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Frenetic Zetetic View Drop Down
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Points: 9233 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: Gentle Giant
    Posted: January 03 2018 at 02:23
Phil Shulman was a vocal master IMHO.

Acquiring The Taste might be my favorite featuring his work. Anything with Phil on vocals is magic across all four records he's featured on. Black Cat might be my favorite off AtT, and most of that is due to his vocal delivery. Hell, even A Dog's Life off Octopus gets stuck in your head! His vocals on River are some of my favorite parts on that entire record.

"...And the rain that's caught in its flow..." Big smile


Edited by Frenetic Zetetic - January 03 2018 at 02:24

"I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021
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Points: 4807 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 01 2018 at 12:06
Originally posted by scruffydragon scruffydragon wrote:


Years back I phoned up a mail order company looking for something a little more challenging to listen to. The nice people at GFT suggested I try a few Gentle Giant albums. The album I purchased was a double album with Live Playing the Fool on it. That album I loved at first hearing. Soon I had all the studio albums I could obtain. Incredible band and I love the medieval/renaissance influences in their music.
 
My favorite albums remain Freehand and In A Glass House. You just cannot ask a band for anything more........perfection.
Ah, yes. Freehand and In A Glass House. You are one of class and quality.
"It just has none of the qualities of your work that I find interesting. Abandon [?] it." - Eno
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Frenetic Zetetic View Drop Down
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Points: 9233 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 01 2018 at 02:59
Originally posted by scruffydragon scruffydragon wrote:

Years back I phoned up a mail order company looking for something a little more challenging to listen to. The nice people at GFT suggested I try a few Gentle Giant albums. The album I purchased was a double album with Live Playing the Fool on it. That album I loved at first hearing. Soon I had all the studio albums I could obtain. Incredible band and I love the medieval/renaissance influences in their music.
 
My favorite albums remain Freehand and In A Glass House. You just cannot ask a band for anything more........perfection.

Awesome comment! I'm turning 30 in three weeks so I'm a tad younger, but I was still around for mail order stuff in the 90's/early 2000's from record stores. I can't imagine the excitement of the 70's and 80's. I'm in that sweet spot where I'm old enough to still understand the appreciation of HAVING TO WAIT FOR PHYSICAL MEDIA TO COME OUT vs just downloading. 

I still get tingles when I pick up discs! GG is the supreme prog outfit! Cheers! Wink

"I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021
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scruffydragon View Drop Down
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Points: 250 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 31 2017 at 07:40
Years back I phoned up a mail order company looking for something a little more challenging to listen to. The nice people at GFT suggested I try a few Gentle Giant albums. The album I purchased was a double album with Live Playing the Fool on it. That album I loved at first hearing. Soon I had all the studio albums I could obtain. Incredible band and I love the medieval/renaissance influences in their music.
 
My favorite albums remain Freehand and In A Glass House. You just cannot ask a band for anything more........perfection.
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Frenetic Zetetic View Drop Down
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Points: 9233 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 29 2017 at 19:32
Damn, Yes and GG must have been nuts to see together.

"I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021
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Michael P. Dawson View Drop Down
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Points: 197 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 29 2017 at 19:23
Originally posted by AFlowerKingCrimson AFlowerKingCrimson wrote:

Frank H, I find it odd that GG were opening for Renaissance at that time.

When I saw them in 1977, it was Renaissance opening for Gentle Giant. It was in fact the only time I ever saw GG as headliners, having previously seen them supporting Yes (1976) and Strawbs (1975).
Buy this thing!
https://store.cdbaby.com/Artist/MichaelPDawson
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Frenetic Zetetic View Drop Down
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Points: 9233 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 29 2017 at 19:00
Originally posted by AFlowerKingCrimson AFlowerKingCrimson wrote:

Originally posted by Frenetic Zetetic Frenetic Zetetic wrote:

Originally posted by dr wu23 dr wu23 wrote:

Just out of curiosity.....anyone know what they are doing these days...other than being retired.....assuming thy are still alive and well...?

Derek became CEO of Roadrunner Records and I think he signed Slipknot. Ray did some scores for movies/shows/games I think?

That was later. He started out as record executive then became president and CEO of Atco. Derek was actually the one responsible for signing not just Bon Jovi but also Dream Theater. Roadrunner came later. 

Also Slipknot and *GASP* Nickelback if IIRC!

"I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021
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Points: 16460 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 29 2017 at 10:26
Originally posted by miamiscot miamiscot wrote:

Gentle Giant are in the top tier for me (which includes Yes, Genesis, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, ELP, Jethro Tull, Kansas and Rush.) People refer to a Big 6 but I've always had a Big 9.

Besides the dreadful Giant For A Day, every GG album was awesome!!!

To those looking for beauty in their music I will submit "Think Of Me With Kindness" for consideration. 

QED

That's cool but for me personally I don't  extend it far enough to include GG even though I think they were great and as good as the others. If I did then I'd also have to include Camel and VDGG and maybe even Nektar. :)
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Points: 16460 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 29 2017 at 10:24
Originally posted by Frenetic Zetetic Frenetic Zetetic wrote:

Originally posted by dr wu23 dr wu23 wrote:

Just out of curiosity.....anyone know what they are doing these days...other than being retired.....assuming thy are still alive and well...?

Derek became CEO of Roadrunner Records and I think he signed Slipknot. Ray did some scores for movies/shows/games I think?

That was later. He started out as record executive then became president and CEO of Atco. Derek was actually the one responsible for signing not just Bon Jovi but also Dream Theater. Roadrunner came later. 
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Points: 3448 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 29 2017 at 08:38
Gentle Giant are in the top tier for me (which includes Yes, Genesis, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, ELP, Jethro Tull, Kansas and Rush.) People refer to a Big 6 but I've always had a Big 9.

Besides the dreadful Giant For A Day, every GG album was awesome!!!

To those looking for beauty in their music I will submit "Think Of Me With Kindness" for consideration. 

QED
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AFlowerKingCrimson View Drop Down
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Points: 16460 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 28 2017 at 18:38
I used to think that too but I think because it's often associated with classically trained guitarists like Yngwie Malmsteen. 
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Frenetic Zetetic View Drop Down
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Points: 9233 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 28 2017 at 18:02
^Absolutely. I might have a different interpretation of virtuosity; I typically associate it with superfluous, unnecessary stuff. Everything GG does serves a purpose IMO, and nobody adds the minstrel sound like those dudes did!

"I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021
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Points: 16460 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 28 2017 at 17:55
Originally posted by Frenetic Zetetic Frenetic Zetetic wrote:

I'm probably biased but I'd consider GG not only criminally underrated, but misunderstood in how good those guys actually were on their instruments, despite the humbleness they appear to display.

I agree that their cohesion was larger than the sum of its parts, but honestly the ability to compose on an instrument and add that level of complexity mixed with melody completely transcends the idea of virtuosity.

Gentle Giant as a band is like one big instrument that nobody else can play.

Well, it's not that they weren't virtuosos. Of course they were. They just knew how to show restraint and didn't play super fast all the time. They knew how to play in a way that served the composition and not just show off. I used to actually think that they were showing off but I no longer think that was the case. Yes, there was complexity involved but I don't think it was just for it's own sake. I think they were seriously inspired by medieval and renaissance music and fugues and that is why a lot of their music sounds the way it does. 


Edited by AFlowerKingCrimson - December 28 2017 at 17:55
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Frenetic Zetetic View Drop Down
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Points: 9233 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 28 2017 at 17:45
I'm probably biased but I'd consider GG not only criminally underrated, but misunderstood in how good those guys actually were on their instruments, despite the humbleness they appear to display.

I agree that their cohesion was larger than the sum of its parts, but honestly the ability to compose on an instrument and add that level of complexity mixed with melody completely transcends the idea of virtuosity.

Gentle Giant as a band is like one big instrument that nobody else can play.

"I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021
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AFlowerKingCrimson View Drop Down
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Points: 16460 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 28 2017 at 16:41
Gary Green is right they really weren't the best at their instruments(I'm sure we can all think of better keyboardists than Kerry, better bassists than Ray, better drummers than John Weathers etc). However, what they excelled at was playing well in unison. You could say that probably more so than just about any other prog band that the whole was greater than the sum of their (individual) parts.

Edited by AFlowerKingCrimson - December 28 2017 at 16:43
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Points: 41 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 28 2017 at 14:54
I really like Gentle Giant, and I appreciate their talent, complexity, and their brilliance. They rank right up there with King Crimson, Yes, and Genesis, but it would be difficult to argue which band is the most talented. They're all incredibly talented!  Though Gary Green said in an interview that they were not the virtuoso musicians that fans thought them to be. While they were skilled playing their main instruments, when it came to playing things like the recorded quartet, they took the time to learn the part for the song.
I wish I had a chance to see them live when they were around.
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Frenetic Zetetic View Drop Down
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Points: 9233 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 25 2017 at 03:13
Originally posted by Dopeydoc Dopeydoc wrote:

If I have to retire one day on a desert island with only one band discography, it would be GG. I cannot get bored listening them again and again.

My thoughts exactly. I can listen to In a Glass House (the title track, especially) endlessly. In fact, sometimes in the car, I warm up vocally with that track!

Originally posted by Dellinger Dellinger wrote:

Originally posted by Frenetic Zetetic Frenetic Zetetic wrote:

Originally posted by dr wu23 dr wu23 wrote:

Just out of curiosity.....anyone know what they are doing these days...other than being retired.....assuming thy are still alive and well...?


Derek became CEO of Roadrunner Records and I think he signed Slipknot. Ray did some scores for movies/shows/games I think?
 

I thought some of them were touring as "Three Friends" some years ago. I don't know if they are still, touring, though.

Ah, that might be the case.
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Tom Ozric View Drop Down
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Points: 15916 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2017 at 22:59
^ Oh, what a sight they would’ve been (Three Friends is my ‘special’ one)
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The.Crimson.King View Drop Down
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Points: 4591 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2017 at 19:30
Originally posted by Dellinger Dellinger wrote:


I thought some of them were touring as "Three Friends" some years ago. I don't know if they are still, touring, though.


Here's some cool info from their website...definitely sounds like they put on a fun show Wink

Three Friends were named after the eponymous third Gentle Giant album, Three Friends were formed in 2009 when prog keyboard legend Kerry Minnear joined fellow former Gentle Giant members, drummer Malcolm Mortimore and guitarist Gary Green to play a series of gigs in Europe and Canada. Minnear has since left, his place at the keyboards now taken by session musician and composer Neil Angilley. The lineup is completed by bassist Jonathan Noyce (Jethro Tull), multi-instrumentalist Charlotte Glasson, and vocalist Mick Wilson (10CC).

Three Friends is about bringing Gentle Giant’s eclectic and highly original music back to the live stage, where it belongs. The repertoire is drawn from all the classic albums up to Interview, including many songs that were never played live by the original band.
Mutiny in Jonestown : Progressive Rock Since 1987
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Dellinger View Drop Down
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Points: 12609 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 24 2017 at 17:48
Originally posted by Frenetic Zetetic Frenetic Zetetic wrote:

Originally posted by dr wu23 dr wu23 wrote:

Just out of curiosity.....anyone know what they are doing these days...other than being retired.....assuming thy are still alive and well...?


Derek became CEO of Roadrunner Records and I think he signed Slipknot. Ray did some scores for movies/shows/games I think?


I thought some of them were touring as "Three Friends" some years ago. I don't know if they are still, touring, though.
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