Peter Gabriel - Ovo: the lost solo version

I was rootling around the interwebs looking for information about Peter Gabriel's recording sessions and I found this article featuring an interview with engineer Richard Chappell in Sound On Sound: http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/may03/articles/gabrielchappell.asp

There's chat about tech which, to be honest, didn't interest me much but right at the bottom of the article (dated May 2003) there's this little tidbit, which surprised me:

"Chappell is also preparing material for producer Stephen Hague, who is working on a revamped version of Ovo, with Gabriel singing all the songs, which is to be released later this year in the US as a genuine Gabriel solo record."

(There was further talk of "a remix album, which will see people like Tricky and Trent Reznor having a go at various tracks from Up, is also expected in the shops towards the end of the year. On top of all this, after the European and second American legs of the Growing Up tour in the spring and summer, Chappell and Gabriel intend to complete the follow-up to Up, tentatively titled I/O and based on material from the same sessions as Up. It is scheduled to be out some time in 2004". Oh the things we've missed out on...)

Anyways, I know Ovo was greeted with mixed reactions when it came out and I, for one, was disappointed at the lack of vocal action from our hero. I wonder whether anybody would now, so many years later, be interested in a Gabriel-only version of Ovo. I know I would.

 

Of course. I'd be interested in any new Gabriel material, even if it was old.

 

Wow I forgot about Ovo... what a great album... Paul Buchanan and Elisabeth Fraser!!

 

You could chalk this up to Peter never finishing anything, but I think he may very well have decided it wasn't really worth doing. I don't think replacing the other male vocalists with Peter's voice would have been enough to make it stand up against his other albums.... it's probably better left as a soundtrack. And there's nothing wrong with Paul Buchanan or Richie Havens' vocals -- maybe he felt it would be disrespectful to redo it.

I did wonder why he included a live version of "Downside Up" on the Hit album instead of a version with him singing, if they had worked on this.

 

I remember reading about I/O around 2004. When will it come out?

Never knew about a PG version of Ovo and this would great to hear too!

 

I'm inclined to agree but I do think it's a shame not to have his versions of these songs. I'm not saying they were especially great but as they stand they live in the "songs he gave away" pile rather than the main discography. Certainly Downside-Up is a lovely song and while I find Melanie's live vocal kind of endearing, I also find it not nearly as enjoyable as Elizabeth Fraser's.

 

Make Tomorrow is an outstanding song.

 

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