Fool's Mate (album)

Occupation

• Peter Hammill - vocals, acoustic guitar, piano
• Robert Fripp - electric guitar
• Hugh Banton - piano, Hammond organ
• David Jackson - Alto and Tenor Saxophone, Flute
• Guy Evans - drums
• Nic Potter - Bass
• Rod Clements - electric bass, violin
• Ray Jackson - harp, mandolin
• Martin Pottinger - drums
• Paul Whitehead - Tam - Tam

Fool's Mate (July 1971) is the first solo album by Peter Hammill. He took it in April 1971 in a few days with a number of guest musicians ( including his colleagues from Van der Graaf Generator ) on.

The chess theme in the title ( " Fool's Mate" is the English name for the fools Matt ) and the cover that its figures, however, are not built in a Fool's Mate for the most part of a chessboard ( but a shepherd Matt (English scholar 's mate ) represent ) is taken, seem to similarities with the VdGG album Pawn Hearts ( to interpret a few months later was ); in reality could not be more different, the two albums.

The twelve tracks on Fool's Mate are all quite short, simple and mostly ( for Hammills ratios ) downright cheerful. They date from the early days of Van der Graaf Generator ( with the exception of Happy, which was written in 1969 ). Between the increasingly grim and complex songs of the band they would certainly have been misplaced, and so Hammill decided to include them yourself and publish it as a solo album.

Title list

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The 2005 released CD remaster also includes early demo versions of some tracks as bonus tracks.

Bonus Tracks