"If Francis found out there were Curved Air fans in the audience he'd sneak part of Piece Of Mind into his playing of Bach's music with great feeling." In recalling their founding member, keyboard and guitar player Francis Monkman, who died in May, UK prog rockers Curved Air perhaps answered a question that some fans may have wondered since he last featured in the band in 1990: whatever happened to Francis Monkman?
In truth, the classically trained musician remained working with music, notably with his beloved harpsichord and the work of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, but stayed out of the public spotlight, something that always seemed to be more comfortable to the musician than hogging the limelight. And yet ironically, thanks to Monkman's involvement in scores of some of the biggest films of the 1980s and 1990s, millions would have heard his work, albeit possibly without knowing it. And he never forgot his progressive rock roots.
Born Anthony Francis Keigwin Monkman in Hampstead, London, on June 9, 1949, he showed a flair for music at an early age, studying both organ and harpsichord at Westminster School, where he was a pupil. He later attended the Royal Academy of Music where he won the Raymond Russell prize for virtuosity on the harpsichord, before gaining membership of The Academy Of St Martin In The Fields.
[https://cdn.magzter.com/1625747790/1687518117/articles/tBJbDnhrA1687521080050/2668245772.jpg]
"Francis and I first met at the Orange music shop in Denmark Street in 1969," recalls his soon-to-be Curved Air colleague, violinist Darryl Way. "I was there trying out my newly amplified electric violin when Francis strode over and we got talking. During the conversation we discovered that we had a lot in common. Both of us were classical music students, Francis studying at the Royal Academy and me at the Royal College, and both of us had a burning desire to get into rock music."
That desire initially manifested itself in early progressive rock outfit Sisyphus.
"Francis, at that time, had been doing some jamming with Rob Martin on bass and Pat Deneen on drums," Way continues. "I'd been putting some ideas together with an American classical pianist who was also studying in London. So, we decided to pool our resources and form a band. After a few gigs, a few personnel changes and the wonderful addition of Sonja Kristina on lead vocals, this band became Curved Air."
Curved Air were named after Terry Riley's avant-garde 1969 classic, A Rainbow In Curved Air, Monkman having performed Riley's 1964 minimalist piece In C at its first London airing. Monkman would go on to appear on the first three Curved Air albums, including their hit single Back Street Luv, which featured on 1971's Second Album, playing guitar and keyboards, and switching between the two instruments when the band played live. By the time 1972's Phantasmagoria had been released Monkman had left the band, owing to a strained relationship with Way, Monkman's fondness for "real 'outthere' cosmic rock jamming" at odds with Way's more natural discipline, according to Kristina.
[https://cdn.magzter.com/1625747790/1687518117/articles/tBJbDnhrA1687521080050/0768077042.jpg]
"Basically Darryl and I respect each others' work, but we don't really see eye-to-eye on most things," Monkman said at the time. "And we never really got the co-writing thing together. I wanted to get my first 'epic' together, so it looks like a split forming at the time of the Second Album. In fact, the centre was never really solid after Rob [Martin, bass] left."
Monkman would reunite with Curved Air two years later, alongside Kristina, Way and drummer Florian Pilkington-Miksa, for a three-week UK tour in order to pay off debts accrued when the band were sued by Chrysalis Records. Those shows spawned the 1975 live album Curved Air - Live. The line-up would again reunite in 1990 for a one-off live concert at London's then Town & Country Club venue (now The Forum), a live recording of which, Alive, 1990, was released in 2000. A series of jams involving Monkman, Pilkington-Miksa, guitarist Mike Gore and bassist Rob Martin saw the light of day as Jam in 2002.
Away from Curved Air, Monkman contributed a VCS3 synthesiser solo to the epic Rajah Khan, the closing track from Renaissance's 1972 album Prologue, and added Moog synthesiser to Al Stewart's 1973 album Past, Present And Future. In the same year he played harpsichord on pop singer Lynsey de Paul's Surprise album and would later appear on three tracks on Kate Bush's 1978 second LP, Lionheart, namely Don't Push Your Foot On The Heartbrake, Oh England My Lionheart and Fullhouse, as well as tour with The Shadows.
Monkman was also a member of the late 1970s progressive rock band 801, formed by Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera and Brian Eno, and who also featured drummer Simon Phillips, bassist and vocalist Bill MacCormick, and guitarist Lloyd Watson. Originally a temporary project, 801, who took their name from the Brian Eno song The True Wheel, performed three shows, including an appearance at the 1976 Reading Festival and also the Queen Elizabeth Hall. The latter was released as 801 Live in 1976, ahead of their studio debut, Listen Now, which came out a year later. "He was an integral part of our 801 band, a very fine musician and human being," says Manzanera.
[https://cdn.magzter.com/1625747790/1687518117/articles/tBJbDnhrA1687521080050/-8Nbyb7-91687521217361.jpg]
In 1978, after appearing on classical guitarist John Williams' solo album Travelling, he joined drummer Tristan Fry and bassist Herbie Flowers in classical/ prog crossover band Sky, who also featured guitarist Kevin Peek. Monkman's epic Where Opposites Meet took up the whole side of the band's self-titled 19...
In truth, the classically trained musician remained working with music, notably with his beloved harpsichord and the work of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, but stayed out of the public spotlight, something that always seemed to be more comfortable to the musician than hogging the limelight. And yet ironically, thanks to Monkman's involvement in scores of some of the biggest films of the 1980s and 1990s, millions would have heard his work, albeit possibly without knowing it. And he never forgot his progressive rock roots.
Born Anthony Francis Keigwin Monkman in Hampstead, London, on June 9, 1949, he showed a flair for music at an early age, studying both organ and harpsichord at Westminster School, where he was a pupil. He later attended the Royal Academy of Music where he won the Raymond Russell prize for virtuosity on the harpsichord, before gaining membership of The Academy Of St Martin In The Fields.
[https://cdn.magzter.com/1625747790/1687518117/articles/tBJbDnhrA1687521080050/2668245772.jpg]
"Francis and I first met at the Orange music shop in Denmark Street in 1969," recalls his soon-to-be Curved Air colleague, violinist Darryl Way. "I was there trying out my newly amplified electric violin when Francis strode over and we got talking. During the conversation we discovered that we had a lot in common. Both of us were classical music students, Francis studying at the Royal Academy and me at the Royal College, and both of us had a burning desire to get into rock music."
That desire initially manifested itself in early progressive rock outfit Sisyphus.
"Francis, at that time, had been doing some jamming with Rob Martin on bass and Pat Deneen on drums," Way continues. "I'd been putting some ideas together with an American classical pianist who was also studying in London. So, we decided to pool our resources and form a band. After a few gigs, a few personnel changes and the wonderful addition of Sonja Kristina on lead vocals, this band became Curved Air."
Curved Air were named after Terry Riley's avant-garde 1969 classic, A Rainbow In Curved Air, Monkman having performed Riley's 1964 minimalist piece In C at its first London airing. Monkman would go on to appear on the first three Curved Air albums, including their hit single Back Street Luv, which featured on 1971's Second Album, playing guitar and keyboards, and switching between the two instruments when the band played live. By the time 1972's Phantasmagoria had been released Monkman had left the band, owing to a strained relationship with Way, Monkman's fondness for "real 'outthere' cosmic rock jamming" at odds with Way's more natural discipline, according to Kristina.
[https://cdn.magzter.com/1625747790/1687518117/articles/tBJbDnhrA1687521080050/0768077042.jpg]
"Basically Darryl and I respect each others' work, but we don't really see eye-to-eye on most things," Monkman said at the time. "And we never really got the co-writing thing together. I wanted to get my first 'epic' together, so it looks like a split forming at the time of the Second Album. In fact, the centre was never really solid after Rob [Martin, bass] left."
Monkman would reunite with Curved Air two years later, alongside Kristina, Way and drummer Florian Pilkington-Miksa, for a three-week UK tour in order to pay off debts accrued when the band were sued by Chrysalis Records. Those shows spawned the 1975 live album Curved Air - Live. The line-up would again reunite in 1990 for a one-off live concert at London's then Town & Country Club venue (now The Forum), a live recording of which, Alive, 1990, was released in 2000. A series of jams involving Monkman, Pilkington-Miksa, guitarist Mike Gore and bassist Rob Martin saw the light of day as Jam in 2002.
Away from Curved Air, Monkman contributed a VCS3 synthesiser solo to the epic Rajah Khan, the closing track from Renaissance's 1972 album Prologue, and added Moog synthesiser to Al Stewart's 1973 album Past, Present And Future. In the same year he played harpsichord on pop singer Lynsey de Paul's Surprise album and would later appear on three tracks on Kate Bush's 1978 second LP, Lionheart, namely Don't Push Your Foot On The Heartbrake, Oh England My Lionheart and Fullhouse, as well as tour with The Shadows.
Monkman was also a member of the late 1970s progressive rock band 801, formed by Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera and Brian Eno, and who also featured drummer Simon Phillips, bassist and vocalist Bill MacCormick, and guitarist Lloyd Watson. Originally a temporary project, 801, who took their name from the Brian Eno song The True Wheel, performed three shows, including an appearance at the 1976 Reading Festival and also the Queen Elizabeth Hall. The latter was released as 801 Live in 1976, ahead of their studio debut, Listen Now, which came out a year later. "He was an integral part of our 801 band, a very fine musician and human being," says Manzanera.
[https://cdn.magzter.com/1625747790/1687518117/articles/tBJbDnhrA1687521080050/-8Nbyb7-91687521217361.jpg]
In 1978, after appearing on classical guitarist John Williams' solo album Travelling, he joined drummer Tristan Fry and bassist Herbie Flowers in classical/ prog crossover band Sky, who also featured guitarist Kevin Peek. Monkman's epic Where Opposites Meet took up the whole side of the band's self-titled 19...
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Prog (Digital) - 1 Issue, Issue 141