Leg End

about this album

The Henry Cow Legend (often referred to as Legend or Leg End) is the debut album of British avant-rock group Henry Cow. It was recorded at Virgin Records' Manor studios over three weeks in May and June 1973, mixed in July 1973, and released in September 1973. With the exception of "Nine Funerals of the Citizen King", which the whole group sings, and background voices on "Nirvana for Mice" ("Sweet mystery of life I will remember"), "Teenbeat" and "The Tenth Chaffinch", this is an instrumental album. The jazzy Canterbury sound on some of the pieces shows Henry Cow's beginnings, although they quickly moved on to establish their own unique sound. With the Yellow Half-Moon and Blue Star is a Fred Frith composition that was commissioned by the Cambridge Contemporary Dance Group under Liebe Klug, and was named after a painting by Paul Klee ("Avec la demi-lune jaune et l'étoile bleue"). Only an extract appears on this album, but the full 16-minute version of the suite is included in The 40th Anniversary Henry Cow Box Set (2009). Parts of "Teenbeat" began in With the Yellow Half-Moon and Blue Star and parts of it were later incorporated into "Ruins" on Unrest (1974). "Nirvana for Mice" was originally called "Nirvana for Moles" during Legend rehearsals, and later became "Nirvana for Rabbits" when performed live in Hamburg in March 1976. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

tracks

more from Henry Cow

Unrest

In Praise of Learning

Leg End Original Mix

Western Culture

Legend

John Peel Session (24th April 1973)