GENTLE GIANT

The most charming album in my collection but also among the most charming albums in Progressive Rock, and you have to look far and wide to find a more charming album art work, that giant is so cool (it frightened me at first but now).

NOW to the music, the music on this album is so special and the rough sound of it makes it the most hard rock of their albums, but not traditional hard rock BY ANY MEANS. The album starts with the mighty giant with a wall of organ, bass and guitar. It moves on its way like a lumpy giant on its way home. In the middle is a mellotron part with a saxophone and crescendos (or something in that manner). A hard prog rock song with a dark mood, next is a folksy/English acoustic bard music in its feeble beginning, then we are introduced later on to a rock part with electric guitar, loud drums and a groovy bass line by Derek Shulman (i think sins Ray plays the violin), and trumpet/French horn fanfares, it ends in a melancholic mode with sad message. Next song is the jazz/fusion, avant-garde frenzy of a rock song with the title Alucard (Dracula), the most original song in Gentle Giants discography, no other song by them sound anything similar to this (maybe some way Wreck on the next album but not much), lovely small jazz guitar solos appears three times during the song (the same line repeated) really haunting guitar solo. And the moog synth on this song are AGRESSIVE

Isn't it Quiet and Cold are the title of the next song, which is sort of a mix of soft jazz and folk rock, Brittan meats American styles and the merging are working, it is a slow peaceful, but positive vibe beautiful song. Nothing at all is the next song and it is Gentle Giants longest song, it is a classic hard rock/heavy prog track, with a haunting guitar riff (and wind effect) in the middle which play unison with bass and picks up more power and loud drums and Dereks vocals are energy laden, then comes the drum solo which to some are a bit tedious, while it might also give the song more interesting character which it gets with the filter effect and the impressive avant-garde piano solo by Minnear. Why Not is a hard rock song with a folksy middle part and solo by Gary Green, and the last song is the English national anthem spiced up a little. OK experiment.

This album deserves no less the 5 golden stars, one of the true hidden gems of progressive hard rock, with enough of jazz, folk, classical, and avant-garde spices to make it tastefull.

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