Robert Fripp and Toyah Willcox share cover of Neil Young’s ‘Rockin’ In The Free World’
King Crimson founder Robert Fripp and his wife, singer Toyah Willcox, have shared a cover of Neil Young’s ‘Rockin’ In The Free World’ – watch it below.
The cover is a part of the pair’s ‘Sunday Lunch’ video series which was launched in 2020. The series has so far seen the couple share renditions of songs by Ramones, Nirvana, David Bowie, Metallica, Billy Idol, The Rolling Stones, Judas Priest, The Prodigy, Guns N’ Roses, Alice Cooper and many more through Willcox’s YouTube channel.
In recent weeks, they’ve covered ‘Bullet With Butterfly Wings’ by the Smashing Pumpkins and gave a special Valentine’s Day performance of ‘Too Drunk To Fuck’ by The Dead Kennedys; last week’s cover saw the pair deliver their take on The Black Keys’ ‘Lonely Boy’.
For their reworking of ‘Rockin’ In The Free World’, taken from Young’s 1989 album ‘Freedom’, the pair take to the kitchen once more, with a backdrop which includes a poster that reads: “A free world for all is the dogs bollocks.”
Fripp, donning a blue waistcoat, yellow tie, and a black stripe of makeup across his eyes, plays guitar at the front of the screen, while Willcox, wearing a Black body suit and a belly dancing skirt adorned with gold coins, and with the same makeup as Fripp, sings the song from on the top of their kitchen table.
“Enough said….. Enjoy this weekends episode everyone!” Willcox captioned the new video.
You can watch their latest cover below:
Back in August, Willcox released her 16th studio album ‘Posh Pop’, which she previewed with the single ‘Levitate’ featuring Simon Darlow and Bobby Willcox.
Discussing the album in an interview with NME, Willcox explained how it came about. “When COVID stopped everything last year, it allowed me to concentrate on writing and recording the next album,” she said. “We recorded in Simon’s outdoor studio with just him, my husband and I.
“‘Posh Pop’ was a magical experience created out of the need and ability to make contact with our fans in a heartfelt way. Also the terrifying distance between those who run the world and those on the ground inspired my writing.
She added: “Working with Fripp in the studio, we just handed him the chord charts the day before and said: ‘We want you to come in and improvise and that’s what we’ll use’. It was spontaneous.”
Meanwhile, King Crimson co-founder Ian McDonald, the multi-instrumentalist who also co-founded hard rock titans Foreigner, died last month at the age of 75.
According to a representative, McDonald “passed away peacefully on February 9, 2022 in his home in New York City, surrounded by his family”. No cause of death has yet been officially revealed.
McDonald’s passing follows the recent deaths of fellow king Crimson members Gordon Haskell and Bill Rieflin.