Robyn Hitchcock

Robyn Hitchcock is part of the great tradition of brilliant British oddballs that includes everyone from Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll to Syd Barrett and The Bonzo Dog Band. He started out in the late ‘70s as the frontman for The Soft Boys, whose psychedelia-meets-post-punk sensibilities directly influenced R.E.M. and other '80s college rockers. Beginning with 1981's Black Snake Diamond Role, Hitchcock's solo records mated surreal, absurdist (but rarely merely "funny") lyrics with winsome psych-pop melodies and jangly guitars, heavily influenced by Barrett, Bob Dylan, and psychedelic-era Beatles. From the mid-‘80s to the early ‘90s, Hitchcock was backed by The Egyptians (fundamentally the Soft Boys minus lead guitarist Kimberley Rew), and he developed a small-but-hardy following among the era’s alt-rock audience. In the 2000s, Hitchcock formed the Venus 3 with Peter Buck and Bill Rieflin of R.E.M. and Young Fresh Fellows leader Scott McCaughey. Through fan and friend Jonathan Demme, Hitchcock also entered the world of film with the Demme-directed concert documentary Storefront Hitchcock and cameo appearances in the director’s Rachel Getting Married and The Manchurian Candidate.