THREE PIECE SUITE

"Three Piece Suite" is a compilation album from Gentle Giant which was released in 2017. This time we have only here tracks that belong to their first three studio albums, plus a non-album's track and a new single length version of one of their classic tracks, "Nothing At All". So, we have three tracks from their debut "Gentle Giant" from 1970, two tracks from their second "Acquiring The Taste" from 1971, four tracks from their third "Three Friends" from 1972, "Freedom's Child", which is a pre-debut non-album's track and a Steven Wilson's edited new version of their track "Nothing At All".

"Three Piece Suite" has nine tracks. "Giant" was released on "Gentle Giant". It's a great opening for that album. It's a classic Gentle Giant's song, very dynamic and creative. I love the way the guitar is played and the great keyboard work of Kerry Minnear. It represents one of the best moments on that album. "Nothing At All" was also released on "Gentle Giant". It's the lengthiest track on that album and it's a surprising track. It's an atypical Gentle Giant's track that has everything we can expect from this band. It begins as a soft and nice acoustic ballad with some melancholic harmonies. It grows as a heavy rock song. The song ends, as initially, as a soft and beautiful acoustic ballad. This is one of the strangest, original, curious and interesting songs ever composed by them. This is a real must have for all prog heads. "Why Not" was also released on "Gentle Giant". It's a heavy rock song, a bit dark and frantic with some calm and nice passages. It has a clear influence of the medieval music. It isn't strange because this is a song of Minnear and he is a musician influenced by that style of music. "Pantagruel's Nativity" was released on "Acquiring The Taste". This is one of my favourite tracks on that album. It became a classic Gentle Giant's track. It's a song with a nice melody. It has beautiful keyboards well combined with a powerful and great guitar work. What is most impressive here is the use of so many instruments such as saxes, vibraphone, celesta, harpsichord, tympani, trumpet, clarinet, in only one song. "The House, The Street, The Room" was also released on "Acquiring The Taste". It's an avant-garde music with some nice melody and the exploration of strange sounds. This is one of the heaviest songs recorded by the band that at some time reminds me the apocalyptic sound of Van Der Graaf Generator. "Schooldays" was released on "Three Friends". It's a nice track with experimental vocals and musical passages. It's a song with the use of several musical instruments at the same time. It has a beautiful piano work. It represents one of the best performances by Kerry Minnear. Phil Shulman sings wonderfully doing one of his best vocal moments in the group. "Peel The Paint" was also released on "Three Friends". It's a track inspired by the classical music, in the beginning, that starts very slow and delicate, but that suddenly develops into a more intense and dense, with a heavy rock format. It has a heavy rock part that reminds me Deep Purple. "Mr. Class And Quality?" was also released on "Three Friends". It's a good song. It's probably the simplest song on that album. It has a nice melody and some interesting musical breaks. It's a rock song, with some good moments, great keyboards, a good bass line and a good drum work. "Three Friends" was also released on "Three Friends". It represents the second best moment on that album with the opening track "Prologue". This is a song where all comes together in the music, the keyboards, the guitar, the bass and all the other instruments. I particulary like the keyboard work of Kerry Minnear. We are in the presence of another great song, a very short, but a very cohesive piece. Despite be so short, this is really a great piece of music that sounds nice to my ears. "Freedom's Child" is a previously pre-debut album's track. It was written before Gentle Giant's debut studio album. It was lost and then found many years later like some other tracks written in the beginning by them. The original tape has been found and appears on "Under Construction" besides this compilation. It's a ballad influenced by the 60's. It's a simple and beautiful track that sounds too much to the 60's to my taste. Still, as a rarity, it's an interesting track that should deserves our attention. "Nothing At All" is, as I said before, a track released on "Gentle Giant". This last track is a new Steven Wilson's edited version.

Conclusion: "Three Piece Suite" is another good compilation album of Gentle Giant, which is a usual thing with this excellent prog band. As happened with some other compilation albums from the band, this compilation highlights only tracks that belong to their three first studio albums. I don't know why, since it was released only in 2017. However, I have no complaints about the tracks chosen to be part of it, because all are great, despite we can't consider it very well representative of the band's career. Said this, here we have many great tracks from the band, which many of them have become some of my all time favourites. Anyway, many others would fit perfectly well on this compilation album, really. Besides, I love all their first eight studio albums. But, beyond these tracks, I can also say that "Freedom's Child" despite sounds too much to the 60's, is a nice track that gaves me some pleasure to hear. Wilson's length version is interesting to hear too, especially as a curiosity. So, we are in presence of a good compilation that deserves three stars.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)