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Van Der Graaf Generator |
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Frets N Worries 
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Joined: April 30 2023 Location: Your Basement Status: Offline Points: 4202 |
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 Posted: November 02 2023 at 17:22 |
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i'd love to hear your reasoning behind these, i'm curious, why?
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The Wheel of Time Turns, and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the shadow.
Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time... |
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David_D
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Joined: October 26 2010 Location: Copenhagen Status: Offline Points: 15124 |
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Posted: November 02 2023 at 17:50 |
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See his later post. |
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quality over quantity, and all kind of PopcoRn almost beyond
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Frets N Worries
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Joined: April 30 2023 Location: Your Basement Status: Offline Points: 4202 |
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Posted: November 02 2023 at 18:01 |
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^ I see about Godbluff, but I need more on Still Life
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The Wheel of Time Turns, and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the shadow.
Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time... |
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Logan
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Site Admin Joined: April 05 2006 Location: Vancouver, BC Status: Offline Points: 35837 |
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Posted: November 02 2023 at 18:44 |
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Regarding not finding anything, one has to use advanced search and set the date to any time as it defaults to the last week. Good to have an appreciation thread!
Van der Graaf Generator is one of my favourite bands, and may well be my favourite of the bands that does get discussed a lot amongst the big names. I favour the 1970-1971 trio of albums, The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other, H to He Who Am the Only One, and Pawn Hearts -- "A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers" especially remains magical to these ears. I do like the other 70s albums very much too. And I like the 70s Peter Hammill albums a great deal. |
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Chord Change
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Joined: November 01 2023 Location: Melbourne Status: Offline Points: 10 |
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Posted: November 02 2023 at 22:42 |
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Loving all the replies. It seems here that VDGG are indeed very much appreciated.
Moshkito, I would love to read your book. Please let me know where I can find this content!  I also very much like the Cheap Thrills album, Janis was a truly great musician.
Hehe, I know. I was being a little cheeky. I just don't see the warrant of three PF albums and two Genesis albums in the Top 10, even though I would consider those albums very essential listening, they all sound pretty similar to each other, sonically. I guess this site is after all visited by people who where alive to buy these albums when they were released and VDGG never sold anywhere near close to PF or there label mates, Genesis. I agree with your dates. I am guessing this was the cut-off for classically trained generation of musicians with an affinity for blues.
I wish!  I have read both books recently, one after the other and I feel like I can save most people some money and time by recommending one over the other. The 'On Track' book is literally just descriptions of the albums and song. Where as 'Decades' does the descriptions (much better descriptions) for the 70's album and also includes autobiographical content, explaining all the very interesting tours VDGG were involved in, the timeline and trajectory for each of the members and what ultimately lead to their demise in the 70s, the book also touches on the reunion and other titbits including the PH albums of the 70s and Banton's organ building.
I completely agree.
Thanks for the search tip. I certainly am living up to the rank of "Forum Newbie". I probably should have made this a VDGG/Peter Hamill thread. My rankings are as such for the 70s, please note that I like all VDGG albums, unlike most bands that come back after 30 odd years, they still create remarkable whole albums, no fillers for this band. There 70s work is my favourite though, I haven't given enough time to the 2004+ albums to rank them. 1. H To He Who, Am The Only One 2. Pawn Hearts 3. Godbluff 4. World Record 5. Still Life 6. The Aerosol Grey Machine 7. The Least We Can Do Is Wave At Each Other
Edited by Chord Change - November 02 2023 at 22:56 |
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Saperlipopette!
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Joined: December 20 2010 Location: Tomorrowland Status: Offline Points: 11621 |
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Posted: November 02 2023 at 23:05 |
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VdGG/VdG 1969-1977 are like KC 1969-1974 to me - and a vital part of my musical DNA. Two bands and fifteen albums I know I'll always return to. I've listened to the five first albums underneath in particular so many times that I know every song and every second by heart. The music is still packs an emotional punch every time.
01: Pawn Hearts 02: H to He, Who Am the Only One 03: Godbluff 04: The Quiet Zone / The Pleasure Dome 05: The Least We Can Do is Wave to Each Other 06: World Record 07: Still Life 08: The Aerosol Grey Machine -The rest is quality too, but I have to admit I never listen to any of them. I guess I also have to admit that they feel less essential to me. Maybe that gets in the way of the listening experience somehow. Anyway they're really not fresh enough in memory for me to rank them. I should give A Grounding in Numbers another spin someday soon. I remember listening and thinking "hey this is really, really good!" - but I haven't returned to it in the last decade. |
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Dellinger
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VIP Member Joined: June 18 2009 Location: Mexico Status: Offline Points: 12732 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 01:10 |
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When I decided to give them a try, I ended up ordering their highest rated run, from The Least we can Do to Still Life... without having heard anything from them first. When the albums finally arrived, my first impression was that I finally went too far. However, thankfully the first song from the first album was Darkness, so that one soon grew on me and I kept listening. Refugees was a good anchor too. I wouldn't say I like every single song they made, but those that I do like, oh man, they are a ride indeed. About Hamill, my impression is that he has the chops to be one of the most technically gifter singers around, but somehow he just went anoher way... perhaps not as technically perfect as he could have been, but unique and great all the same... and not for everyone. As for the sax, David Jackson has become my favourite sax player around (not that I know so very many, though).
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Octopus II
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Joined: May 21 2023 Location: UK Status: Offline Points: 10394 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 01:58 |
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Pawn Hearts
Godbluff H to He, Who Am the Only One
The Quiet Zone / The Pleasure Dome The Least We Can Do is Wave to Each Other World Record Still Life The Aerosol Grey Machine |
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moshkito
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Joined: January 04 2007 Location: Grok City Status: Offline Points: 17513 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 06:53 |
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Hi, Thank you very kindly. I appreciate it well, and a lot. PA, while having its good points and "thing", in the end, is way too commercial for me, and only "using" folks that are more attuned to "code" than music, is a bit of a problem. When you can't punt, you try to run a fake somewhere, right? ... and create a new area for some music! While not perfect, in some ways, it is a bit scary in that it is simply spreading folks away from "progressive" and into other areas ... however, the amount of music and things available today, are 50 (or more) times more than they were 50 years ago, so it is likely that more sub-genre's would be needed. PA, for all intents and purposes, is "my book" ... even though I am not sure that many folks here care or think of it that way, and some that do not even appreciate my point of view, which is far more historical than most folks that post here, who are almost exclusively attuned to "hit" and the "numbers", than they are into the music itself. My "book" is about its history, since, otherwise the art form will disappear and never thought of again, and this is the danger of a lot of this music going back to the late 60's ... in those days it was the media telling you that the sex, drugs and rock'n'roll was evil and bad ... today, the record companies continue pushing "numbers" and folks believe in them left and right, and they don't even realize "where" the music comes from and whose money is leading it! Thus, my point of view, is often contrary to many stated here and there and everywhere. I wish, that more folks were ATTUNED to the music, a lot more than they are towards their favorites, and they will be all over the favorite threads ... to show their choice. In the end, many of those folks do not realize how they are being brainwashed into something ... when you hear a song 150 times, parts of it cement to your brain. When you hear something totally different, guess what you compare it to? And it is difficult to get out of it and think something new is good, because what you are used to is leading you away. I don't have an answer ... just the hope that this music, AND ART SCENE, can survive a better idea than just some kind of numbers ... so that it can be taken seriously instead of only looked at by some database folks that might not exactly have the music's best interests in mind ... things have to fit into the "database" ... idea! The scene was preceded slightly by film and theater, and then cemented with jazz and finally came alive with rock music, the sales of which killed the selling of classical music that dropped into the toilets everywhere, and even mentioning it here ... too many folks go ... wtf???? I like to joke that "classical music" died ... and went to heaven, of course!" (... certainly not PA!) Again, thanks a bunch ... and welcome to the board ...
Edited by moshkito - November 03 2023 at 06:57 |
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Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
www.pedrosena.com |
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TheNefariousHED
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 07:49 |
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Simply one of the greatest rock bands ever, prog or not. Little sign of decay in their latter releases as well.
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Frets N Worries
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Joined: April 30 2023 Location: Your Basement Status: Offline Points: 4202 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 07:57 |
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I'm curious, does anyone have any information on if they'll release another record and/or do another tour? (I don't expect anyone too, and I doubt they will, but I'm curious)
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The Wheel of Time Turns, and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the shadow.
Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time... |
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edefakiel
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Joined: February 17 2013 Location: Dos hermanas Status: Offline Points: 293 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 08:34 |
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Has everyone listened to this album?
The video is just a preview.
Edited by edefakiel - November 03 2023 at 08:37 |
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I prophesy disaster
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Joined: December 31 2017 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 4779 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 10:33 |
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I'm disappointed that Peter Hammill is only on the first track. I bought the CD (from Bandcamp) when I really should only have bought the digital album. The main value of the album should be derived from The Amorphous Androgynous rather than Peter Hammill. |
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No, I know how to behave in the restaurant now, I don't tear at the meat with my hands. If I've become a man of the world somehow, that's not necessarily to say I'm a worldly man.
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David_D
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Joined: October 26 2010 Location: Copenhagen Status: Offline Points: 15124 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 10:41 |
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If looking closer at the rather early VdGG albums, I see in Pawn Hearts quite a lot of melodical similarity with H to He, and the same in Godbluff comparing to Pawn Hearts. That is one of the reasons for I haven't got Pawn Hearts in my collection.
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quality over quantity, and all kind of PopcoRn almost beyond
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Saperlipopette!
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Joined: December 20 2010 Location: Tomorrowland Status: Offline Points: 11621 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 10:47 |
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Lewian
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Joined: August 09 2015 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 14733 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 11:41 |
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VDGG are surely one of the greats, an always unique, deep and fascinating band. I think I've seen Peter Hammill five times live, solo (3) and with VDGG (2); I'm not sure anyone has reached six. Regarding albums I just make the observation that The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome is a stunningly good album, I have always rated it as high as Pawn Hearts and Still Life, my other two favourites of theirs. But then for some reason I never could make much sense out of Godbluff. Another great one that not many people love is ALT. Never standing still and often good for surprises...
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progaardvark
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 11:46 |
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I have to say that I couldn't get into VDGG at first. This was about 20 years ago or so. I had the same troubles as I did with Gentle Giant. Then one day it clicked and I've enjoyed almost their entire discography, not just the 1970s, but also more recent releases.
I would rank them in this order: 1. Pawn Hearts 2. H to He, Who Am the Only One 3. The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other 4. Godbluff 5. World Record 6. A Grounding in Numbers 7. Trisector 8. Present 9. Do Not Disturb 10. Still Life 11. The Quiet Zone / The Pleasure Dome 12. The Aerosol Grey Machine 13. ALT We're having a party at my place on August 14, 1972. Warm up your time machines!
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i'm shopping for a new oil-cured sinus bag that's a happy bag of lettuce this car smells like cartilage nothing beats a good video about fractions |
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I prophesy disaster
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 11:48 |
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Much of what I wrote above also applies to Still Life. However, the order in which I was first exposed to VdGG studio albums is: 1: World Record 2: Pawn Hearts 3: The Quiet Zone / The Pleasure Dome 4&5: H to He, Who Am the Only One and Godbluff (which I got at the same time) 6: Still Life 7: The Least We Can Do is Wave to Each Other 8: The Aerosol Grey Machine ...etc... For the first five albums of this list, I enjoyed the album either from the first listen or maybe after just a few listens, but Still Life failed to grab me. I do like the title track as well as "La Rossa", but the others, not so much. I recall feeling at the time that the music on this album was a bit clichéd, and subsequently rarely visited the album. That didn't stop me from getting The Least We Can Do is Wave to Each Other, which I loved immediately that early-period sound (actually, I recently promoted this album to third position after listening to it quite regularly now). It was quite a long time after getting my first seven albums that The Aerosol Grey Machine eventually became available to me. Around the turn of the century, I embarked on digitally recording all of my vinyl records. For most of these, I manually removed any obvious scratches, but for my favourites, I diligently removed every scratch that I could hear. This meant intensive listening to Still Life, which I thought may have finally led me to appreciate the album. In a way, it did, but ultimately I rarely returned to the album. I don't dislike Still Life, but unlike the albums before it in my first list, it just doesn't appeal to me. I should remark that the albums after Still Life in my first list are all modern-day albums that have not received much attention from me. |
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No, I know how to behave in the restaurant now, I don't tear at the meat with my hands. If I've become a man of the world somehow, that's not necessarily to say I'm a worldly man.
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David_D
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Joined: October 26 2010 Location: Copenhagen Status: Offline Points: 15124 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 11:51 |
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I think, it would be much better if the thread title was the full name.
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quality over quantity, and all kind of PopcoRn almost beyond
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progaardvark
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Crossover/Symphonic/RPI Teams Joined: June 14 2007 Location: Sea of Peas Status: Offline Points: 51058 |
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Posted: November 03 2023 at 12:00 |
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Heaven forbid anybody would confuse this for a thread about variable digestions of giant granadillas!
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i'm shopping for a new oil-cured sinus bag that's a happy bag of lettuce this car smells like cartilage nothing beats a good video about fractions |
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I prophesy disaster wrote: