Robert Calvert

Robert Calvert, also credited as Rob Calvert, is an English saxophonist, best known for his work with Catapilla, Spontaneous Music Ensemble and numerous offshoots of Gong, including Gilli Smyth and Daevid Allen. Calvert rejects categorization of his music, into jazz or other genres, concentrating on the spirit and meaning. Musical career A founding member of progressive rock band Catapilla which was formed in the late 1960s, Calvert was one of one two constant members during the band's brief history, the other being guitarist Graham Wilson. He appears on both their albums, 1971's eponymous Catapilla and 1972's Changes. In the 1970s Calvert studied improvised music with John Stevens, and Maggie Nicols and in 1975, he began appearing on John Stevens' albums, initially on free jazz band Spontaneous Music Ensemble's album SME + = SMO. Calvert's next two albums were Somewhere in Between (1976) and Mazin Ennit (1977) both by Steven's jazz-rock band John Stevens' Away, followed Steven's album Ah! (1977). In 1994 he appeared on John Stevens Dance Orchestra's A Luta Continua, but this had been recorded in 1977. After a break, he returned in 1989 on two Mother Gong albums The Owl and the Tree and Wild Child, before appearing on Invisible Opera Company of Tibet's 1991 eponymous album. Remaining in the Gong circle he appeared on Gilli Smyth's 1993 album Every Witches Way, Mother Gong's She Made the World (1993), Eye (1994) Mother Gong (1994) and Tree in Fish (1994) He toured extensively with Gong and Mothergong throughout the 1990s