It seems a little odd that a guitarist with a resumé as vast and impressive as Adrian Belew’s even needs an introduction, but here it goes: Discovered by Frank Zappa while playing at a Holiday Inn in 1977, Belew joined Zappa’s band for the double album Sheik Yerbouti and spent a year in what he has called the “Frank Zappa School of Rock.” Subsequently, he was drafted by David Bowie and later David Byrne for extensive touring and recording engagements. While on tour with Talking Heads, he met Robert Fripp, who recruited him to front the then-dormant British prog-rock juggernaut King Crimson, a position he’s held since 1981. At the same time, he’s maintained membership in the woefully underrated Cincinnati pop foursome The Bears, released nearly 20 solo albums and played session guitar on Paul Simon’s Graceland, Cyndi Lauper’s True Colors, several Laurie Anderson records, three Nine Inch Nails records and William Shatner’s Has Been — and that barely scratches the surface.

Belew blew through Calgary on March 13, 1990 as guitarist and musical director with Bowie’s Sound and Vision tour, though he barely remembers it. Nearly two decades later, he’s finally bringing the mighty sounds of The Adrian Belew Power Trio to Calgary. The original “studio” trio featured Primus’s Les Claypool on bass and Tool’s Danny Carey on drums; the current, revitalized trio features Paul Green School of Rock prodigies Eric and Julie Slick. The 22-year-old drummer and 23-year-old bassist have brought new vitality and energy to 59-year-old Belew’s musical world, much as he did to Fripp and Zappa’s those many years ago.

“They’re just incredibly gifted musicians, especially for their ages,” Belew says. “In three years’ time, it is truly amazing to me what we’ve done. I have never had as much fun as I’m having touring with this band and I think it shows onstage, too. I have found my vehicle for my solo work playing live, and I think at this junction in the history of music it’s a great time to have that. With the Internet and CD burning and downloading and all that stuff that’s going on now, with the way that music is purveyed, the one thing that hasn’t changed is live music. It seems to me that live music has become more important than ever.”

The ABPT program draws from both King Crimson and Belew’s extensive catalogues, with some instrumental material from the new record, e. The sense of fun and playful lyricism Belew brought to the serious, straight-laced Englishness of KC should be readily apparent. “When I joined King Crimson, I was a pretty outgoing, happy young American bouncing all over the place and fun was a part of it, but I also felt that you needed to put a friendly face on King Crimson so that people would not be afraid to come and see the band,” he says. “It had this vicious reputation and part of my job was to put my hand out to the audience and say, ‘Hey, it’s OK to like us!’”

Despite fond memories of the currently dormant King Crimson, though, Belew’s enthusiasm for his new band is seriously infectious. “This is not something you’ll see very often in your life — it’s a pretty magnificent kind of band,” he says with palpable glee and not a trace of arrogance. “I mean, it’s just so high-powered — energy, creativity, improvising. It’s complicated and yet it’s groovy, it’s danceable, it’s youthful. It’s got so many attributes and I think that’s why it surprises people everywhere we go. I don’t think people expect to find a band that sounds kind of like King Crimson, but fun.”