Utahpolis

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While I’m waiting for the world to discover what will be a super fine blog at some point, here’s a quick live track from Brian Eno and his short-lived backing band, The Winkies.

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By 1974, Brian Eno had left Roxy Music and had released his debut solo album, Here Come the Warm Jets. While the release had been met with a good deal of acclaim, Eno decided to take the show on the road and embark on what would end up being his only solo tour.

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Enter The Winkies!

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These guys were fairly new on the scene and matched up well with where Eno was trying to take his sound. Unfortunately for The Winkies, the tour lasted only five shows before Eno was forced to cancel due to a collapsed lung. No more Winkies. No more Eno rock and roll tours. While Eno continued his amazing career, the Winkies had their first album scrapped and second album basically ignored. Perhaps that’s why they look so glum in that picture up above, taken after the aborted Eno tour.

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As far as I know, the only audio that survived the Eno and the Winkies days are a few tracks from a Peel session recorded during the tour in 1974.

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Here’s “Totalled”, which would later appear on Another Green World with a new title and alternate lyrics.

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Eno & the Winkies - Totalled

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While the ending drags on a bit, I especially love the way this track starts off. Unlike most Eno material which tends to feel a bit cold, the Winkies bring an exuberance to Eno’s music that would never be heard again.

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Click here to purchase Totalled and the rest of the tracks from that session.