THE POWER AND THE GLORY

"The Power And The Glory" deals with the abuse of power that is often found in the world of politics. They of course take a humerous look at it, but that humour has some bite to it to say the least. This album along with "Three Friends", "Acquiring The Taste" and "Free Hand" are my four favourite GENTLE GIANT records.

The first two tracks along with the last two took a while to grow on me, while the middle four I loved immediatly and still do. "Proclamation" opens with electric piano and vocals that seem to echo. I guess that is the effect of more than one vocalist. We get a full sound 1 1/2 minutes in.This song is kind of quirky with organ and some dissonant sounds after that, including the vocal line that is repeated over and over. The song ends with the original melody. "So Sincere" opens with sax and speeds up 1 1/2 minutes in. These guys can stop and go on a dime. Very complex playing with some good guitar and piano.

"Aspirations" is a melancholic,laid back song with some beautiful reserved vocals from Minnear. "Playing The Game" is a catchy, mid-paced tune.There is a calm section after 3 minutes. The drumming and organ are really well done as the tempo picks back up. "Cogs In Cogs" is just a fantastic song. So many sounds can be heard, very complex. The synths after 2 minutes are a nice touch. "No God's A Man" is all about the vocals. Nice harmonies. "The Face" is an uptempo track led by the vocals and violin melodies. "Valedictory" is similar to the opening track. Some nice raw guitar to open and lots of piano later.

I picked up my son and a couple of his friends from bowling last night, and for the 20 minute ride home I had this just cranked. Funny, I didn't get the usual comments, maybe they were trying to catch their breath.