…during the long hot summer of 1976, David called me from his home in Switzerland; he had been silent for quite a while. David had befriended and was working with the wonderfully named Brian Peter St John Le Baptiste de la Salle Eno. Brian was listening on the extension.

‘We’ve been experimenting with some ideas. We’re thinking of going into a studio in September for a month. We don’t have any actual songs yet but we’re trying to combine Brian’s ambient music techniques into writing rock songs. What do you think you would bring to the table?’ It was the first time I’d heard the expression. I quickly thought and said, ‘I have a new piece of equipment, only the second unit in Britain; it’s called a Harmonizer. I’ve been experimenting with it everyday, I’m coming up with sounds that I’ve never heard before.’

‘Yeah, but what kind of sounds?’ asked David.

‘Well, it fucks with the fabric of time.’

If ever I pulled one out of the hat that was it. They ‘oo-ed’ and ‘ah-ed’ and said that they loved that description.

‘Tony, before we start recording I have to say this is strictly experimental, and nothing might come of it in the end. Are you prepared to maybe waste a month of your time?’