Daevid Allen (born Christopher David Allen, January 13, 1938 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian poet, guitarist, singer, composer and performance artist best known as co-founder of the psychedelic rock groups Soft Machine (in the UK, 1966) and Gong (in France, 1970). He is sometimes credited as "Divided Alien". He now lives in Byron Bay, Australia. January 13 is the 13th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Melbournes Yarra River is a popular area for walking, jogging, cycling, rowing and for relaxing on the banks with a picnic Melbourne (pronounced either or [1]) is the second most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan area population of approximately 3. ... A poet is some one who writes poetry. ... A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. ... Ercole de Roberti performing the song Freinds Of P: Concert, c. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... Performance art is art where the actions of an individual or a group at a particular place and in a particular time, constitute the work. ... Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music inspired by or attempting to replicate the mind-altering experiences brought on by drugs such as cannabis, psilocybin, mescaline, salvia divinorum, and especially LSD. There are also other forms of psychedelic music that started from the same roots and diverged from the... The Soft Machine were a pioneering British psychedelic, progressive rock and jazz band from Canterbury, Kent, England, named after the book The Soft Machine by William S. Burroughs. ... Gong are a progressive rock band formed by Australian musician Daevid Allen. ... Cape Byron Lighthouse Tallow Beach looking south from the lighthouse Byron Bay (, ) is a town in the state of New South Wales on the eastern most point of the mainland of Australia. ...

Biography

In 1960, inspired by the Beat Generation writers he had discovered whilst working in a Melbourne bookshop, Daevid Allen travelled to Paris where he stayed at the Beat Hotel, moving into a room recently vacated by Allen Ginsberg and Peter Orlovsky. While selling the International Herald Tribune around Le Chat qui Peche and the Latin Quarter, he met Terry Riley and also gained free access to the jazz clubs in the area. After meeting up with William S. Burroughs, and inspired by philosophies of Sun Ra, he formed the free jazz outfit, the Daevid Allen Trio, and performed at Burroughs’ theatre pieces based on Burroughs' novel The Ticket That Exploded. The Beat Generation was a group of American writers who came to prominence in the late 1950s and early 1960s. ... The Beat Hotel was a small, run-down hotel at 9 Rue Git-le-Coeur in the Latin Quarter of Paris. ... Irwin Allen Ginsberg (IPA: ) (June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American Beat poet born in Newark, New Jersey. ... Peter Orlovsky (born July 8, 1933) is an American poet best known for being the lover of Beat Generation poet Allen Ginsberg. ... The International Herald Tribune (www. ... The Quartier Latin (Latin Quarter) is an area in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, France, around the Sorbonne University. ... Terry Riley – (Portrait by Betty Freeman) Terry Riley (born 24 June 1935) is an American composer associated with the minimalist school. ... William Seward Burroughs II (pronounced ) (February 5, 1914 – August 2, 1997) was an American novelist, essayist, social critic, painter and spoken word performer. ... Sun Ra (May 22, 1914? – May 30, 1993) was an innovative jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, who came to be known as much for his cosmic philosophy as for his musical compositions and performances. ... Free jazz is a movement of jazz music characterized by diminished dependence on formal constraints. ... The Ticket That Exploded is a novel by William S. Burroughs published in 1962. ...

Allen travelled to England, renting a room in Canterbury where he met his landlord’s son, 16 year old Robert Wyatt. They formed the band Soft Machine in 1966 with Kevin Ayers and Mike Ratledge. Ayers and Wyatt had previously played in Wilde Flowers. Statistics Population: 42,258 (2001) Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: TR145575 Administration District: City of Canterbury Shire county: Kent Region: South East England Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: Kent Historic county: Kent Services Police force: Kent Police Ambulance service: South East Coast Post office and... // Robert Wyatt, born Robert Ellidge, in Bristol on 28 January 1945, is an English musician, and a former member of the influential Canterbury scene band Soft Machine. ... The Soft Machine were a pioneering British psychedelic, progressive rock and jazz band from Canterbury, Kent, England, named after the book The Soft Machine by William S. Burroughs. ... Kevin Ayers (born August 16, 1944 in Herne Bay, Kent) is an English songwriter and major influential force in the early English psychedelic movement. ... Michael R. (Mike) Ratledge (born Maidstone, april 1943) is a British musician. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ...

Following a tour of Europe, Allen was refused re-entry to the UK due to overstaying his visa on a prior visit. He settled in Paris where, in May 1968, he took part in the protests which swept the city. He handed out teddy bears to the police and recited poetry in pidgin French, and now admits that he was scorned by the other protesters for being a beatnik. A May 1968 poster: Be young and shut up, with the stereotypical silhouette of the General de Gaulle. ... A pidgin, or contact language, is the name given to any language created, usually spontaneously, out of a mixture of other languages as a means of communication between speakers of different tongues. ... Beatnik cartoon The term beatnik was coined by Herb Caen in an article in the San Francisco Chronicle on April 2, 1958. ...

Fleeing the police, he made his way to Deya, Majorca, with his partner Gilli Smyth. It was here that he recorded the first album under the name Gong, entitled Magick Brother, Mystick Sister (released on BYG in 1970). They were joined by flautist Didier Malherbe, who they claim to have found living in a cave on Robert Graves’ estate. Deya is a small coastal village in the northern ridge of the Spanish island of Majorca. ... Gilli Smyth is a musician who performed with the bands Gong, Mother Gong and Planet Gong as well as several solo albums and albums in collaborations other members of Gong. ... Gong are a progressive rock band formed by Australian musician Daevid Allen. ... Didier Malherbe was one of the founders of the band Gong. ... Portrait of Robert Graves (circa 1974) by Rab Shiell Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was an English scholar, poet, and novelist. ...

In 1971, Gong signed with Virgin and released Camembert Electrique. Gong became somewhat of an anarchist commune in rural France between 1973 and 1974. They were joined by Steve Hillage to record the Radio Gnome Trilogy of LPs, consisting of Flying Teapot, Angel's Egg and You. Virgin Records is a British recording label founded by British entrepreneur Richard Branson, and Nik Powell in 1972. ... Steve Hillage is a English musician, associated with the Canterbury scene, who has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s. ...

Allen left this incarnation of Gong and formed Planet Gong, followed by New York Gong in 1980 (with Bill Laswell). More projects followed, including Invisible Opera Company Of Tibet, Brainville, Ex (not to be confused with the Dutch punk band The Ex), and Magic Brothers. Here & Now Here & Now are an English progressive/space rock band, formed in the mid 1970s. ... Bill Laswell (born February 12, 1955 in Salem, Illinois and raised in Albion, Michigan) is an American bassist, producer and record label owner. ... The Ex is an anarchist punk rock band from the Netherlands. ...

In 1981 Allen returned to Australia, taking up residence in Byron Bay where he worked on performance pieces and poetry. He performed with performance artist David Tolley using tape loops and drum machines. He is currently involved with a project entitled you’N’gong (a play on the phrase “Young Gong”) with his son, Orlando, and members of Acid Mothers Temple, as well as an improvisation outfit entitled Guru And Zero. Cape Byron Lighthouse Tallow Beach looking south from the lighthouse Byron Bay (, ) is a town in the state of New South Wales on the eastern most point of the mainland of Australia. ... Performance art is art where the actions of an individual or a group at a particular place and in a particular time, constitute the work. ... Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. is a Japanese psychedelic band founded in 1996 by members of the Acid Mothers Temple soul-collective. ...

External links

• Planet Gong website