M - JazzRockSoul.com

M was the recording moniker of English musician, singer, and songwriter Robin Scott, who released three electro/art-pop albums under the name between 1979 and 1982 on Sire. Ten years before M, Scott released the folk album Woman From the Warm Grass on Head Records. In 1981, he collaborated with Ryuichi Sakamoto on tracks for the Western edition of the album Left Handed Dream.

Background

Robin Edmond Scott was born on April 1, 1947, in Croydon, Surrey, and attended Croydon Art College, where he befriended classmates Malcolm McLaren and Jamie Reid. As Scott took up songwriting, McLaren entered haberdashery and Reid excelled at graphic design. McLaren would ultimately manage UK punk instigators the Sex Pistols. Reid designed the band’s ransom-letter sleeves.

Meanwhile, Scott performed at folk clubs and taped a set for Nite Ride, a BBC One music program hosted by John Peel, whose April 23, 1969, broadcast aired six Scott numbers: two exclusives (“The Sun,” “Morning Rain”) and four songs from his upcoming album: “Mara’s Supper,” “Penelope,” “Port of Leaving,” and “I Am Your Suitcase Lover.”

Woman From the Warm Grass

Robin Scott released his debut album, Woman From the Warm Grass, in 1969 on Head Records (UK) and Green Light (Netherlands).

Scott plays acoustic guitar on Warm Grass, which features seven self-penned folk numbers and co-writes with US folkie John West (“Song of the Sun”) and one Ian Curruthers (“Mara’s Supper,” “The Purple Cadger”). He’s backed by Forest steel guitarist Gordon Huntley and the keyboardist and rhythm section of The Action-spinoff Mighty Baby: pianist Ian Whiteman, bassist Mike Evans, and drummer Roger Powell.

1. “The Sailor”
2. “Song of the Sun”
3. “The Sound of Rain”
4. “Penelope”
5. “The Day Begins”
6. “Woman From the Warm Grass”
7. “I Am Your Suitcase Lover”
8. “Mara’s Supper”
9. “Point of Leaving”
10. “The Purple Cadger”

Freelance soundman Sandy Roberton produced Woman From the Warm Grass in sequence with titles by Harold McNair, The Liverpool Scene, and the singular album by folk-psychsters Synanthesia. Sessions occurred at Sound Techniques, Chelsea, where Victor Gamm engineered Warm Grass in sequence with titles by Aynsley Dunbar, The Deviants, Dr. Strangely Strange, The Humblebums, Jethro Tull, and Trees.

Head lifted “The Sailor” (b/w “The Sound of Rain”) as a single. Green Light issued the song in a picture sleeve with “Woman From the Warm Grass” as the b-side.

Woman From the Warm Grass first reappeared in 2006 as a Sunbeam Records CD with a bonus eleventh track: the Curruthers co-write “Tattooed Lady.“

1970–78 Activity

In 1970, Scott appeared on BBC Radio 3 with The Voice, an unrecorded multi-media project. For the next two years, he traveled the Continent and North America. Around 1972, he cut demos with Australian songwriter Terry Britten (ex-Twilights) and members of Camel, then in their formative stage. He entered and won UK Search for a Star contest, which led to a contract offer from EMI, which Scott refused because the offer favored session musicians over his backing band.

In 1973, Scott rehearsed with a band that included Paul “Bassman” Riley and drummer Pete Thomas, who both cut a subsequent album, Bongos Over Balham, with Chilli Willi & the Red Hot Peppers (Thomas later surfaced in Elvis Costello‘s backing band, The Attractions). Meanwhile, Scott wrote a musical, Heartaches and Teardrops, purportedly inspired by vintage pulp novels.

In 1974, Robin’s bassist brother, Julian Scott, surfaced in Roogalator, a London R&B band formed by American singer Danny Alder with keyboardist Nick Plytas. On November 7, 1975, they performed at the Central School of Art in Holborn, where they headlined over the second live appearance by the Sex Pistols.

Scott produced Roogalator’s debut 7”, All Aboard With the Roogalator, comprised of two songs” “All Aboard” and “Cincinnati Fastback.” The single appeared in September 1976 as the third release on Stiff Records (BUY 3), which followed titles by Nick Lowe and the Pink Fairies and preceded the Tyla Gang. All four acts performed in France at the First European Punk Rock Festival, an August 1976 event at the Mont-de-Marsan Arena with sets by The Damned, Eddie & the Hot Rods, and the French bands Bijou and Little Bob Story.

In 1977, Scott produced the second Roogalator single: “Love and the Single Girl,” a Plytas original backed with the James Brown cover “I Feel Good (I Got You’).” Virgin Records issued the single but passed on the bands album, Play It By Ear, which appeared instead on Do It Records, an indie that Robin Scott co-founded with brothers Ian and Max Tregoning.

On Do It, Scott masqueraded as Comic Romance for the 1978 reggae-pop single “Cry Myself To Sleep” backed with “Cowboys & Indians,” respectively credited to ‘Lover Boy’ and “Quick D. Raw” (both Scott aliases). He also produced “Kings On the Corner” by Do It signees The Method, a London new wave group. Do It eventually signed Adam & the Ants and released their first album, Dirk Wears White Sox.

In 1978, Robin and his girlfriend, Brigitte Vinchon (aka Brigit Novik), resided in France, where Scott produced film footage of The Slits by director Julien Temple. Around this time, Scott resumed his recording career under the moniker ‘M.’

“Moderne Man”

On November 3, 1978, Robin Scott released his first M single: “Moderne Man” backed with “Satisfy Your Lust,” both guitar-driven post-punk tracks.

A. “Moderne Man” (3:36)
B. “Satisfy Your Lust” (3:19)

“Moderne Man” appeared on Do It (France) and MCA (UK, Netherlands) in a sleeve that shows a baby poster roll from a KODAK Rapid Color Processor, model 16-K.

“Pop Muzik”

On March 16, 1979, Robin Scott released his second M single: “Pop Muzik,” a mid-tempo electro-disco number backed with “M Factor,” an uptempo guitar track. MCA issued “Pop Muzik” in the UK and Europe in standard 7″ and extended 12″ formats.

Scott recorded the single with Julian (bass) and two eventual mainstays of Level 42: drummer Phil Gould and Afro-French keyboardist Wally Badarou, a recent member of funksters Fireball. “Pop Muzik” also features Brigit Novik (backing vocals) and saxophonist Gary Barnacle, a sessionist on recent Clash and Ruts singles.

A. “Pop Muzik” (3:21 / 4:58)
B. “M Factor” (2:30)

M mimed “Pop Muzik” for the April 5 and May 3 broadcasts of Top of the Pops, which aired the song four times amid spring hits by Chic (“I Want Your Love”), Dusty Springfield (“I’m Coming Home Again”), Generation X (“Valley of the Dolls”), Gonzalez (“I Haven’t Stopped Dancing Yet”), Gordon Giltrap (“Fear of the Dark”), The Jam (“Strange Town”), Judas Priest (“Evening Star”), Max Webster (“Paradise Skies”), The Members (“Offshore Banking Business”), Mike Oldfield (“Guilty”), The Police (“Roxanne”), Squeeze (“Cool for Cats”), The Three Degrees (“The Runner”), The Tubes (“Prime Time”), and XTC (“Life Begins at the Hop”).

“Pop Muzik” reached No. 1 in Denmark, West Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and South Africa. In Australia, “Pop Muzik” overtook “Hot Stuff” by Donna Summer as the No. 1 song on the Kent Music Report.

On the week of May 12, 1979, “Pop Muzik” peaked at No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart, where it lodged for two weeks under the year’s top-selling single: “Bright Eyes” by Art Garfunkel. “Pop Muzik” also reached No. 2 in Ireland and Austria and peaked at No. 3 in Belgium, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.

In August, Sire issued “Pop Muzik” in North America, where it reached No. 1 on Canada’s Top Singles chart. On November 3, “Pop Muzik” reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, where it displaced “Rise” by Herb Alpert and bowed the following week to “Heartache Tonight” by The Eagles.

New York, London, Paris, Munich

Robin Scott released his first of three M albums, New York, London, Paris, Munich, on November 30, 1979, on MCA (UK, Europe) and Sire (North America).

The album features the longer version of “Pop Muzik” and the followup singles “Moonlight and Muzak” and “That’s the Way the Money Goes.” Side A (labeled ‘This Side’) contains a remake of “Moderne Man” in medley form with “Satisfy Your Lust,” recorded with the Philharmonic Odd-Job Orchestra, conducted by Bobby Richards, an arranger of Sixties Beat recordings by The Searchers and The Seekers.

A1. “Pop Muzik” (4:59)
A2. “Woman Make Man” (2:15)
A3. “Moderne Man/Satisfy Your Lust” (6:29)
A4. “Made In Munich” (5:41)

B1. “Moonlight and Muzak” (5:35)
B2. “That’s the Way the Money Goes” (4:25)
B3. “Cowboys and Indians” (3:53)
B4. “Unite Your Nation” (5:44)

Scott produced the album in Montreux, Switzerland at Mountain Studios, backed by Julian Scott, Gary Barnacle, Philip Gould, Wally Badarou, and Brigit Vinchon. New York, London, Paris, Munich was engineered by David Richards, a soundman on recent Mountain recordings by Bryan Ferry, David Bowie, Larry Coryell, and Yes.

The album was mixed at the Music Centre in Wembley by Rafe McKenna, who also worked on 1978/79 titles by Magnum, Violinski, and Wishbone Ash. The third engineer, Tim Hunt, worked with Barnacle’s subsequent group, Leisure Process.

Artist Stan Kerr designed the album cover, which depicts a giant neon letter M in outer space with Saturn rings, backed with a four-panel repetition of Albert Einstein’s tongue picture, as rendered by Andy Warhol.

“Moonlight and Muzak” preceded the album in mid-November as M’s third single (b/w “Woman Make Man”). In February 1980, “That’s the Way the Money Goes” became his fourth single, backed with “Satisfy Your Lust (Before You Go Bust).”

The Official Secrets Act

Robin Scott released his second M album, The Official Secrets Act, on November 7, 1980, on MCA and Sire. The album contains ten Scott originals, including “Reflex,” “Working for the Corporation,” “Your Country Needs You,” and the singles “Keep It to Yourself” and “Official Secrets.” Brigit Vinchon co-wrote the penultimate track, “Abracadabra.”

On Secrets Act, Robin retains bassist Julian Scott, saxophonist Gary Barnacle, and drummer Philip Gould, and keyboardist Wally Badarou. The last two now played with Level 42, whose frontman, Mark King, guests on guitar (and bass on “Maniac”).

Additional guests include White Noise synthesist David Vorhaus and Bothy Band uilean pipes players Donal Lunny and Paddy Keenan (on “Keep It to Yourself”). Two tracks (“Relax,” “Official Secrets”) features the Dublin Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Planxty arranger Billy Whelan.

A1. “Transmission (The World Is at Your Fingertips)” (4:29)
A2. “Join the Party” (3:38)
A3. “Working for the Corporation” (3:44)
A4. “Your Country Needs You” (3:20)
A5. “M’aider” (5:24)

B1. “Relax” (3:41)
B2. “Maniac” (3:19)
B3. “Keep It to Yourself” (3:34)
B4. “Abracadabra” (2:49)
B5. “Official Secrets” (6:08)

Robin Scott produced The Official Secrets Act, which involved three engineers, including veteran IBC soundman Denis Blackham (Lesley Duncan, Horslips) and Irish engineer Philip Begley (Clannad, Mushroom, Peggy’s Leg, Spud). Whelan also did arrangements on Planxty’s concurrent album, The Woman I Loved So Well.

The Official Secrets Act sports a cover by Rocking Russian, the design firm behind 1980 sleeves for Athletic Spizz 80, Bill Nelson, Iggy Pop, The Movies, and Teardrop Explodes.

M preceded the album with “Official Secrets” as an October single (b/w “Maniac”), followed in January 1980 with “Keep It To Yourself” (b/w “Abracadabra”).

Famous Last Words

Robin Scott released his third M album, Famous Last Words, in May 1982 on Sire (North America), CBS (Belgium), and Ricordi International (Italy).

Robin Scott plays synthesizer and piano on Famous Last Words, harmonized throughout by Brigit Novic (pictured on the back cover). He’s backed on keyboards by Wally Badarou and ex-Roogalator pianist/organist Nick Plytas, who co-wrote “The Bridge,” “Honolulu Joe,” and “Smash the Mirror.”

Famous Last Words features four bassists: Julian Scott, Mark King, King Crimson‘s Tony Levin, and Magazine/Visage member Barry Adamson. Scott employed two guitarists: Andy Gill (Gang of Four) and Jamie West-Oram (The Fixx), plus Warm Grass lap-steel sessionist Gordon Huntley. YMO mainstay Yukihiro Takahashi alternates drum chores with Steve Hillage sideman Andy Anderson (a subsequent Cure member) and Semuta percussionist Sergio Castillo. Thomas Dolby programmed the album’s sequencer tracks.

A1. “Doubletalk” (3:26)
A2. “The Bridge” (4:46)
A3. “Honolulu Joe” (4:04)
A4. “Love Life” (4:19)
A5. “Yellow Magic” (5:01)

B1. “Smash the Mirror” (4:57)
B2. “Neutron” (4:16)
B3. “Dance On the Ruins” (4:06)
B4. “Here Today, Gone Tomorrow” (4:40)
B5. “To Be Is to Buy” (3:15)

Photography by Jean-Baptiste Mondino

M accompanied Famous Last Words with the single “Danube” (b/w “Neutron”). The album appeared four months before the title-sake seventh studio album by Supertramp (stylized as …Famous Last Words…).

Discography: