Some 50 years ago, glam-rock hero Phil Manzanera made his name as the flashy axeman for Roxy Music – and he’s been busy ever since. His latest is AM.PM, a jam-heavy electronica set with Roxy saxman Andy MacKay, channeling that spirit of exploration into a fresh, modern sound. A second project is Roxymphony, where Manzanera and MacKay reinterpret Roxy Music with a symphony orchestra.
Do you still have your red Firebird VII from the early Roxy era?
Very much so, and I used it on AM.PM, along with a ’51 Telecaster and an Epiphone Flying V. The Firebird is a ’65 and I saw it advertised in Melody Maker in 1973. I went to this very posh house in Regent’s Park, in London, and knocked on the door. An American teenager answered and held it up for me to see. He was with his parents from Kalamazoo, and had ordered it from Gibson in Cardinal Red. He sold it to me for £150. I didn’t even plug it in; I took one look and said, “Dig those fins. That’s mine!” It became my signature guitar.
On the new single “Blue Sky,” you maintain the listener’s interest without lyrics or chord changes. How did you approach it?
It’s very intuitive. I just wanted to start with random improvisations and craft it into something listenable. Instrumental creativity comes from a different part of the brain, versus vocal songs that express their meaning through lyrics.
What about effects and amps on AM.PM?
During Covid, I started doing the initial improvs in a hut in my garden; I had one amp with a Neumann mic and Universal Audio Ox attenuator. I recorded on Logic and used its plug-in effects, as I didn’t have access to my pedals, which were at my studio in London. When finished it off after the Roxy 50th Anniversary tour, I was able to finally record with my stage setup at my Gallery Studio, in London.
You carved a niche as an exploratory player, not afraid of effects or droning notes. Who were your influences?
Hendrix was a great influence, especially as he was so exploratory and innovative in the studio; Are You Experienced was so interesting from that point of view. Also, Randy California’s use of effects, as well as the way John Cale, Lou Reed, and Sterling Morrison used guitars in the Velvet Underground. Cale’s use of drones on the viola was another big influence, and also a “systems music” giant like Terry Riley. I also explored avant-garde guitarists like Sonny Sharrock, Terje Rypdal, and John McLaughlin.
Today, there are any number of echo, ambient reverb, and looper pedals that produce a Phil Manzanera vibe. But 50 years ago, you created those sounds from scratch.
I came into the band with a desire to be different, and [Roxy synthesist Brian] Eno and the rest of the band always encouraged experimenting in the musical context that Bryan Ferry sang in. There were very few pedals available apart from fuzz boxes and echo units. It all had to be created from what was lying around; what we called the “Heath Robinson method,” after the famous British cartoonist. We used bottles, wood, tape, screws – you name it!
Were you using an Echoplex back then?
No, I went straight from a Watkins Copycat Echo to a Revox tape recorder that I modified in ’73. When Roland brought out the Space Echo in the mid ’70s, that became my main echo and chorus effect.
How does the Roxymphony project complement AM.PM? Is one looking forward, the other back?
Exactly. Andy’s background is a classical one, and I went along for the ride. He was using an orchestra and asked if I wanted to get involved to try Roxy material in that format. We had no idea what it would sound like ’til the first and only performance, the night of the concert. We were startled about how good it sounded – and lucky that one-off was recorded!
You’ve played with Andy on and off for a half-century. How have your musical conversations evolved during that time?
The wonderful thing about these musical conversations is they haven’t really changed. Andy and me have a certain musical vocabulary which is not so much based on technique, but on empathy and feeling. It’s a kind of call-and-response that often makes us smile.
As rock bands go, Roxy Music was as cutting-edge as there ever has been. What is your musical legacy?
By sheer luck, it was a band that started by special people who coalesced to create a unique set of songs. It was almost written in the stars, as many good and unique bands are. The stars aligned for Roxy Music and, better yet, our music still doesn’t sound dated.
This article originally appeared in VG’s January 2024 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.