Ruth Is Stranger Than Richard

Following as it did a year after ROCK BOTTOM, this 1975 release cemented Robert Wyatt's reputation as the creator of some of the most evocative and personal music created in the twentieth century. The poetry of the lyrics is perfectly mirrored in a music that draws on jazz, European folk idioms and a magical ingredient that is purely Wyatt. Wyatt, like Brian Eno, Gary Windo, Fred Frith and Mongezi Feza, is one of the rare artists who can effectively create a musical universe that seems a perfect articulation of his own vision. The entire work plays itself out like one long song cycle, complete with recurring themes and motifs. This album and its predecessor became the standards by which the rest of Wyatt's output has been compared, as well as serving as a source of inspiration to others who inhabit similar musical lands.