THE MISSING PIECE

Even the most popular prog acts were feeling the pressure around 1976 when the music industry made an abrupt turn towards punk rock, heavy metal and more danceable styles of music such as disco and new wave. Best selling acts like Emerson Lake and Palmer, Yes, Genesis and even non-English bands like Magma were jettisoning the lengthy epic fantasies that celebrated musical excesses by increasingly upping the ante of complex monstrosities until the style had pretty much alienated the next generation. The answer was to retreat back to simpler times and become followers instead of leaders. While even the big bands of the day were feeling the pressure to conform or die, bands like GENTLE GIANT that were known for being ridiculously complex and experimental even in prog terms were hit even harder.

After the 'Interview' album GG performed their last tour of their over-the-top contrapuntal rich menagerie of music styles and decided to simplify in the hopes of joining the more mainstream rock world where bands like The Eagles and Fleetwood Mac were selling gazillions and a cash starved GENTLE GIANT was eager to finally reap of the rewards of its hard work ethic that brought forth some of the most demanding musical artifacts from all of the 70s. The answer was the band's ninth album titled THE MISSING PIECE which served as a transitional album between the prog rich past and the soon to be pop rock reality that would last for only three albums before the band called it quits and never looked back. For the first time GENTLE GIANT also were looking at younger acts for inspiration instead of pioneering. While hints of more contemporary ideas were tucked neatly into 'Interview,' on THE MISSING PIECE the band shamelessly engaged in pure pop rock and even added some punk elements.

The album is roughly half of the newer pop oriented style that the band would release two more albums with and a second side that would dish out a few more proggy performances as a nod and a sad goodbye to the loyal fans that came before although these too were more watered down prog. Starting with the opening 'Two Weeks In Spain' it's clear that the old GENTLE GIANT was nowhere to be found. The catchy funky grooves laced with receptive guitar riffs and more banal lyrics signified a surrender as the band joined the brave new world of simpler music and carries it through with five tracks that add elements of funk, hard rock and even honky tonk piano to craft some catchy pop hooks without a trace of the complex harmonic interplay or crazy time signature rich instrumental tapestry of Renaissance folk fueled rock with classical and jazz overtones. The stand outs for me include the fiery 'Betcha Thought We Couldn't Do It' and the more funk fueled 'Mountain Time.'

The second side starting with 'As Old As You're Young' takes a drastic detour and looks towards the past with those crazy jittery keyboard fugue like performances along with the more dramatic polyrhythms, however they are all teased into packets of accessible pop hooks with verses, choruses and moments of instrumental interludes. 'Memories of Old Days' almost seems to lament the past that is no more with a slow lugubrious tempo and a pinning for the passion that made GG such a unique act in the first place. The only track of any substantial playing time at over seven minutes, this one reflects and contemplates the new decisions mostly on acoustic guitar and electric piano and a nice little revisitation of the Medieval folk themes that were always a part of the band's previous repertoire. 'Winning' is a percussion rich track that sounds like nothing else the band had ever done but also prognosticates the more pop rock direction of the next two albums only along with some easy listening contrapuntal additions for good measure. The album ends with the best track of all, the hyperactive 'For Nobody' that actually sounds like a leftover track from either 'Free Hand' or 'The Power And The Glory.'

While those who lived through the GENTLE GIANT years probably cringed when they first encountered THE MISSING PIECE, personally as a connoisseur of pop music lover outside of my prog addiction, i have to say that GENTLE GIANT did a decent job of mixing the old and new together and although not nearly as satisfying as other prog turned pop bands' albums like Yes' 'Drama' or King Crimson's 'Discipline,' the result isn't as bad as many make it out to be. The band clearly had as much talent crafting clever pop hooks as well as the wild prog workouts they are more famous for. While the album is decent it certainly lacks a cohesive feeling and as a pop rock act hadn't quite mastered the undeniable catchy hooks that would come to fruition on 'Giant For A Day.' There are many quality tunes on this one and the band members are on full fire instrumentally speaking. Unfortunately nothing is quite of the quality of scoring a chart seeking hit but as progressive pop tunes many of these are quite addictive. Personally i prefer the following album.