Gentle Giant. . Whatever happened (merged several similar threads)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Francis A Carr, Jul 19, 2017.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. stereoptic

    stereoptic Anaglyphic GORT Staff

    Location:
    NY
    I just merged several threads with like minded topics. I used the largest one as the 'main' thread. You can say I made one Giant thread. :)
     
  2. stereoptic

    stereoptic Anaglyphic GORT Staff

    Location:
    NY
    The Wollman Rink in Central Park, perhaps?
     
    segue likes this.
  3. abzach

    abzach Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Of course, one of the best bends ever!
     
  4. segue

    segue Psychoacoustic Member

    Location:
    Hawai'i
  5. Tristero

    Tristero In possession of the future tense

    Location:
    MI
    Gentle Giant was certainly one of the most talented and distinctive progressive bands of the 70s. Their music was always a little too knotty and elaborate for mass consumption, but they earned a loyal following and have even proven to be influential in their way. Unlike some of their old peers, they weren't really able to successfully streamline their sound and those later albums were disappointment, but they still had an excellent run of albums up through Interview. Of course, the Wilson remixes have been revelatory--the 5.1 mixes really open up the arrangements and allow them to breathe.
     
    Hymie the Robot likes this.
  6. Morton LaBongo

    Morton LaBongo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Manchester NH
    I've been unable to find any Gentle Giant in any record stores on vinyl or CD. Just ordered three of their albums on Amazon though, can't wait to hear them!
     
    izgoblin, ParloFax and StarThrower62 like this.
  7. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product

    no worries, cheers
     
    stereoptic likes this.
  8. Perhaps their odd, relative success in North America as of 1974/75 (signing with Capitol), in spite of the fact that their music was in a way more demanding than ever, was due partly to the funk element embodied by Kerry Minnear's clavinet (and the way he played it) and new drummer John Weathers' loud, no-frill style, and partly to the blues-rock element of Gary Green's lead guitar. Unless I'm wrong, you didn't really find those specific ingredients assembled in the other main prog acts of the time.
     
    no.nine and Tristero like this.
  9. BrokenByAudio

    BrokenByAudio Forum Resident

    Not there. Three times in Buffalo's Century Theater, once in Buffalo's Memorial Aud, once in Buffalo's Kleinhans Music Hall and once in the Gusman Cultural Center in Miami. All incredible shows. I think they were the tightest band I ever saw, from tour to tour. It was just in the nature of their mindset and their compositions. There was functionally no room for sloppy.
     
    ParloFax and stereoptic like this.
  10. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

    Jack Skelly, GG tour historian extraordinaire [http://ggconcerts.on-reflection.org/] recently posted this to the On-Reflection list -

    I don't know where I find this stuff....

    In my endless nerd-like behavior online, I found out that a GG song (Working All Day) was featured on a local Houston, Texas TV show that aired on Dec. 8, 1972. The show was called SENSATIATION and, no, it wasn't a live filmed performance by the band. It was a half hour "light show" accompanying a few studio tracks by different artists. It aired at midnight.

    Remember this was the early 70's. Put on your best hippie vibe and imagine what you might be smoki... uh, I mean, doing while watching this program. It was also simulcast over FM radio in Houston. Obviously, radio listeners would only get the music but I'm sure the Altoids were the same....

    This episode featured one song each by, in order, Shawn Phillips, Uriah Heep, Gentle Giant, Simon and Garfunkle, and Jade Warrior. Best of all, the entire episode is up on Youtube, complete with stoned sounding announcer. The graphics are really pretty cool for the era and are timed to match the music pretty well. I watched it on my TV screen last night with all the lights off. Very "heady" to say the least.

    Here it is -



    This really was a riot to watch. Enjoy it. I would like to say it was good promotion for the artists involved but, honestly, I doubt any of the viewers even remembered the show the next day.

    Jack
     
    ParloFax and DonnyMe like this.
  11. You're confusing him with Kansas' Kerry Livgren, I think.
     
  12. Siegmund

    Siegmund Vinyl Sceptic

    Location:
    Britain, Europe
    No, I'm not. Kerry Minnear is a Christian musician, as is Kerry Livgren.
     
    Tristero likes this.
  13. Siegmund

    Siegmund Vinyl Sceptic

    Location:
    Britain, Europe
    Nope: see below.

    Kerry Minnear Interview · Make Weird Music


    Minnear talks about his work as a 'Christian musician' in the latter part of this interview.
     
  14. Blank Frank

    Blank Frank King of Carrot Flowers

    I appeared on Playing the Fool: several numbers were recorded at Newcastle City Hall and I was there down at the front, so a chunk of the applause and other audience noise was me.

    That and appearing on Wishbone Ash's Live Dates for the same reason are as close to being a rock star as I ever got.
     
    ParloFax and Isaac McHelicopter like this.
  15. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

    [​IMG]

    Taken from the PE forum -

    Kerry, Derek and Ray say they've got "something BIG and HEAVY" planned for late 2018/early 2019.

    (From Derek's Twitter account.)

    From Leonardo Pavkovic's FB page: [Leonardo was a business partner with Derek for many years, so he ain't just spouting off b.s. here]

    "One of my best friends for many years and one of my all time favorite people, Derek Shulman, is in London, and met Kerry Minnear and his brother Ray Shulman for some highly quality Gentle time. Gentle Giant ‘camp’ will announce soon something very very special and very big! But don’t hold your breath! The Gentle Geezers will not reunite for any show whatsoever! It’s more probable than the pope will marry and become atheist than seeing a Gentle Giant reunion! (Except reuniting for a photo!!) - Expect a big fat news soon!


    This is more then likely referring to the career spanning big box set announced a year ago or so...
     
  16. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

    [​IMG]

    Who's that holding the can of beer? Circa 1967.
     
    mx20 likes this.
  17. no.nine

    no.nine (not his real name)

    Location:
    NYC
    Elton John, pre-Elton John! :)
     
    Dok likes this.
  18. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

    Elton John tours Scotland with Simon Dupree 1967

    Touring Scotland with Simon Dupree and The Big Sound in 1967. Ray on the left and Derek on the right with their drummer Tony Ransley next to Derek.
     
    no.nine and ParloFax like this.
  19. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

    ParloFax and no.nine like this.
  20. It must be him indeed. He accompanied Simon Dupree & The Big Sound on tour for a while. From Ray's account, they sounded like they were good pals.
     
    no.nine likes this.
  21. Billo

    Billo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Southern England
    While Ray says they didn't know Reg before it's quite possible they may have met Elton John in Portsmouth

    The Shulman brothers lived in Fratton, Portsmouth - Derek Shulman went to see The Beatles at Portsmouth Guildhall

    later Simon Dupree & co played on local 'Sealink' ferry cruises of The Solent - the sea area around Portsmouth, Isle of Wight, and Southampton (my sister got their autographs on one such cruise)

    also they played local clubs in Portsmouth...one was very likely the old 'Oddfellows' Hall in Kingston Road, Portsmouth - a masonic club that had a music venue which blues and soul acts such as Long John Baldry, Rod Stewart, Bluesology, etc all performed, and young Reg Dwight would have played there too - so it's highly possible the Shulmans first met 'Elton John' there even if they wern't friends as such then

    in the early seventies Kerry Minnear had a flat in Stubbington Avenue, North End Portsmouth which was quite near to that hall in Kingston Road
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2018
    ParloFax and Dok like this.
  22. Mirror Image

    Mirror Image 200 Years Of Anton Bruckner

    Location:
    United States
    Malcolm Mortimore was not the original Gentle Giant drummer. That was Martin Smith. Their self-titled debut and Acquiring the Taste both featured Smith on drums. In fact, Mortimore only played on one album, Three Friends.
     
    StarThrower62 likes this.
  23. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

    [​IMG]

    From this year's GORGG in Manchester, England.
     
    Runicen and ParloFax like this.
  24. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

    Sydney-based Golden Robot hires former Roadrunner president Derek Shulman to expand global operations, signs more overseas acts - The Music Network

    [​IMG]

    From earlier this year....

    Shulman now takes on the role of president USA Operations/Worldwide expansion GRR

    He recounts, “When I met Mark a couple of years ago he asked me what I thought was needed to become a successful international rock music company in today’s less than auspicious recording atmosphere.

    “I answered Mark with three simple words. Passion, Capital and Luck.”

    [​IMG]

    Golden Robot Records
     
  25. Dok

    Dok Senior Member

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine