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Ivor Cutler

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Ivor

Ivor Cutler (15 January 1923 – 3 March 2006) was a Scottish poet, songwriter and humorist, born in Glasgow. He became known for his regular performances on BBC radio, and in particular his numerous sessions recorded for John Peel's influential radio programme, and later for Andy Kershaw's programme. He appeared in The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour film in 1967 and on Neil Innes' television programmes. Cutler also wrote books for children and adults and was a teacher at A. S. Neill's Summerhill School and for 30 years in inner-city schools in London. He told Andy Kershaw on his radio show that he also gave private poetry lessons to individuals.

In live performances Cutler would often accompany himself on a harmonium. Phyllis King appears on several of his records, and for several years was a part of his concerts. She usually read small phrases but also read a few short stories. The two starred in a BBC radio series, King Cutler, in which they performed their material jointly and singly. Cutler also collaborated with pianist Neil Ardley and singer Robert Wyatt (Read more at Wikipedia)

Links to Peel[]

"Every year a new bunch of kids starts on Radio One and discovers me in among the other work. And knowing it's John Peel and the other work is stuff they can enjoy, they come across me and they think, 'Oh well, if it's stuff that Peel thinks is good enough to put out, it's good enough for us.' And they get hooked on it."
(Ivor Cutler, Turn That Racket Down)

In the 1960s Ivor Cutler gained recognition through his appearances on BBC radio and television, intriguing audiences with his mixture of everyday observations and surreal strangeness, all delivered in a deadpan Scottish accent. Peel would have become aware of him when The Beatles selected him to play the character Buster Bloodvessel in their 1967 film, Magical Mystery Tour, and he had recorded an LP, Ludo, produced by George Martin for Parlophone Records, which the DJ may well have heard before Cutler made his Peel show debut.

He disliked the pop and rock music Peel played (and was a member of the Noise Abatement Society), but he was associated with the late 1960s underground, in particular the poetry scene. He published poetry, prose and children's books and took part in poetry readings alongside some of the poets who guested on Night Ride.. His first appearance on a Peel show was as a studio guest, performing his songs, anecdotes and poems live in the studio and being interviewed, on the "son of Night Ride" programme in May 1969, and Peel became so fond of his work that he became a frequent session guest for three decades thereafter. Only the Fall recorded more Peel sessions. Due to the interest generated by his Peel sessions, Ivor Cutler was also able to resume his recording career, making albums for labels associated with artists Peel favoured - in the 1970s, Virgin, and later Rough Trade and Creation Records.

Festive Fifty Entries[]

  • None

Sessions[]

Ivor recorded 22 sessions for Peel's show over a period of thirty years. Only the Fall recorded more, yet just one (#8) has been officially released, as The Peel Sessions (Strange Fruit). Cutler was also part of the Carol Concert grouping on the Christmas special of 26 December 1970. For many of the sessions, a selection of poems were broadcast on the initial play, and, with some overlap, the remaining ones broadcast on the repeat.

1. Recorded 1969-05-05. First broadcast: 07 May 1969. Some tracks performed live. No known repeats.

  • Trouble Trouble / An Old Poltroon / Bounce, Bounce, Bounce / There And Back Via Sweden / In My Room There Sits A Box / Beatrice And Her Dirty Knees / An Indirect Love Poem

2. Recorded 1971-02-15. First broadcast: 27 February 1971. Repeated: 08 May 1971.

  • Trouble Trouble / I'm Going In A Field / A Second Before Is Not Now / Ivor You Are Beautiful / My Father Once Had / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episode 2 / Sit Down / Man With The Trembly Nose / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episode 7 / A Lemon On The Grass / A Seal Is A Sheep, Two Balls / Two Fried Eggs For Sixpence

3. Recorded 1971-11-08. First broadcast: 24 November 1971. No known repeats.

  • I Believe In Bugs / That's What It's All About // Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episodes 1 & 9 // The Green Rain / Mud // If All The Cornflakes / I Like Sitting / When I Entered Heaven / Poem By My Son Jeremy

4. Recorded 1973-09-03. First broadcast: 25 September 1973. Repeated: 11 December 1973.

  • Piano Tuner Song AD2000 / A Wag At The Flicks / Gooseberries & Bilberries / I Worn My Elbows / Poems From 'Many Flies Have Feathers' / Pearly Gleam / Life In A Scotch Sitting-Room Vol II Episode 4.

5. Recorded 1974-11-14. First broadcast: 28 November 1974. Repeated: 30 January 1975.

  • Railway Sleepers/Three Sisters / I'm Walkin' To A Farm/Baby Sits Alone/Lean/The Turn/What? / Big Jim / Yellow Fly/I Think Very Deeply / Song Of The Sky / Life In A Scotch Sitting-Room Vol II Episode 6

6. Recorded 1975-09-25. First broadcast: 14 October 1975: Repeated: 29 December 1975

  • Pearly Winged Fly / Go And Sit Upon The Grass / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Volume II Episode 11 / Fremsley / True Humility / Nigerians In A Tunnel / I Spent Ten Years / Sleepy Old Snake / Little Black Buzzer / A Wooden Tree

7. Recorded 1976-08-17. First broadcast: 31 August 1976. Repeated: 01 November 1976.

  • Bicarbonate Of Chicken / Barabadabada / In The Chestnut Tree / Rubber Toy / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episode 5 / Lemon Flower / Everybody Got / The Surly Buddy (Story) / I Ate A Lady's Bun / Stubborn Vassals / Fish / Living Donkey / When I Stand On An Open Cart / Irk (9-14 Poems)

8. Recorded 1977-08-10. First broadcast: 17 August 1977. Repeated: 22 September 1977, 06 January 1978. Available on The Peel Sessions (Strange Fruit).

  • A Great Grey Grasshopper / A Suck Of My Thumb / The Shchi / Get Away From The Wall / The Natural Height Of Cloud/ If We Dug A Hole / I Had A Little Boat / I'm Going In A Field / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episodes 12 & 13 / Jungle Tips

9. Recorded 1978-04-03. First broadcast: 12 April 1978. Repeated: 05 May 1978.

  • Three Piece Suite / Lead Bell / The Head Of A Nail/The Blonde Mouse / A Mouse Asked A Rat/A Small Mouse Beckons / I Even Know What Size/The Old Lady Danced / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episodes 3 & 8 & 14 / My Face Is Red / There's Got To Be Something There / The Green Jrain (3-6 Poems )

10. Recorded 1979-02-20. First broadcast: 27 February 1979. Repeated: 18 April 1979, 28 May 1985.

  • Bubu Bird / Gruts For Tea / Examine The Contents / A Saucer / A Lady Found An Insect / Lunatic / Melon / The Man With The Trembly Nose / Obliging Fairy / Eggmeat / I Love But I Don't Know What I Mean / Pass The Ball Jim

11. Recorded 1981-04-15. First broadcast: 22 April 1981. Repeated: 18 May 1981.

  • Pellets / OK I'll Count To Eight / A Land Of Penguins / Tomato Brain / Step It Out Lively Boys / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episode. 15 / (Hello Darling, Oh Quartz / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol II Episode 15 / How Do You Do / Dirty Sky)

12. Recorded 1983-03-23. First broadcast: 03 March 1983. Repeated: 23 March 1983.

  • Pussy On The Mat / Blue Bear / Life In A Scottish Sitting Room Vol 2, Episode 17 / Women Of The World / Halfway Through / The Wren / Creamy Pumpkins / Brenda / Mostly Tins / Bad Eye / Doughnut In My Hand / Old Black Dog / People Run To The Edge / Life In A Scottish Sitting Room Vol 2, Episode 18

13. Recorded 1984-02-15. First broadcast: 22 February 1984. Repeated: 21 March 1984, 19 December 1984.

  • All The Time / The Revelation / Her Equipment / Three Men / Just A Nuance / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol 2 Ep 19 / Vegetarians / Lemonade / I Jumped Over A Wall / Jelly Mountain / My Next Album / I Built A House

14. Recorded 1985-06-30. First broadcast: 15 July 1985. Repeated: 30 July 1985.

  • Back Home / Scratch My Back / The Curse / Vermin / A New Home / Large And Puffy / A Country Door / Are You A Tory? / I’m Walkin’ To A Farm / Life In A Scotch Sitting Room, Volume 2, Episode 10 / Knocking At My Door / It’s Snowin' / I'm Fixed

15. Recorded 1986-05-11. First broadcast: 21 May 1986. No known repeats.

  • Bend Down Yetta / Crunch Crunch / A Ball In A Barrel / One Of The Best / Questionnaire / Glasgow Dreamer Episodes 3 & 4 / Eggmeat / Jewish Jokes / God's Blessing / Laughter And Disbelief / Bucket And Steam / Maturity / Vermin / A New Home / Large And Puffy / Country Door / Are You A Tory? / The Curse / Scratch On My Back

16. Recorded 1987-06-09. First broadcast: 15 June 1987. Repeated: 07 July 1987, 23 December 1987 (omitting the last two tracks below)

  • Clever Night Doctor / The Aggressive Onion-Vendor / The Perambulating Scottish Colander / A Wag At The Flicks / The Shapely Balloon / Me And My Kid Brother

17. Recorded 1991-06-09. First broadcast: 06 July 1991. Repeated: 08 September 1991.

  • Glasgow Dreamer Episodes 6 & 8 / Beside The Fish/Footsteps/Green Light / Biltong/A Long Hard Gland/Hee Haw / Two Coy Hinnies/Insect/Seaweed

18. Recorded 1991-10-31. First broadcast: 15 December 1991. No known repeats.

  • Thick Coat / Neighbours / Eyes Shut Tight / What A Mistake / Glasgow Dreamer Episode 7 & 10 / The Following / Squares And Exit / Tea / Sparked Off By / Horse

19. Recorded 1992-11-25. First broadcast: 08 January 1993. Repeated: 30 April 1993.

  • Doing The Bathroom Episodes 1 & 2 / The Lid / 25,000 Miles / Part Of The Ground / Between Two Walls / Your Side / Pschawa / Ros Vulgaris / A Dale Song / Two Paracetamol

20. Recorded 1993-11-16. First broadcast: 08 January 1994. Repeated: 08 April 1994.

  • Gym Mistress / Billy's Wife / Sharks / Slut / A High Treat / Spreadeagled / Terrific Fun / My Top 20 Words / Glasgow Dreamer Episode 19

21. Recorded 1995-03-08. First broadcast: 29 April 1995. No known repeats.

  • Her Body / Squashing Hard / Five Or Seven / A Long Fine / A Stuggy Pren / Glasgow Dreamer Episode 9 / The Other Half / Ben Jacob / Flies

22. Recorded 1998-06-12 at Ivor's home, commissioned by Peel and Andy Kershaw. According to Ken Garner's "The Peel Sessions" the first group of 8 pieces was broadcast over 2 or 3 Peel shows between late 1998 and early 1999, though despite a near complete set of shows and tracklistings becoming available, there is no sign of this having been broadcast. The tapes do exist, as Mark Riley broadcast "A Romantic Man" later, and according to mailing list member IanG, it exists in BBC Sound Archives digitised catalogue, along with the second group of tracks, which was according to the Ceefax listings, definitely broadcast on Andy's show.

  • Alone / What / The Painful League / Birdswing / And So Do I / A Romantic Man / Jam / What Have You Got (Spoken Intro)
Kershaw (1999-07-29):
  • A Ball In The Barrel / The Darkness / Blind / Irk / One Of The Best / A Flat Man / Questionnaire / Smack / Out With The Light

Other tracks played[]

(The list below was researched only from the database of this site and Lorcan's Tracklistings Archive and is incomplete. Please add further information if known.)

1974
1975
1976
  • 15 January 1976: The Curse (LP - Velvet Donkey) Virgin
  • J P D18: Once Upon A Time (LP - Velvet Donkey) Virgin
  • J P D18: There's Got To Be Something (LP - Velvet Donkey) Virgin
  • J P D18: The Purpose Of Culinary Implements (LP - Velvet Donkey) Virgin
  • J P D18: Gee, Amn't I Lucky (LP - Velvet Donkey) Virgin
1977
  • 03 October 1977: Life In A Scottish Sitting Room Vol II Episode 6 (LP: Jammy Smears) Virgin
1980
1983
1984
1986
1989
  • 15 February 1989: Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Volume 2 Episode 13 (12" - The Peel Sessions) Strange Fruit
  • 22 February 1989: Life In A Scotch Sitting Room, Vol.2. Episode 12 (12" - The Peel Sessions) Strange Fruit SFPS 068
  • 08 March 1989: Life In A Scotch Sitting Room Vol. 2, Episode 12 (12" - The Peel Sessions) Strange Fruit
  • 21 June 1989: I Believe In Bugs (album - Dandruff)
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1996
  • 05 May 1996: Life In A Scotch Sittingroom Vol 2 Episode 15 (LP: Dandruff) Virgin
  • 30 November 1996: Life In A Scotch Sittingroom Vol 2 Episode 1 (LP: Dandruff) Virgin
1997
1998
Other

See Also[]

Links[]

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