GENTLE GIANT

As many of we know, Gentle Giant was formed in 1970 by the three multi-instrumentalists the Shulman brothers, Phil, Derek and Ray. They were joined by the guitarist Gary Green, the keyboardist Kerry Minnear and the drummer Martin Smith and formed Gentle Giant. During their short live, Gentle Giant only lasted ten years from 1970 to 1980, the line up of the band was very stable. It had only the departure of one of the Shulman brothers, Phil, in 1972, after the live tour to promote their fourth studio album 'Octopus' of 1972, and two changes of their drummers. Malcolm Mortimore replaced Martin Smith, in 1971, after the release of their second studio album 'Acquiring The Taste' in 1971 and John Weathers that replaced Malcolm Mortimore, in 1972, after the release of their third studio album 'Three Friends' in 1972.

'King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents' is one of the many Gentle Giant's live albums that was released in 1998. This live show was recorded at the Academy of Music in New York City, in 18 January 1975. It was performed one year after the release of their sixth studio album 'The Power And The Glory'. This concert captures Gentle Giant at the top of their form and at the peak of their fame. This is a short live album with about 45 minutes. The tracks are the same of their other live album called 'Experience', released in 2002. In reality, it features the same tracks but in a different order.

'King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents' has only seven tracks. The first track 'Proclamation' is a live version of a song released on their sixth studio album 'The Power And The Glory'. The second track 'Funny Ways' is a live version of a song released on their eponymous debut studio album 'Gentle Giant'. The third track 'The Runaway' is a live version of a song released on their fifth studio album 'In A Glass House'. The fourth track 'Experience' is also a live version of a song released on their fifth studio album 'In A Glass House'. The fifth track 'So Sincere' is also a live version of a song released on their sixth studio album 'The Power And The Glory'. The sixth track 'Knots' is a live version of a song released on their fourth studio album 'Octopus'. The seventh and last track 'The Advent Of Panurge' is also a live version of a song released on their fourth studio album 'Octopus'.

King Biscuit Flower Hour was an USA radio show that regularly presented especially organized concerts for over two decades. This release shows Gentle Giant at their best and in the peak of their fame. At the time there were signs that hard work, ambition and musical wilfulness would finally bring the band relatively wide recognition. Gentle Giant came to New York with the successful and musically successful album 'The Power And The Glory' in the band's luggage. Incidentally, the previous album 'In A Glass House' was only available as an import in the USA, since the record bosses considered it quite unsalable. Despite this commercially farsighted behaviour, 'In A Glass House' sold 150,000 copies over there at the time. The great highlights of this live concert would include the vibraphone solo on their track 'Funny Ways', the keyboard transition between the tracks 'The Runaway' and 'Experience', the drums/chime parts of the track 'So Sincere', and the acoustic guitar duo on the track 'Knots'. So, we can say that 'King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents' contains concert highlights that are very well known to all Gentle Giant's fans, were here again they are of the first class performed with the addition of some instrumental passages made for their live performances. Added to this, we need also to highlight the virtuoso mastery of the all instruments played by all band's members, the contagious and unique joy of playing of all performers of Gentle Giant and finally, the excellent compositional talent of the all band.

Conclusion: As I mentioned before, 'King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents' is a live album with the same live tracks of 'Experience', but with a new different musical alignment. The 'King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents' is, without any doubt, a great live album with a beautiful live atmosphere. For me, is totally irrelevant the different musical alignment, because I sincerely like of the alignments on both live albums. However, despite the quality of this live show, I still prefer the live show on 'Playing The Fool'. In relation to the selection of the tracks, I can only say that it's absolutely irreproachable. However, not all of their first six studio albums were represented on it. It hasn't songs of their second studio album 'Acquiring The Taste' and hasn't songs of their third studio album 'Three Friends'. So, it has one song from their eponymous debut studio album 'Gentle Giant', 'Funny Ways', two songs from their fourth studio album 'Octopus', 'Knots' and 'The Advent Of Panurge', also two songs from their fifth studio album 'In A Glass House', 'Experience' and 'The Runway' and it has also two songs from their sixth studio album 'The Power And The Glory', 'Proclamation' and 'So Sincere'. So, as a conclusion, despite I prefer 'Playing The Fool', 'King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents' and 'Experience' are two excellent live albums of Gentle Giant. So, to buy one of them is, without any doubt, a great option because we are in presence of some different and but also excellent live material from a great live band.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

This renewed stage brought with it a greater fluidity in the English band's musical approach, at the cost of partially ceding a bit of originality and spontaneity, and it seemed at times to be unclear which direction to take, repeating themselves and configuring a scenario halfway between one thing and the other, reflected in songs that combine the most accessible funky vibes with jazz elements, as in the energetic "Just the Same" (excellent keyboard solo by Kerry Minnear) or in the demanding "Free Hand", or as in the also lively tune "Mobile" complemented with rock and Celtic overtones and the protagonist presence of Ray Shulman's wandering violins.

Despite more digestible sonic additions, the experimental streak is deeply embedded in the band's DNA, and it is then that the songs feature those shimmering passages deployed in convoluted and shifting structures, as in the eclecticism of the intricate "Time to Kill" and its American rhythm and blues feel, in the polyphonic choral arrangements of the baroque "On Reflection", in the beautiful medieval and jazzy atmosphere of "His Last Voyage" marked by Gary Green's acoustic arpeggios, Minnear's keyboards and crowned with an agonising guitar solo, and finally in the short instrumental "Talybont", which Minnear's harpsichords and clavinets also set the scene in the Middle Ages.

"Free Hand", with its ups and downs, is a very good album, one of the most commercially successful of Gentle Giant's career, and also one of their last great works.

3.5/4 stars

The din of a crowd roused by the motivational message of a new leader kicks off the plot with the rhythmic and convoluted poly-rhythmic "Proclamation" guided by Kerry Minnear's very seventies electric piano, the complex experimentation of jazzy strings and Minnear's bewildering cello sustain the political discourse of 'sincerity' in the Crimsonian "So Sincere", the serene beauty and harmony of "Aspirations" keeps the people's hopeful dreams alive, the intense layering of vibratos, marimbas and an excellent Hammond solo find the character in full exercise of power in the also jazzy "Playing the Game", the doubts that begin to show in the very progressive "Cogs in Cogs" full of the genre's sonorities with John Weathers shining on percussion, and the growing disillusionment in the partly acoustic, medieval-scented setting of "No God's a Man".

The final stretch of the story is none other than the free fall of the failed leader caught in the tentacles of power, with Ray Shulman's raging violins in defiant counterpoint to Gary Green's pyromaniac guitar solo on the enlightening "The Face", and the heavy atmosphere of the concluding "Valedictory" recycles sonic phrases from the opening track, suggesting a pernicious perpetual vicious cycle.

"The Power and the Glory" is a new demonstration of the enormous capacity of the English multi-instrumentalists to develop proposals of great musical richness with the addition of one of the most interesting themes of their career, excellently reflected in The King of Swords that illustrates the album's cover, at a time when the planet was immersed in several political scandals and regional leadership conflicts.

4/4.5 stars

Crystals breaking harmonically announce the starting point of the A-side of the album and the track "The Runaway", an exercise of lilting baroque reminiscences sustained in good measure by the friendly counterpoints between the versatility of Kerry Minnear's keyboards and Gary Green's guitar riffs that lead to a warm marimba solo by Minnear, followed by the interesting combination of percussive elements with Derek Shulman's megaphonic vocal cooing in the haunting and dreamlike "An Inmate's Lullaby", and by the contradictory "Way of Life" that intertwines an unexpected funky rhythm with a very attractive middle section of medieval airs marked again by the active Minnear on keyboards.

The eclecticism and sonic diversity of the reflective "Experience" kicks off the B-side and provides the space for one of Green's rare guitar solos (whose individual participation on the album is resigned in favour of the melodies as a whole), continues with the gentle beauty that Minnear's cello and Ray Shulman's violins lend to the brief "A Reunion", and culminates with "A Glass House", and culminates with another eclectic essay, 'In a Glass House', which features a very intense John Weathers on percussion (as on the whole album, by the way), and has the particularity of including in its final section a minimal sample of each previous song, a resource used by other bands later on, such as Queen in their song "More of that Jazz" from the album "Jazz".

Commercial success was again not on Gentle Giant's side with their excellent 'In a Glass House', a constant in the band's career, sharing such 'honours' with other generational cult groups like VDGG, Camel or King Crimson.

4/4.5 stars

The album opens with the peaceful sounding The Advent of Panurge. The peace is quickly interrupted by John Weathers, and the band wakes up. I could instantly tell the much larger scale Gentle Giant was willing to take progressive rock, and the dynamic changes in the entire song are incredibly noticeable with each of the members (apart from John) doing their own thing while all following the same similar melody. The grand piano plays an incredible role in all of this, with some of the playing coming close to jazz rock. And from out of nowhere, the band completely stops everything to repeat most of the song again. While it might sound the same, it is still very different and seems to find its own unique complexity while still following the original path of the song. Overall, The Advent of Panurge is easily one of the greatest progressive rock album openers and is an absolute classic of Gentle Giant and their unique sound.  

Next is the much more medieval sounding Raconteur Troubadour. The opening of the song sounds more like a military march from old England, and the vocals of Derek Shulman definitely add to that feeling. The song has multiple changes in just about every aspect, and is always keeping the listener on edge about what change would come next. This song is also probably the point in Gentle Giant's discography where medieval music and songwriting is most as well as chamber music, with very few traditional rock instruments or music in the entire song. Another fantastic Gentle Giant classic, in my opinion, and a great follow up to The Advent Panurge.

  A cry for everyone brings back some aspects of the more important role the guitar had in some of their early music, while still holding on to this new style they were going for with this album. This is also probably the most normal sounding song on the album, despite it being highly progressive. At some point they'll be changing the time signature and structure three times in only a couple of seconds. The way they can transition from rapid fire jamming to coherent rhythms and then go into highly complex yet coordinated playing is beyond me, but they manage to pull it off either way.  

Now for Knots, the beginning is incredibly different from the rest of the album. Starting with simple chants from the band members, they play their instruments one at a time, all playing almost completely different from the last. It silently breaks into chaos among the men playing while still barely even playing their instruments, and for me this gives an eerie effect. The way they just repeat the same lines over and over, isolate each other's playing from each other, and yet still be coherent while in chaos seems close to a haunting effect. The band eventually comes together for the actual song, but the entire time something always seems off with the playing. I also quite like the vibraphone solo in the middle of the song; for me, it provides slight humor to the song. The band still isn't over, as it plays with more dynamics and goes from loud to quite incredibly quick and organized.

  While side one is incredible, side two opens with the only instrumental song on the album and one of my personal favorite Gentle Giant songs, The Boys in the Band. It opens with the sound of a coin rolling on a table for a while until the band explodes into not the fast-paced coordinated mayhem with John Weathers providing some incredible fills, with the horn work on this song being their peak with saxophones. And just as quickly as it began, it stops entirely this quiet tune that contains hints of beauty. And right before the band expands on it, they go right back into the original tune, this time with Green and Minnear adding their own parts to the song before it again comes to a complete stop and chills out for a second. The song remains in this normal state for a while, coming close to classic rock before bringing back that pretty part that they were just playing a minute ago, and then they once again change the music and play that opening sequence again. It's songs like this that truly capture the progressive sound of the 70s and represent what the genre was at the time.  

After that incredible performance, Gentle Giant takes a break and plays the almost entirely orchestral Dogs Life. As the name implies, the song tells the story of a dog's life, and it does a pretty. Good job at doing The only true rock instruments are the acoustic guitars that are in only certain sections of the song. This is also the shortest song on the album, being a little over 3 minutes. Even though it's the weakest song on the album for me, it has its own unique approach to chamber music and has its own charm to it.  

The next song on the album is Think of Me With Kindness, which is probably the closest the band ever came to soft rock before the late 1970s, though the song is still progressive rock. The album opens with some great piano playing and amazing harmonies from Derek Shulman. This also shows that Gentle Giant isn't just an incredibly complex and experimental progressive rock band, but also a band that can make some of the most beautiful songs in the world. Overall, it's a great love song, and it's a good way to lead into the last and longest song on the album, River.  

The song opens with some atmospheric guitar and keyboard playing, and added with strangely fantastic, uneven sounding vocals and structure, making for a great song opener. The song gets even more atmospheric as Derek seems to make his voice sound younger, along with the instruments becoming more echoey. The opening sequence repeats again before going into one of Green's greatest guitar solos with Gentle Giant. It's incredible how after seven other songs, Gary Green can still play his heart out in his solos. The song ends with another reprise of the opening sequence, which for me is a great way to end the album.  

In conclusion, Octopus for me is the best Gentle Giant record. Ranging from the quiet chamber music, beautiful piano and vocal sequences, complex, coordinated, and fast-paced playing, and the ever-changing tempo structures and instrumentation, this album is an absolute essential of progressive rock and one of the most important albums when you're starting out with the genre. Right from their debut, you could tell something big was coming from the band, and Octopus is the embodiment of the perfection you could get in their earlier albums. Octopus is 5/5, without a doubt.

From the opening vocal counterpoints of the jazzy and voluble "The Advent of Panurge" full of instrumental twists and turns, or Ray Shulman's violins in the medieval "Raconteur Troubadour" that recreates the wanderings of a period troubadour in first person, or the aggressiveness of Gary Green's riffs in the hard-rocker "A Cry for Everyone", or also the experimentation of the Crimsonian "Knot" with that game of choral layers interacting with dysfunctional sonorities and a surprising mini xylophone solo by John Wheaters, "Octopus" is the climax of a proposal as innovative as risky, something that the band always bet on, moving away from any conventionalism.

And the plurality of elements and nuances does not stop flowing in "Octopus", with the very progressive and instrumental "The Boys in the Band" and Kerry Minnear's choppy display of hammonds and moogs, with the fun and folkloric "Dog's Life" and Ray's violins and arpeggiated guitars, also with the beautiful and emotive "Think of Me with Kindness" guided by Minnear's cozy vocals and keyboards, and concludes with "River", an electronic foray that Green complements with an excellent bluesy guitar solo, in one of the best moments of the polychromatic album.

"Octopus" is one more jewel of Gentle Giant, to which, as it happened throughout the career of the British, the commercial success did not smile, but it did help the consolidation of the progressive genre in its most eclectic variant.

4/4.5 stars

Track 1 - Pantagruel's Nativity

We begin with a melancholy melody on a synth. High pitched vocals join in at a moderate tempo accompanied in a subtle way by the band. A mellotron chord begins to crescendo on the left speaker and the band plays a few accented phrases. The melody takes back over with flute and trumpets joining in. The accented phrases return to take us to a different section of the song, which becomes very quiet, before the band led by distorted guitar takes over. GG's choral singing style comes into play next. Then we have a horn section break before a vibraphone solo begins. A guitar solo follows that. The guitar riff from earlier leads us to the next verse with the polyphonic choral singing. The riff returns, with a trumpet featured. Then we have another verse, similar to the beginning. The guitar riff concludes the track. It was pretty good but a bit disjointed to me.

Track 2 - Edge of Twilight

Once again, it begins a bit melancholy with dissonant chords backing the vocals. On the second verse there is a reverse recorded sound that pans across the speakers. This is a very mellow track, thus far. There are vocals underneath an upright bass and tom-tom bed. Next there are some kind of fantasy, arpeggiated sounds. Following that, the drums and percussion takes over in a sort of 20th century classical music sort of way. The next verse returns with the reverse recorded sounds. This is not my favorite GG song that I have heard, It was even more disjointed than the first one.

Track 3 - The House, The Street, The Room

I have heard this one before, but not enough to really remember it. We start with a riff that sounds like a cross between Hang on Sloopy and Hall of the Mountain King. Vocals join then the dynamic level comes down, and we have a bit of harpsichord. Then the riff returns, and we cycle through in a similar way. At just under 2 minutes, we have an instrumental break, started with piano in a classical style, before multitudes of different instruments take turns joining in. Then suddenly at 2:40, we have a Hendrix-y style unaccompanied guitar solo, but it is only very briefly unaccompanied, the band joins in with some prominent Hammond organ and some unusual percussive sound while the guitar solo continues. The underlying rhythm is in odd meters. The initial riff returns after the solo, and we cycle through the earlier sections. We end with the random instruments from the 2-minute point of the song. This has been my favorite track so far. Lots of GG quirkiness, but it holds together better as a song than the first 2 tracks for me.

Track 4 - Acquiring the Taste

Another case of the shortest track on the album (1:37) being the title track. Different synth sounds are being layered in a melodic way as a brief instrumental interlude.

Track 5 - Wreck

Very cool riff! First played by clean guitar and bass, joined by a big fat synth sound and drums. Now we're talking! The riff backs the vocals which are very much in a call & response style. The harmony parts in the response remind me of 3 Dog Night's version of Liar. Then we have a quieter section with classical instruments accompanying the vocal. I REALLY like this one! The band fades out for a recorder ensemble with harpsichord. Very renaissance (not the band but the time period). The band and vocals return. This would be a great crowd participation song. Did any of my old school GG fans see them back in the 70s? Did they do this one live? I hope so. This one is now my favorite track on the album so far, and one of the best GG tracks I have heard.

Track 6 - The Moon is Down

We begin with strings and woodwinds. A lot of this album has a very "20th Century Classical Music" style. The band's voices join in and the rhythm section and harpsichord (again!) joins in. Lots of little "incidental" sounds. The tempo increases into a 5-4 riff. A horn section joins in. There is a very captivating instrumental break. The tempo slows back down, and the vocals return. Good track.

Track 7 - Black Cat

We begin in 7-4 here. There are signature layered GG vocals. Violins and strings take over for a moment, to be followed by quirkiness. The vibra-slap is used prominently. This is almost like a less-intense King Crimson track. Kinda cool.

Track 8 - Plain Truth

The longest track at 7:36. We start with what I initially thought was a wah-wah guitar, but then changed my mind to think it's a violin. The riff reminds me at times of the March to The Scaffold from Pictures at an Exhibition. Then, everything changes, as one might expect in prog! At 45 seconds in, the band kicks in full-on with vocals. Lots of changing meters. A variation of the riffage begins at 1:45 and we have an instrumental break. The band comes back in following that with a cycle of the sections that preceded the instrumental break. Things quiet back down at around 3:30. Nice bass playing at around 4:40. I believe again that this is an electric violin taking the lead. I like how the band is gradually building in intensity. Yep, definitely violin. I believe Charlie Daniels may have been inspired by the way that solo ended, as it sounds like the Devil's violin solo in the Devil went Down to Georgia. At 6:30 the band drops out and the violin takes over again. There is a big riff to close this one out.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:

Wow, great prog again from Gentle Giant! Unfortunately, the first 2 tracks weren't the best. Thankfully things started getting better with the third track. I'll give this a 4 out of 5. Might have been a bit higher if it weren't for the first two songs.

Track 1 - The Advent of Panurge

We begin with quintessential GG style vocals backed by electric piano and mellow guitar. A quirky riff begins around 50 seconds in. A cool odd-metered rhythm sets up the next verse. I love the slightly jazzy feel. At around 3:40 we get more of those polyphonic vocal parts. Then a tricky instrumental break. After another short vocal section, the song abruptly ends. Lots of cool stuff happens in this track, but it never really "Gels" together into a memorable song. Good but not great.

Track 2 - Raconteur, Troubadour

Vocals & instruments begin together without an intro. A violin creates a countermelody to the vocals. I like the rhythm change following the first verse. Then after the second verse there is a break similar to the first one, then an almost classical melody follows that. Nice! GG definitely have their own "thing" happening. They don't always lock into a groove in the same way other bands do.

Track 3 - A Cry for Everyone

I say that about the groove, and then this one starts out with a steady rockin' beat! This one rocks harder than the previous two. I love the instrumental break at around 1:15. I like the panning of the instruments in the various instrumental breaks. LOVE the groove after 2:30! This one is shaping up to be my favorite track, so far.

Track 4 - Knots

The most familiar track to me, not just from the album, but from GG in general. It starts with the canon-style polyphonic vocals. Xylophones and other tuned percussion along with piano provide accents underneath the vocals, with the full band interjecting from time to time. THOSE VOCAL PARTS! Love it. To me, this is the definitive GG track!

Track 5 - The Boys in the Band

We start with a giggle and a coin being dropped onto a table, before we get a fantastic prog riff from the full band! This one's cookin'! If someone asked, "What does prog rock sound like?", this would be a good track to play for an answer. The groove shifts by around 3:00. This is a wonderful prog-rock instrumental! Great track!

Track 6 - Dog's Life

A classical style guitar riff starts us off here, followed by vocals with an "orchestrated" accompaniment. It gets quirkier and we go along. The vocal and the guitar part alternate throughout. Nice quirky track.

Track 7 - Think of Me with Kindness

A mellow piano and vocal ballad style starts this off. Drums & bass join in after the first verse. Hammond organ and a trombone style synth solo follow, before going back to the song. I like how this one builds. This one reminds me of Procol Harum. Good track.

Track 8 - River

Pretty cool intro with wah-wah guitar and violin playing together with accents from the band. I like the "swooshing wind" effect! Quirky rhythms throughout. I like the instrumental break at around 3:10. Then we get a slightly bluesy guitar solo. I like when the vocals double the guitar. Lots of cool playing going on here. Good track.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:

An excellent album indeed. I especially like tracks 3, 4, and 5. The first two tracks are probably the weakest ones to me. Neither are bad, but they don't really hook me in. I'm giving this a 4 out of 5 stars. Very strong album, but not quite to the level of my all-time favorites.

Track 1 - Just the Same

A finger snapping syncopated rhythm starts us off and then piano followed by guitar takes over. The full band comes in with vocals in an odd meter. It's kinda catchy. At a little after the 2-minute mark we have a slower, smoother instrumental break. We get a bit funkier at about 3 and a half minutes in. The vocals return in a similar vein as they had been at the start. The finger snaps return to close the song. Not bad, not the greatest either.

Track 2 - On Reflection

Here is what I think of when I think of Gentle Giant! The a capella vocals arrangements in canon style and complex harmonies. The piano joins the second time around and marimba, I think. At just under 2 minutes, the choir-like vocals give way to a bass then a vocal solo with other instruments joining. At about 2:45 the harmonies return briefly before another solo vocal chorus. We are in 6-8 on this one. At 4:00 we get different harmony vocals and instrumentation, then an instrumental break in canon style that closes out the song. Excellent prog.

Track 3 - Free Hand

A complex piano riff is joined by other instruments with odd harmonies. Then we have a guitar riff setting up the main groove for the first verse. Lots of twiddly instrumental fills between verses. A very proggy instrumental break follows. Then another verse. Then a bridge of sorts on the lyric "Then I changed my mind," with instrumental fills. Then another wacky (in the best way) instrumental break follows. This one alternates between odd times and 3-4. The next verse comes in a bit louder than the preceding ones. This is very quirky prog, and I like it.

Track 4 - Time to Kill

There are some odd sound effects leasing to a guitar & bass riff. Then it's like the drums and other instruments are trying to find a groove (intentionally), then they lock in tight to bring the vocals in. There are lots of quick changes in style and texture that are hard to describe, but it's all very prog.

Track 5 - His Last Voyage

A bass riff starts this one off, to be joined by vibraphone. Then acoustic guitar accompanies the vocals in a very echoey verse. The vocals are almost Beach Boy-like (God Only Knows, not Surfin' USA). A very mellow track up until around 2:35, then other instruments take over with some twiddly playing, then it gets jazzy with the instruments mixed higher than the harmony vocals. Then we get a wah wah guitar solo over a jazzy piano led riff. The acoustic guitar and vocals return along with the echoey mix.

Track 6 - Talybont

At only 2:40 this is by far the shortest track on the album (with the longest being the previous track at just under 6:30) A keyboard riff starts this one off joined by a tom-tom led drumbeat. Then harpsichord & recorder. It sounds Baroque-like, but nor entirely. I like the use of timed delays and staccato playing at around 1:30. This one turned out to be an instrumental.

Track 7 - Mobile

This one sounds Celtic at the start with acoustic guitar & fiddle. Then the electric instruments & drums join in for the verses. The instrumental break at around 1:15 is cool. Another verse follows then another instrumental section. Following that we have a bridge with an effect on the vocals. No-one will ever accuse Gentle Giant of not being prog enough based on this album. The final note fades out for around 20 seconds before a drum fill punctuates the ending.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS.

A fine prog album indeed. Gentle Giant seem to have their own quirky style, but I think most classic prog fans would enjoy it. I wouldn't give it masterpiece ratings but very solid 4 out of 5 stars.

Both the introductory and lively "Prologue", dominated by the instrumental variations of Kerry Minnear's mellotrons and hammonds backed by Ray's bass and Phil's interesting vocal developments, and the sleepy "Schooldays" and Minnear's final vibraphone solo supported by the incessant hit-hat of percussionist Malcolm Mortimore, describe in jazz mode the childhood of the three characters and their promises of eternal friendship, which the passage of time dilutes.

The approach hardens musically with the description of each of the friends: the resentful worker in "Working All Day" with Derek Shulman's gravely singing, Phil's sax and Minnear's hammond solo, the gritty artist in "Peel the Paint" with Ray Shulman's violins giving way to a frenetic and very bluesy guitar solo by Gary Green (surely the best piece on the album), and the arrogant businessman in "Mister Class and Quality?"'with Minnear once again taking centre stage with his arsenal of keyboards backing up another guitar solo from Green.

The work concludes with the song "Three Friends", with a choral melody of baroque and medieval airs, dissolving in the melancholic aroma of past times that will never return.

Less complex in its structures than its predecessor "Acquiring the Taste", although equally eclectic and academic, "Three Friends" did not achieve outstanding commercial success at the time. The passing of the years, as is often the case, has placed it in a position more in line with its outstanding contribution to the progressive genre.

Very good.

4 stars