Robert Wyatt - I'm A Beleiver

[birdyboy1961]

Then I saw her face

Now I'm in a wheelchair

[wattdabny]

andy summers is the guy playing guitar in this believe it or not. andy summers also played with soft machine for a short period

[SheledUmlal]

@wattdabny What a guitar god!! :-)

[SheledUmlal]

Or should that be policeman?

[edoesiste]

Many artists covered this song

look for "Caterina Caselli Sono Bugiarda"

[edoesiste]

Nick Mason produced the 7" single of this song and also R. Wyatt album "Rock Bottom".

[furcatherine]

Fucking BBC !!! I CAN NOT believe It :( How could they say that he should not be in his wheelchair ??? and be in a ' normal ' chair !!!

[organaphus]

@furcatherine Insensitive bastards, as ever.

[imjackcooper]

Hum this versions breathed some new life into a song that was pretty much ruined by Shrek for me.

[TheRingoDave]

I still think Neil Diamond does the best versions of his own songs.

[mugwamp4]

@TheRingoDave well this version disproves that theory from the outset!!

[SheledUmlal]

Better than the ape-shit version?

[skeptyky]

im believe ,la meilleure version est celle des monkees ,original je crois ,mais robert the best song !!

[jasonpp1973]

What's the deal w/ the blue bathrobe?

[kurtizzyflush]

Egads the stupidity!

[mawsonics]

Fred Frith on Top of the Pops - whatever next??

[badmuddy]

that's fred frith on guitar. the reason you see him playing air violin for half a sec is because he actually played it (as well) on the recording...

[SeattleLA]

OK. I thought I had seen everything, but its all right. Everyone seemed to cover this song.

[Gonzalokraut]

Is very funny see Fred Frith making air-violin

[theachtungtree]

sell out

[FlipAl68]

WOW! What a line-up: Ringo from The Who on drums; Roger Waters of King Crimson on bass; great lead guitar from Steve Hillage of Aphrodite's Child; Bob Carolgees from Traffic on piano; + did anyone spot on acoustic - 13 years before hitting the big time, a young & mischievous Rick Astley (then with Quatermass). Unfortunately the performance is definitely mimed as the vocal part was actually recorded by Robert's lovely sister Tessa. Top Of The Pops was presented by 'Weird' Al Yankovic.

[chh5555]

@FlipAl68 Ummm...Ringo from The Who??? 'fraid not...It's Kieth Moon from The Beatles!

[fleetwoodmac1982]

@chh5555

i think FlipAI68 was joking in his own way XD

[scantpiper]

@FlipAl68 : On drums is Nick Mason from Pink Floyd, him was also producer of Rock Bottom. On bass isn't Roger Waters, form Pink floyd him too.

[Bumbumawangis]

The perils of getting blotto near open windows.

[yoizalo]

is he on a wheelchair? cool

[Robertgregormcgregor]

@yoizalo Yes, because he broke his back.  Not all that cool.

[SecretTimeWarp]

How does one play the piano when the song's pre-recorded?

[aoguy2]

Richard Sinclair, Nick Mason, Fred Frith, Andy Summers and Robert Wyatt!!!!! ToTP was never the same.

[aoguy2]

Richard Sinclair, Nick Mason, Fred Frith, Andy Summers and Robert Wyatt!!!!! ToTOP was never the same.

[aoguy2]

Nick Mason, Richard Sinclair, Laurie Allen, Fred Frith, Andy Summers and Robert Wyatt on ToTP!!!!!! Davy Jones - eat your heart out!!!!

[Pighood]

@aoguy2 Where is Laurie Allen in this video?

[aoguy2]

@Pighood

Typo no LA

[aoguy2]

@Pighood

No LA - typo

[Pighood]

@aoguy2 Just sayin'....Laurie Allen was Gong's drummer early on...disappeared from the music biz.

[chitarraro92]

molto meglio dell'originale

[blefusku]

@nathanjamesbaker it was richard bransson's idea, he bought a beutiful antique weelchair, and there were plans for another TOTP performance later that year, but this time robert wanted all the musicans to appear on a weelchair!!! it was of course cancelled...

[mclainrose]

This is so sad...

[Gonzalokraut]

Jaja, really funny see Fred Frith and the other Henry Cow playing on "Top of the pops"! jajaj

[peterperry268]

Disaster??? Hell yeah....anyone who went drinking with Mooney had to have a death wish!!!

[ShadyGreenPie]

lol at the end, "C U next Tuesday"

[TheScumbug]

groovy baby groovy

[RogelyW]

Alguien me puede decir si el bateria es Nick Mason de Pink Floyd?

Someone can tell me if the battery is Nick Mason of Pink Floyd? Thanks

[Mager72]

Yep, that's him

Si

[RogelyW]

Gracias Mager 72 *_*

[plithos]

@RogelyW

yes, that is Mason!

[LME0fficial]

@RogelyW yes he talks about it in his book about pink floyd

[smknjs69]

does anyone else notice that at 2:57 the guy playing the acoustic has the strings facing him he is strumming the back of the guitar how can this be on TV even back then ??? this is horrible could these people even play ?

[ShutUpYouMong]

They were taking the piss out of the BBC's miming rules. Loads of musicians did it on TOTP, almost as a silent protest,.

[faeembrugh]

@smknjs69

That guy is Andy Somers of the Police!

[kingtarkus]

It is definitely lip-synched and the instruments were all mimed (you can see lots of inconsistencies in everyone's playing, especially Nick Mason's.) For Top of the Pops, miming and lip-synching were standard practice; no matter how legitimate the band, they all had to mime.

[angrysamoan666]

Funny seeing henry cow on tv as the backing band LOL

Robert is Cod!

[mugwamp4]

this version is far more dynamic than the monkeees,,,,,the chords are slighty different  maj 9th/7th rather vthan the normal maj chords

[Progman94]

@SlimBoyArcadeFire nono you don't understand me .

Form me robert is a legend and rock bottom is one of the best album ever.

im only displasure that robert is in a wheelchair so i said poor robert!

[smout863]

typical bbc they wont let him use his own wheelchair BBC bunch of bastards

[RodrigoOsO87]

This is Wonderful !!! :)

[topofthepopsguy]

Yeah,TOTP2 tended to do that,hate that practice as well, as well as the annoying voice overs, and text scrooling.If the BBC want to acurately portray a moment of the past,they should at least make some attempt to keep to the origional without intrusion.Maybe in another reality sadly.For Pink Floyd fans as well, notice Nick Mason playing the drums,so thic might be aptly termed "The Soft Floyd",haha :-j

[astrogarage]

or more accuratelt, the soft matching caravan cow floyd.

[4Cipher]

Now I can see why Smash Mouth took over.......

[Atomearthman]

@nathanjamesbaker

Nick Mason (The drummer who is playing in this video) says in his Inside Out that Top of the Pops didn't want to show Robert on the wheelchair

[Soulvigilante]

The single most depressing thing I have ever seen on Youtube. Thanks a mil Mager72. Got any footage of Elvis's 6.19.77 Omaha concert while you're at it?

[Progman94]

poor robert

[MrWebcor]

What a voice !

[baco82]

Better than the original version... Funny accent :)

[Foglauncher]

Wyatt's an original. So much good music. The Fred Frith violin solo was a masterstroke.

[sneakerino]

nick mason from pink floyd on drums on this one

[losghost]

What type of accent does he have? Is it scouse? It's really strong and a little distracting for me.

[mugwamp4]

great song ,,great version ,,live at drury lane version is even better

[NyeTunes]

Nick Mason should've stuck with his hat & moustache Ummagumma-era look.

[stevegorsline]

@NyeTunes

He would have stuck with the Ummagumma era look, but the hat didn't work with his addiction - Ferrari!

[MrShuggieTodd]

@NyeTunes I think Pink Floyd should have stuck with their Ummagumma-style generally speaking !

[hogwarts09]

nick mason on drums genuis

[crackmunch]

that's Nick Mason from Pink Floyd on drums kids

[BayviewFinch]

Thanks Gramps.

[kgs42]

Really like this....witty cockney twist on the original + Wyatts wistful voice and discordant musical touches. ..makes it a gentle bitter/sweet song....try also listening to his O Caroline

[666confused1]

this one is good, but mokees are better :D

[tobycat11]

Like the way this band does this song, the monkyes were a fake talentless tv act. Did these guys write this song? Is there a vid somewhere with Alan Holdsworth?

[NyeTunes]

Nah, I'm pretty sure Neil Diamond wrote this song.

[fnnichols]

fuckin horrible ! from the 1st S.M. album to THIS!!!!

[Mugsel]

I have to agree - this is an irrelevant pop song that maybe gets stuck in your brain and you can't help but humming along with the Monkees whenever the oldies radio station plays the song once again, but it's inconsequential dribble compared to the early Soft Machine. Sad, indeed.

[1ndi64]

Incredible snobs around here. It's just a good pop song. Do you know how hard it is to write a good song? It's at least as hard as fiddling up and down the organ keyboard and bass guitar neck, as the Soft Machine did. Anyone with working ears will admit that Robert added his own special touch to this song.

[cristi0]

I have to agree with that. The song sounds a lot more "mature" now. C'mon... It's not a "cover of a pop song due lack of creativity" type of thing - just read the description of the video, for god's sake!

[BassLudeman]

Soft Machine, just "fiddling up and down the organ keyboard and bass guitar neck:????????????

you need to listen to them a good deal more, my friend....

[sim02105]

by special touch you mean very incredibly dull and boring

[1ndi64]

Sim > That's not at all what I mean. Robert added a few changes to the original song. This is exactly what a good cover version must be like. As YouTube user Cristi put it: The song sounds more mature this way. To a certain degree, Robert turned the Monkees song into his own song. Hats off to Robert!

PS: I love the Monkees' version. I love Neil's version. And I love Robert's version too. Three quite different versions... could you ask for more?

[MrPlanx]

This is seriously sad. Wyatt is brilliant, and was astoundingly talented before the accident, but this song is not for him. It is just sad ... very sad.

[carlosjtown]

whatz with the wheel chair...is he paralized or something

[07504201963]

he fell from a window whilst partying.

[sim02105]

the original by the monkees is a hell lot better than this the song by the monkees is more fun and uplifting

[daniva]

so.... did you want a soundcopy of the original . or a new version of it?

[daniva]

wyatt voice in the heights of heaven

[TrueDeath46]

that voice is heavenly

[Florisz]

Why change my ears? Can't I have a different opinion? The Monkees did a fair job, but this is in my opinion the worst version I have ever heard. Best version is of course from Neil Diamond. ;)

[daniva]

sorry about that, but if you dont like robert its ok, i think he's got a great voice, and that is the key of this cover, his voice, the original of neil diamond is cool too, but the voice of neil is a little weak in my opinion, comparing to wyatt, but neal is a great composer, no doubt about that

[sim02105]

the monkees sung it better than this guy didnt they neil diamonds version was ok and was much better than this

[steveletford]

You have no idea  about music sim2105. Listen!

[sim02105]

why would i listen he sounds like a dying robot (terrible)

[Florisz]

wtf? Absolute the worst version I ever heard!

[daniva]

its best than the monkeys.. better change your ears

[linclinc5]

Tragedy? What, falling out of a window whilst out of his head on drink and drugs? Silly cunt if you ask me - good version tho, not as good as the Monkees but better than Diamonds and a few others.

[TrueDeath46]

how the hell does that matter

[vandergraaf78]

in this film I see the music business it's not only money. it's real friendship too!!! it's fantastic to see how many musicians helped robert wyatt when a tragedy met him. i see Nick Mason, Richard Sinclair of Caravan...I am very touched!!

[angeloria]

i love that voooooooice!

[rob57uk]

Wonderful stuff. What a way to make a comeback. A Believer indeed!!

[Mikemaniax]

Ah Shit! That's Nick Mason on drums!!!!

[Artzman01]

hahah hells yeh it is.... legends

[leonardvedder]

excellent!

[steve89z]

believer spelled wrong

[eruptionista]

spelled's spelt

[ElliotSpencerBassett]

In America it's spelled, in Canada it's spelt.

[Gazza957]

just canada ehh?...how about the rest of the english speaking world??

[ElliotSpencerBassett]

I have no idea, why would I bother to figure that one out?

[OriTheEep]

That attitude explains a lot :))

[lecasas]

Great! Nick Mason on Drums and Andy Summers playing the acoustic guitar!!

[Pighood]

Fred Frith turned 60 today. :=///

[himtroy]

That definitely HAS to be Nick Mason.  Which I guess isn't that surprising since they were good friends.

[damphear2]

yea thats nick and his gnarly set from darkside tour

[gustavoautran]

for sure, is Nick Mason

[Analogger]

Cool - looks like Nick Mason on drums.

[doubleangelmg]

Sounds Like Robert Fripp In Back Ground

[teacherian]

It's Fred Frith on the Frippalike lead.

[boogster123321]

really! awesome makes it even better

[Pighood]

Fred's a prof at Mills College in Oakland now. So much for the gypsy life.

[micheljch]

@doubleangelmg that's Fred Frith

[doubleangelmg]

@micheljch Yes I am Aware of that, I have met Fred in NYC circa1980 at PASS watched him use sticks,spoons,Marbles & whatever else he could bring to the strings for a silly Performance

[teacherian]

sorry, that looks confusing... 'I'm A Believer' was written by Neil Diamond.

[teacherian]

No idea who wrote 'House of the Rising Sun', I think the credits on the Animals' version was 'Animals/traditional...althoug­h I may be wrong.

[doubleangelmg]

"The House of the Rising Sun" is a folk song from the United States. Also called "House of the Rising Sun" or occasionally "Rising Sun Blues", it tells of a life gone wrong in New Orleans. Depending on the version, the song may be sung from the perspective of a woman or a man. The most famous version was recorded by the English rock group The Animals in 1964, which was a number one hit in the United Kingdom, United States, Sweden and Canada.

[teacherian]

As to 'House of the Rising Sun', the Wikipedia entry quoted by doubleangelmg also has the Animals' version as being credited to 'Trad(itional)/ arranged Alan Price'. Alan was the keyboard player with the group.

[AdlejandroP]

anyone knows who wrote The house of the rising sun?

[HCShannon]

Now is a good message for people, don't let an accident ruin your life, just keep on going!

[tbzeee]

oh yes, and lmao is short for "i'm 12 years old"

[tbzeee]

a truly strange moment in TV history, but beautiful. after an accident that would have devastated most, he retains his goodwill and humour throughout the years. keep on making music robert, we're still out here and we love you

[rakgtr]

lmao reminds me of new wheels on the block

[Tortov123]

He is great. I am happy he didn't give up music, and was able to produce a great piece of work such as Rock Bottom.

[gnwgnwgnw]

Fantastic- shame about the spelling.

[timbearcub]

Robert Wyatt - top bloke, top politics, top music.

[Cocrteau3]

freakin great version of the ole monkees tune...never saw this one before...to me this sounds at least 30 years before its time...let us forget his political views and concentrate on his music that is among the most achingly beautiful ever made.

[NJD1967]

The people slagging this off are Tories-nuff said!!

[wgaule]

Rubbish. I've heard great things about Robert Wyatt but all I can find of youtube is loads of crap like this, and he sings with a stupid accent.

[zauezo16]

be careful

[wgaule]

Or what? What the fuck is that supposed to mean? What are you going to do, say bad stuff!!! This is an awful song, sung very badly by a horrible man. And judging by the comments above, I'm not the only one who thinks so.

I also think it's very sad that Nick Mason is on here.

[Anorakus]

The studio audience seemed to be enjoying themselves :-)

[Beadbud5000]

Try Matching Mole, The Soft Machine Hatfield & the North. It is all progressive rock so if you're not interested in progressive rock, please leave it alone. Us Robert Wyatt fans are very devoted and protective of he and his music.

[Anorakus]

One of the oddest cover versions I've ever seen!

Apparently RW got into an argument with the producers, who wanted him to sit in an ordinary chair. RW got his way, but was pretty pissed off by the time he did the song :)

[davidgbarron]

It is slightly more than that. Robert Wyatt was told he was to be singing in a huge wicker chair and he refused. He was then told by the Top of the Pops producer that he would never appear on the show again.

Ironic that Robert Wyatt would be linked to another artist told the same thing, the producer telling Elvis Costello that if he discovered that his latest song "Shipbuilding" was political, he would never do the show again. Now who did a cover of "Shipbuilding"? Robert Wyatt.

[anewman1980]

Cover version? I thought RW wrote the song?

[Beadbud5000]

Mike Nesbitt or Boyce & Hart

[grantxw8]

Neil Diamond wrote this song. :-)

[teacherian]

It was written by Neil Diamond

[dermotoblong]

never mind all the stupid wheelchair gags. the bloke is top quality.and yeah .whats wrong with his politics?

[silmalila]

I'm with you all the way, dermie.

He is wonderful!

And Sylvian adores him.

That speaks volumes to me!

[dermotoblong]

and dont forget sir nick (mason) on the drums!!

[SiddhartaLysander]

...and Andy Summers on acustic guitar!

[Hectorschizoidman]

...and Nick Mason on drums!

[Pighood]

Well, sort of.

[killuglyradiooo]

is the drummer nick mason?

[abuineitor]

yes, and the bassist is Richard Sinclair (Camel, Caravan,..) and the guy with the acustic guitar is Andy Summers (The Police).

[spp1680]

That's Fred Frith on electric guitar and "violin" (looks like he's bowing his guitar on the violin break). And I assume Dave MacRae from Matching Mole on piano...

Say what you want about chair dancing - how much cojones do you think it took for him to go on TOTP in a wheelchair? Bless him always.

[bluesbrother37]

Yes it is! Its also the last time a member of Pink Floyd was in the Top of the pops studio.

[jiddu1970]

what a band! Nick Mason, Andy Summers, Richard Sinclair (remember Hatfield and the North), Fred Frith, Robert Wyatt! all this talent just to make dance some boys, sounds crazy if you look at TOTP today...

[2toneredmica]

Thats just what i was thinking.

Yeah it is, how cool is that?

[godbefore]

When i see Wyatt singing , i want to cry , so sad.

[stacksovids12]

I like Wyatt, not so hot on his rather blinkered politics, but I like his music, but sadly this has to be the worst visual thing he has done. Nothing to do with the wheel chair, it's the barnet, hospital gown and rocking motion. All to reminiscent of a mental patient, unless it was his dig at the BBC, again sadly I think not, just bad hair, dress and "chair dancing"

[bryemycaz]

It might have been a dig at the Beeb not sure. But its been written that they didnt want him on TOTP because he was disabled. It might upset children was there attitude. GLad things have changed since the 70s. Disabled people are not to be hidden away as some abnormality

[dantean]

You'll do better after your accident, I'm sure.

[stacksovids12]

Steve Wright, the biggest tosser on radio, a once ok DJ but now an arse licking gimp. Kissing every pressure group ass he can, to afraid to say anything even vaguely risky. It all started when he changed the Schwarzenegger character catch phrase from" ass hooool!" to "ahzoo leee" the rot had started. His nose has shares in Andrex now.

[ChannelLightVessel]

I know I should have seen this and heard this before, but you know - so much to do, so little...

Steve Wright, go away! If I want to know about Lisa Stansfiel's hairdo, I have this thing called the INTERNET.

Great to hear some proggy people doing a pop song. Give anything to Bob Wyatt and he'll make it a classic, even if it already is one.

Actually, Ms. Stamsfield did have quite a good hairdo.

[merlinpies]

gilmoursangst: this aint sad this is the indomitable spirit of a pisshead who made a mistake and then got on with it...iesson for the young: drink sensibly...dont fall ouy of windows

[GilmoursAngst]

Man, this is sad. How the mighty fall. I think it's a pure goddamn shame what happened to Wyatt, and seeing that is sad...very sad. But at least he didn't let it get him down and stop his musical career!

[jenniskunk]

Wyatt is a unique performer - there's plenty of singers with more dynamic vocal ranges but where has all the feeling gone in so many songs these days? I could listen to him, especially his recent less commercial stuff, all night. What a great performance of this particular song. Pity about insensitive and rude interruption from presenter talking over the last few bars at the end though; as though Lisa Stansfield's new hair-do really matters as Wyatt's soulful rendition closes the show. DJ's!

[Pighood]

Anyone notice right at the end how Andy's guitar is oriented?