Motivation Radio
Encyclopedia
Motivation Radio is the third studio album by British progressive rock musician Steve Hillage
. It was recorded primarily in California, and was produced and engineered by Malcolm Cecil
, of TONTO's Expanding Headband. TONTO, a large handbuilt polyphonic synthesiser, stands for "The Original New Timbral Orchestra", and was used on this album.
The album entered the UK charts on 22 October 1977, where it stayed for 5 weeks, hitting a peak of number 28.
The cover features Hillage standing on a shoreline, with a large radio telescope in the background further along the bay. The radio telescope in the cover art appears to be a photograph of the Parkes radio telescope
in New South Wales, Australia, superimposed on a shoreline picture.
The glissando
guitar, the hallmark of this album, was intentionally recorded on 7 July 1977 (7/7/77) to give the record mystical relevance.
; lyrics by Steve Hillage and Miquette Giraudy
, unless otherwise specified.
Side One
Side Two
Steve Hillage
Steve Hillage is an English musician, best known as a guitarist. He is associated with the Canterbury scene and has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s...
. It was recorded primarily in California, and was produced and engineered by Malcolm Cecil
Malcolm Cecil
Malcolm Cecil is a British jazz bassist and Grammy Award-winning record producer.A founding member of the UK's leading jazz quintet of the late 1950s, The Jazz Couriers, he went on to join a number of British jazz combos led by Dick Morrissey, Tony Crombie and Ronnie Scott in the late 50s and...
, of TONTO's Expanding Headband. TONTO, a large handbuilt polyphonic synthesiser, stands for "The Original New Timbral Orchestra", and was used on this album.
The album entered the UK charts on 22 October 1977, where it stayed for 5 weeks, hitting a peak of number 28.
The cover features Hillage standing on a shoreline, with a large radio telescope in the background further along the bay. The radio telescope in the cover art appears to be a photograph of the Parkes radio telescope
Parkes Observatory
The Parkes Observatory is a radio telescope observatory, 20 kilometres north of the town of Parkes, New South Wales, Australia. It was one of several radio antennas used to receive live, televised images of the Apollo 11 moon landing on 20 July 1969....
in New South Wales, Australia, superimposed on a shoreline picture.
The glissando
Glissando
In music, a glissando is a glide from one pitch to another. It is an Italianized musical term derived from the French glisser, to glide. In some contexts it is distinguished from the continuous portamento...
guitar, the hallmark of this album, was intentionally recorded on 7 July 1977 (7/7/77) to give the record mystical relevance.
Track listing
Music by Steve HillageSteve Hillage
Steve Hillage is an English musician, best known as a guitarist. He is associated with the Canterbury scene and has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s...
; lyrics by Steve Hillage and Miquette Giraudy
Miquette Giraudy
Miquette Giraudy is a keyboard player and vocalist, best known for her work in Gong and with her partner Steve Hillage. She and Hillage currently form the core of the ambient band System 7.-Film:...
, unless otherwise specified.
Side One
- "Hello Dawn" - 2:48
- "Motivation" - 4:07
- "Light in the Sky" - 4:12
- "Radio" - 6:13
Side Two
- "Wait One Moment" - 3:25
- "Saucer Surfing" - 4:28
- "Searching for the Spark" - 5:38
- "Octave Doctors" - 3:38
- "Not Fade Away (Glid Forever)" - 4:00 (Norman PettyNorman PettyNorman Petty was an American musician, songwriter, and pioneer record producer who helped shape modern popular music, including pop and rock....
, Glen HardinGlen HardinGlen D. Hardin is an American piano player, songwriter and arranger. He has performed and recorded with such notable artists as Elvis Presley, Emmylou Harris, John Denver, Ricky Nelson and many others.-Career:...
)
Musicians and Production
- Steve HillageSteve HillageSteve Hillage is an English musician, best known as a guitarist. He is associated with the Canterbury scene and has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s...
– guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Joe Blocker – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Reggie McBride – bassElectric BassElectric bass can mean:*Electric upright bass, the electric version of a double bass*Electric bass guitar*Bass synthesizer*Big Mouth Billy Bass, a battery-powered singing fish...
- Malcolm CecilMalcolm CecilMalcolm Cecil is a British jazz bassist and Grammy Award-winning record producer.A founding member of the UK's leading jazz quintet of the late 1950s, The Jazz Couriers, he went on to join a number of British jazz combos led by Dick Morrissey, Tony Crombie and Ronnie Scott in the late 50s and...
– synthesizer - Miquette GiraudyMiquette GiraudyMiquette Giraudy is a keyboard player and vocalist, best known for her work in Gong and with her partner Steve Hillage. She and Hillage currently form the core of the ambient band System 7.-Film:...
– synthesizer
- Music composed and arranged by Steve Hillage
- Recorded : July 1977 at Record Plant, T.O.N.T.O. and Westlake Audio in Los Angeles, CA.
- Produced by Malcolm Cecil