THE KEITH TIPPETT JAZZ CONNECTION
Although he declined Fripp’s invitation to join King Crimson, Keith Tippett and Robert Fripp have had a lasting impression on each other’s work.
Having arrived in London from his native Bristol in 1967, Keith Tippett found himself without access to a piano, so he carved a dummy keyboard into an old table in his flat in order to keep practising. A scholarship led to him attending the Barry Jazz Summer School in Wales, where he met Nick Evans (trombone), Mark Charig (cornet) and Elton Dean (sax).
They soon formed Keith Tippett Group and recorded two highly acclaimed albums. The force of Tippett’s compositions and the power generated by these players quickly established them as one of the hottest jazz tickets in town. Their residency at the Marquee Club’s New Paths series with King Crimson in 1969 only enhanced their reputation. Evans, Charig and Dean were also found augmenting Soft Machine, with Dean eventually staying on full time.
The crossover between jazz and rock at the time proved to be fertile ground and during 1970 Tippett was invited to play on In The Wake Of Poseidon. He would return again, later that year for Lizard, this time with Evans and Charig in tow, and again in 1971 with Charig and bassist Harry Miller to guest on Islands. It’s also worth noting that Charig also guests on Crimson’s 70s swan song, Red. Fripp was so impressed with the pianist’s brilliance as a player and writer that during 1970 he offered Tippett, not just a full-time role within King Crimson but an equal say in the creative direction of the group. Although Tippett declined, preferring to continue his explorations within a more jazz-oriented setting, the pair remained close collaborators.
When Tippett’s electric 50-piece orchestra, Centipede, played live, Fripp not only gigged with them but he was asked by Tippett to produce the resulting album, Septober Energy, released in 1971. A combination of scored and improvised sections for string, brass, three drummers and a rock ensemble plus vocalists, including Boz Burrell, Septober Energy was an ambitious and audacious undertaking that attracted significant coverage and included live work in Europe. By contrast, the next Keith Tippett album Fripp produced, Blueprint, released in 1972, was a quietly intimate and sparse trio. Given the cross-fertilisation of ideas, it’s perhaps no surprise that long sections of Blueprint wouldn’t sound out of place on Islands.
Fripp also acted as producer for a Nick Evans-led ensemble of free improvisation that featured Dean, Charig, Miller, Tippett and other luminaries in 1972. Unreleased at the time and thought to be long lost, the master tapes were discovered and eventually came out in 2008 under the name of the Command All-Stars. There were a further two Fripp-produced Tippett albums in the 80 and 90s, with the pianist describing the guitarist as “a safe pair of ears”. On hearing of Tippett’s death in 2020, Fripp stated, “Keith Tippett is one of three musicians of my generation who continues to influence and guide my musical thinking. Keith’s music speaks for itself. Perhaps less well-known is Keith’s stature as an ethical musician, a good man.
Fly well, Brother Keith! My gratitude to you.”