Brian Eno's Notebook

I am just getting around to reading my February issue of Wired magazine, and I spotted this picture of an interesting notebook on the contents page.  You can see the full article on page 68 of issue 15.02, or online HERE.  The very small picture shows the personal notebook of musician/artist Brian Eno, and I would like to know if anyone has a guess as to what kind of notebook this might be.  The article describes it as containing sketches Eno did in the 1980s, so the notebook must be at least 20 years old.  It is difficult to tell from the photo what the size and scale of the notebook is, but it does have lined pages with a larger margin at the top of the page, a smaller one at the bottom, and the lines appear to have a bluish color to them.  In the photo the pages look to have a cream color to them, but that could also be due to the age of the paper.  The page layout is very similar to a large Classic Moleskine ruled notebook, but it isn't one as far as I can tell.

It's easier to see the details of this little photo in the print version of the magazine, so if you are a subscriber it might help to look at it there.  I wish the picture was larger, and I realize this isn't much to go on, but I thought maybe someone out there might have a good guess to offer anyway.     Thanks!

Comments

[Brian]

The notebook is an Alwych: Eno used them from the late 60s till some time in the 90s, I think. There are some examples in the "More Dark Than Shark" book he did with artist Russel Mills. The Alwych is still around -- www.alwych.co.uk -- and currently manufactured by JR Reid, Glasgow. They're not sure when it dates from, but they have come across receipts from the 1920s for essentially the same notebook. It's known for its "all weather cover": I've seen examples from the 60s (my father used one as a student), and it's hardly changed, but for the texture of the faux-leather cover. The stitching is incredibly sturdy: they start to look battered quickly but never fall apart. The only drawback is that the notebook doesn't sit flat as easily as a Moleskine. Otherwise, it's perhaps even more lovely and certainly more "authentic" in the sense of maintaining its design integrity for nearly a century. Cheaper too!

[Ninth Wave]

Brian -

Thanks so much for the information on the Eno notebook! The Alwych notebooks look great, now I will have to find one for myself if they are available in the US. It would be great if they made them with gridded pages as well. Thanks again! - NW