The Career Arc of Brian Eno

A Legend is Born

May 15, 1948

Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno is born in Woodbridge, England

Influences Growing Up

Jan 1, 1949

As he grows up, Brian Eno listens to doo wop and rock n' roll being broadcast from the U.S. Air Force Base next to his house. While attending Winchester School of Art, Eno listens to contemporary composers such as John Tilbury and Cornelius Cardew as well as minimalists Terry Riley and John Cage. After attending a lecture by Pete Townsend of The Who, Brian Eno starts using and experimenting with tape recorders.

Brian Eno Joins Cornelius Cardew's Scratch Orchestra

Jan 1, 1969

He will later play clarinet with The Portsmouth Synfonia

Joins Roxy Music

Jan 1, 1971

Brian Eno joins the seminal glam-band Roxy Music and starts playing the synthesizer and electronically treating their sound

For Your Pleasure / Brian Eno Leaves Roxy Music

Mar 23, 1973

After releasing their 2nd LP, the strained relationship of Bryan Ferry and Brian Eno forces Eno to leave and start more ambitious side-projects

No Pussyfooting

Nov 12, 1973

Brian Eno teams up with Robert Fripp to record "No Pussyfooting" while pioneering a new technique of tape-delay he dubbed "Flippertronics" that treated Robert Fripp's guitar with looped delays. This set the stage for sampling later in hip hop music and electronica.

Here Comes the Warm Jets

Jan 20, 1974

Subsequent to his side project with Fripp, Eno releases his first solo album. This is dubbed one of Brian Eno's first experimentations with ambient music while still keeping the glam and art rock style he put forth with Roxy Music. "Here Comes the Warm Jets "peaked at number 26 on the UK album charts and 151 on the US Billboard charts.

Lung Collapes

Feb 20, 1974

After going on tour with his new backing band, "The Winkies", Brian Eno suffers from a collapses lung one week in. He spends the early part of 1974 hospitalized.

Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy)

Nov 12, 1974

While recovering from his collapsed lung, Brian Eno travels to San Francisco where he finds a set of postcards depicting a Chinese opera. This inspired the abstract pop hit "Taking Tiger Mountain (by Strategy)". Eno explain the title as referring to "the dichotomy between the archaic and the progressive."

Car Accident sparks Ambient Music

Jun 4, 1975

After a terrible car accident, Brian Eno finds himself bedridden for months. When Eno was "unable to move to turn up his stereo to hear above the din of a rainstorm, he realized that music could assume the same properties as light or color, and blend thoroughly into its given atmosphere without upsetting the environmental balance."

Another Green World

Sep 12, 1975

Eno takes up a minimal approach to ambient music on his 3rd studio album "Another Green World"

Discreet Music

Nov 28, 1975

While Eno's earlier work featured ideas of ambient and minimalism, Discreet Music (released on Eno's own obscure 'EG' label) marked a clear step towards ambient music and avant-garde minimalistic ideas

Eno Teams Up With David Bowie

Sep 23, 1977

After releasing "Music for Films" Brian Eno became a highly regarded producer and songwriter. He teamed up with David Bowie and produced monumental albums such as "Low", "Heroes", and "Lodger".

Before and After Science

Dec 12, 1977

"Before and After Science" was Eno's second album to chart in the United States and marked his last foray into pop structures and rock music in the 70s before completely changing his focus to ambient music

Brian Eno collaborates with David Byrne & Talking Heads

Jan 1, 1978

Brian Eno worked on "More Songs About Buildings and Food" and 1979's "Fear of Music". His relationship with David Byrne, the frontman of Talking Heads, grew over time and they ended up writing "My Life in the Bush of Ghosts".

Ambient 1: Music for Airports

Mar 12, 1978

Brian Eno's defining work Ambient 1: Music for Airports is released and met with wide critical acclaim. Eno wrote this as a means for those with flying phobias to get through travel without panicking about crashing.

Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois

Oct 12, 1985

Brian Eno teamed up with Daniel Lanois to form what would be one of the most successful production duos of all time, working on albums from U2 and many more.

Thursday Afternoon

Oct 12, 1985

Brian Eno continues to impress audience with his coined ambient music genre. Thursday Afternoon reached critical acclaim.

Brian Eno and U2

Mar 9, 1987

Brian Eno worked with U2 to create some of their biggest successes and albums that secured them as one of the most influential and successful bands of all time. He helped to produce "The Joshua Tree" as well as "Achtung Baby"

Words for the Dying

Sep 12, 1989

Brian Eno produces John Cale's Words for the Dying. They collaborated in 1990 for "Long Way Up" which is the first album in a long time to feature Eno's vocals.

Neroli

Aug 3, 1993

Brian Eno produced a 1993 soundtrack to a posthumously released film by Derek Jarman

Sonora Portraits

Oct 12, 1995

All of Brian Eno's ambient work is compiled into an album titled "Sonora Portraits". It also touches on the art installations he started doing around the world at the time.

Music for Onmyo-Ji

Jan 12, 2000

Brian Eno teamed up with German DJ/Producer Jan Peter Schwalm to make Music for Onmyo-Ji, an album that was only released in Japan

Another Day on Earth

Jun 14, 2005

Brian Eno releases his first solo vocal album in 15 years on theAstralwerks label

The Ship

Apr 29, 2016

After years of tiny collaborations, and side projects Brian releases The Ship. It proves that he is still happily pushing the boundaries of popular and ambient music today.