Something About Their Eyes

Phil Manzanera : Remote Control

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In February of 1978 Phil Manzanera released K Scope, another album with the band that made last year's 801 album:  the Finn Brothers, Lol Creme and Kevin Godley, and other collaborators, including Bill MacCormick who wrote "Remote Control". The album was completely forgotten until a copy was purchased in a cut out bin by Kanye West's friend, 88 Keys. When West heard the guitar on the opening track of K Scope, they decided to sample it for a 2011 project with Jay Z. 

West slowed down the guitar riff which opens "No Church in the Wild". He also samples Spooky Tooth and James Brown in the single which peaked at number 72 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and entered the top 40 on both the US Billboard Hot Rap Songs and Hot R and B/Hip-Hop Songs charts.  It's the opening track of the  album, Watch the Throne, which shot up to #1.

Said Manzanera to The Independent:

 I'm owed six figures. Six figures plus, which is more than I've made in the past 15 years with Roxy. I haven't got paid yet but it really reassured me about all of my beliefs, why I'm doing what I'm doing and the power of music. Things come and go – fame, fortune – I'm not interested in that. I just do what I do because I love music but it felt like someone, somewhere up there in the ether, has said: "You know what? You've been doing stuff for ages, had ups and downs – you can have that now."

The song has appeared in Denzel Washington's Safe House , in The Great Gatsby, in a Dodge ad that ran during the Super Bowl. On YouTube, Manzanera shows viewers how to play the riff. 

 That riff is following me. It's like a little friend following me around. I've done a version of it on my new album. I thought, just for a laugh, let's record a version of "No Church in the Wild", but get rid of the Jay Z and Kanye bits! It's a bit cheeky but what the hell. We took the soul, groovy elements and recorded it live.