother Chris, and marked the start of Roxy Music’s trademark glamorous album designs.
Texan-born supermodel Jerry Hall appeared as a mermaid for their 1975 album Siren and she and Bryan were also briefly engaged. It is said he held an umbrella over her during the album cover photoshoot, so her blue body paint would not be washed away.
BBC radio DJ John Peel was among those who championed Roxy Music’s debut album after he heard an early demo tape from the band. They ended up being featured on BBC Radio 1’s Sounds Of The Seventies and recorded their first single, Virginia Plain – featuring lyrics like “You’re so sheer, you’re so chic. Teenage rebel of the week” – 50 years ago this month.
The LP itself had climbed its way to number 10 in the UK music charts by September 1972 with all the album tracks written by singer Bryan.
The band’s first tour saw them supporting Rory Gallagher and they made their TV debut on BBC2’s The Old Grey Whistle Test performing Ladytron.
They supported Alice Cooper at Wembley Arena in July 1972, but had to take a break while headlining their first tour later that same year so Bryan could go into hospital to have his tonsils removed.
By the end of 1972 they were performing in America for the first time, opening for acts like Jethro Tull and Humble Pie.
At the time of the album’s release The Godfather was the big film blockbuster of the year, America was reeling from the Watergate scandal and the Osmonds and David Cassidy were the idols of the teenybopper generation.
Roxy Music merged music, fashion, and art with astonishing success and it brought them global recognition.
“Secretly I wanted to look like Jimi Hendrix, but I could never quite pull it off,” Bryan later said.
The band’s 1972 line-up included Bryan, Phil Manzanera, Andy Mackay, Brian Eno, Rik Kenton and Paul Thompson.
Brian Eno later recalled: “People like Frank Zappa and Bryan Ferry knew we could pick and choose from the history of music, stick things together looking for friction and energy. They were more like playwrights. They invented characters and wrote a life around them.” Bryan grew up in Washington in the north east and came from a working class background. His father worked with the pit ponies at a local colliery and Bryan received a grant to study art at university and worked on building sites and at a local factory during the summer breaks to earn extra money.
Art school saw his love of music emerge and his first band was called The Banshees before Roxy Music came along. Bryan, who turns 77 in September, once said his stylish look was inspired by musicians like Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. “Why should I spoil my mood by wearing an ugly suit?” he said.
The band are celebrating niversary of se of their album with ena tour in ber. will be the ’s first tour more than decade and see Bryan, dy, Phil and ul Thompn together on e for the first since their -out and tically acclaimed 2011 For Your Pleasure tour.
The band will perform 10 arena shows across North America, followed by UK dates, while special anniversary editions of Roxy Music’s albums are being reissued.
Roxy Music were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018 and have inspired many other groups over the years.
Their eight studio albums helped birth the art-rock movement and blurred the lines between genres, infusing a new kind of glamour into rock music.
As Bryan once pointed out: “When you get music and words together, that can be a very powerful thing.”
Secretly I wanted to look like Jimi Hendrix, but I could never quite pull it off
Bryan Ferry
■ Go to gigsandtours.com/tour/ roxy-music for booking information and visit roxymusic.co.uk for tour dates and album release details.