Robert Quine | |
|---|---|
 Quine (right) as part ofRichard Hell and the Voidoids in 1977 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Robert Wolfe Quine (1942-12-30)December 30, 1942 Akron, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | May 31, 2004(2004-05-31) (aged 61) New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | Rock |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument | Electric guitar |
| Years active | 1975–2004 |
| Labels | Sire,RCA, Infidelity, Lust/Unlust,Zoo Entertainment,Red Star,Tzadik |
Robert Wolfe Quine (December 30, 1942 – May 31, 2004) was an American guitarist. A native ofAkron, Ohio, Quine worked with a wide range of musicians, though he himself remained relatively unknown. Critic Mark Deming wrote that "Quine's eclectic style embraced influences fromjazz, rock, andblues players of all stripes, and his thoughtful technique and uncompromising approach led to rewarding collaborations with a number of visionary musicians."[1]
His collaborators includedRichard Hell & the Voidoids,Lou Reed (notably onThe Blue Mask),Brian Eno,[2]John Zorn,Ikue Mori,Marc Ribot,Marianne Faithfull (Strange Weather),Lloyd Cole,Matthew Sweet andTom Waits.
Lester Bangs wrote that he was a "pivotal figure" and "the first guitarist to take the breakthroughs of early Lou Reed andJames Williamson and work through them to a new, individual vocabulary, driven into odd places by obsessive attention toOn the Corner-eraMiles Davis."[3] Quine was ranked 80th byRolling Stone magazine'sDavid Fricke in his list of "100 Greatest Guitarists".[4]
Quine was born inAkron, Ohio, the son of Rosalie (née Cohen) and Robert Cloyd Quine.[5] He was a nephew of philosopherWillard Van Orman Quine.[6] After graduating fromEarlham College in 1965, Quine earned a law degree "out of inertia" fromWashington University in St. Louis in 1968.[7][2] Although he never practiced law and failed the California bar exam on several occasions, Quine wrotetax law textbooks forEnglewood Cliffs, New Jersey–based publisherPrentice Hall for three years after moving toNew York City in 1971 by virtue of his admission to the Missouri bar in 1969.[2][8] Quine also enrolled at theBerklee School of Music at an indeterminate point without taking a degree.
In 1969, Quine made a series of cassette recordings ofthe Velvet Underground performing live in St. Louis and San Francisco, where he lived between late 1969 and 1971. These saw official release in 2001 byPolydor Records, titledBootleg Series Volume 1: The Quine Tapes. In theliner notes, Quine writes: "I got a lot of pleasure and inspiration from these performances. As a guitar player, they were an important element in shaping what musical direction I wanted to take." While in St. Louis, he performed in a band called Bruce's Farm that specialized inByrds covers.[9]
Throughout his San Francisco years (coinciding with his attempts to pass the California bar exam), Quine "sort of began to come up with my own style," often performing under the influence ofLSD; nevertheless, he disdained suchpsychedelic rock groups asJefferson Airplane and theGrateful Dead.[2] During this period, his influences includedJohn Coltrane'sAscension (1966),Elvis Presley's singles forSun Records,Fats Domino,Bo Diddley,James Burton,Mickey Baker andLittle Richard.[2] Upon moving to New York, he began to gravitate toward a new array of influences, including the 1972-1975 electric oeuvre ofMiles Davis (especially the guitar sounds on 1972'sOn the Corner and 1975'sAgharta),[10]The Stooges'Raw Power (1973) andBrian Eno.[2]
After leaving Prentice Hall to focus on his musical career in the mid-1970s, he worked at theGreenwich Village bookstore Cinemabilia withRichard Hell andTom Verlaine, the co-founders of the influential punk bandTelevision. Later, Hell invited him to join his new bandThe Voidoids. Hell's two Voidoid albums feature Quine's distinctive guitar work; guitaristMarc Ribot once said about Quine that "in terms ofpunk rock guitar soloing, [Quine] could definitely be called the inventor,"[11] while critic Ira Robbins describes his work as "stunning and underrated".[12]
After The Voidoids broke up, Quine recorded withLydia Lunch,Jody Harris andMaterial. From September 1979 to July 1980, Quine and Harris recorded various guitar improvisations with adrum machine. In 1981, some of those experiments were released as the Harris/Quine album,Escape. With Material bandmateFred Maher, Quine recorded his only other solo album,Basic, released in 1984.
In the early 1980s,Lou Reed drafted Quine to join his group. He appeared onThe Blue Mask (1982), widely regarded as one of Reed's best albums.[13][14][15] The Reed-Quine guitar work crafted interlocking duels that blur the lines between rhythm and leads. Reed's 1983 albumLegendary Hearts featured most of the same group, but Quine eventually quit due to tensions with Reed, exacerbated when Reed mixed down or entirely removed most of Quine's guitar parts onLegendary Hearts. Quine claimed that when he got his advance copy of the album, he was so disgusted by this, he smashed the cassette into "smithereens" with a hammer. Reed persuaded Quine to rejoin for a world tour, which is documented on the videoA Night with Lou Reed (1983) and the albumLive in Italy (1984); Quine disliked touring, but agreed to the tour for financial reasons. He ended his partnership with Reed for good in 1984.
Although Quine frequently collaborated with Eno from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s (coinciding with the producer's residency in New York), "almost none of [their work] ever came out."[2] In a 1997 interview withPerfect Sound Forever, he claimed to have introduced Eno to "He Loved Him Madly," a thirty-two minute 1974 Miles Davis song that Eno has cited as a pivotal influence in his development ofambient music.[16]
Throughout the 1980s, Quine made appearances as a session player on records byTom Waits,John Zorn,Marianne Faithfull andScritti Politti. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Quine began collaborations with a few musicians who would introduce him to new audiences, and who would raise his profile a bit. Saxophonist/composerJohn Zorn hired Quine for several experimental projects. He appeared onThey Might Be Giants' 1994 albumJohn Henry, and he also worked with pop songwriters/singersLloyd Cole andMatthew Sweet during this period. Sweet's biggest hit song, "Girlfriend," is anchored by Quine's frenetic, squealing guitar work.
After the death of his wife Alice in August 2003, Quine died bysuicide due to aheroinoverdose in his New York home on May 31, 2004.[17]
He is also featured in the 1980 filmBlank Generation.
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