Gentle Giant are like NOOOOOOBODY else. They prided themselves as entertainers, and were ALL classically trained musicians who played many instruments... very well. I would say some influences would be early blues, Beatles, Dvorak or maybe Vivaldi and the classic Renaissance-era classical themes. Then you add in the funky jazz grooves? WTF man?! Been lisetening to GG for a long time and they are still unique and still fun to listen to. All of it!
Gentle Giant were a British progressive rock band active between 1970 and 1980. The band were known for the complexity and sophistication of their music and for the varied musical skills of their members. All of the band members were multi-instrumentalists. Although not commercially successful, they did achieve a cult following.[1]
I’m so glad to see you do this. Gentle Giant is the most underrated prog rock band ever. This is from their first album and it only gets better. Whoever requested this, thank you!
@@Alix777. I'm 54, and iv'e only just discovered this remarkable band! I kept putting them off for some unknown reason, but now that iv'e seen the very bright light, would you please advise me where to start! Thankyou and Peace.
@@Katehowe3010 Personally I would start with Octopus and then check out In A Glass House, The Power and the Glory, Free Hand, then go back to the beginning and listen to Gentle Giant, Acquiring the Taste, and Three Friends, then Playing The Fool (Live Album), Interview, and then you can stop there if you want. However, if you're into it enough that you want to hear the later stuff when they tried to go "pop", I'd check out The Missing Piece, Giant for a Day!, and Civilian. Those last three albums don't have quite the genius flourish that the older and middle albums have, but they're still very good in their own right and are worth hearing after you've explored their more complex stuff. But yeah Octopus through Free Hand is the quintessential "GG" Experience, if you ask me (20+ year fan here)
@@esdel1955 I saw them on their first tour of the UK, bottom of the bill from Groundhogs and Ten Years After. Same thing, I remember nothing of either of the headliners, they just had nothing to compete with GG's opening performance and audience reaction. I was only 4th row back from the stage and the 3 Shulman brothers looked like giants; solid build, big boots, blouse like tops and wide leather belts. At the end of this song they all jumped in the air at the same time, it was one of the oldest theatres in the country and I thought they'd crash through the stage. They really did bring the house down but in a powerfully musical way.
Their party trick live was to stand in a line playing all kinds of instruments but 'daisy chained' with each hand on a different instrument, so one would be bowing a violin while the next man played its fingerboard as with his other hand he picked the bass that someone else was fretting and so on with trumpet, guitar etc. etc. It was insane showing off, but it worked. And they could switch to being a string quartet, a recorder ensemble, playing a virtuoso xylophone and vibraphone duet, intricate vocal gymnastics, and also rocking out with hard blues/jazz guitar, bass and drums. They can be exhausting to listen to and not to everyone's taste at all. But I think you will enjoy exploring their weird and wonderful world.
I saw them at the Dallas Electric Ballroom after the Genesis "And then we're three" concert over at SMU around 78. There was an announcement right at the end of the Genesis concert that GG was playing there. So I was heading to Southside Oak Clift anyway. They did walk around the instruments there. About 50 of us lucky fans sat on the cement floor because it was an impromptu concert. And the floor was their stage.
Gentle Giant tunes I'd recommend: Advent of Panurge, Knots, Peel the Paint, Proclamation, Free Hand. They are rock, jazz, folk, psychedelic, prog and probably medieval/baroque. Also, when playing live they would switch instruments every few songs. Multi-instrumentalists!
Gentle Giant was one of the few bands Zappa found nice words for. What is a proof for Zappa's good taste. What makes Gentle Giant special was their ability to play real polyphony. The keyboarder dag studied music with the main disiplines piano and composition with main attention on polyphony. This is most obvious being heard on their tricky a capella parts that became one of their trademarks after the 4th album Octopus. More than most other groups they destroyed borders between different genres and mixed everything together to a music of their own. Another important part is the multitude of instruments some of them rather unusual in Rock as clavinet, cello, violin, metallophon, recorders and most important : vibraphon . The keyboarder was a real virtuoso on vibes, too. Not to forget breaking glasses, flipping coins, the sound of one of the first computer games and so on. And surprise surprise : they could do that on stage. The proof is here: ruclips.net/video/RpvbRdSiXUY/видео.html&ab_channel=OscarD%27Arcangeli
I was fortunate to have seen this band play three times. Unbelievable live. Most everything you heard on the studio albums they could replicate in concert. I saw them in 1975, in St. Louis. They were the opening act for Rick Wakeman. Gentle Giant was touring to support their album Free Hand. Rick Wakeman was ob tour for this King Arthur (actual title is ridiculously long) album. Sadly Rick Wakeman was so drunk and played so badly that we left his performance early. Honesty, I think even Rick Wakeman may have been a little bit intimidated by these guy's music prowess.. which is no small feat. Speaking of feat...you shuold check out the band Little Feat. Most people would implore you to do Dixie Chicken, Willing' or any of this other great songs but I think you would really dig their jam Day At The Dog Races. They drummer Richie Hayward (RIP) is a beast.and one of my favorite drummers.
Yes...The Fan. Another great jazz fusion jam. If Wilburn Reacts were to react to Dixie Chicken I hope that he would do the Waiting For Columbus version that morphs into Tripe Face Boogie. The first time I saw Little Feat they did a medley of Cold, Cold, Cold - Dixie Chicken - Tripe Face Boogie.
This is fantastic! I don't see to many Gentle Giant reactions. They were like King Crimson. They were in a league of their own. Total masters of their craft.
Thanks for giving GG a spin! They are without a doubt one of the most original and talented bands ever. Not every listener is appreciative of their style however if you really make an effort to listen it begins to become appealing. In my experience the rewards definitely outweigh the listening challenges. The compositional complexity, contraptual rhythms ,counterpoint harmonies, melodies and time signature changes all over the place can challenge the listener. If you listen to this band and "get it" it will change how you perceive music for the rest of your life. It seems they are very popular amongst other musicians because they immediately perceive the difficulty of performing their compositions. The GG band members have the chops and are multi instrumentalists. They are my favorite band of all time bar none. All hail the Power and the Glory that is Gentle Giant.
Wow! Another group I’ve never heard of, and I’m blown away! THAT WAS PHENOMENAL! ...Another rabbit hole for me to explore! (The Mars Volta was the last group I discovered on this channel. A progressive/psychedelic rock band with great talent) I recognize “Alucard” is Dracula spelled backwards. (This I know from the video game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night). There’s a segment in this song where the vocals sounds like it was played backwards. The only way I can figure that could be done would be to sing and record it, play it backwards and learn to sing the backwards vocal, then record the backwards sung vocals backwards. (This is the only way I can imagine they were able to get that sound) If anyone has any idea if that was how they did it, or if it was done a different way, I’d be very curious to know. I LOVE this track, and I’m very exited to explore more of their music. ...I’m also curious to know how a 70’s band with this much OBVIOUS talent, didn’t get any airplay on Classic Rock stations. I feel the radio has let me down.
They were too clever, it was hard to hear them on the radio in the UK. My introduction to Gentle Giant was listening to John Peel on late night radio in '72. I would have been 13. Went out and bought 'Octopus' as soon as I could.
The first time I saw them, they were opening for Jethro Tull in Frankfurt, Germany in '72 while I was in the Army. I had never heard of them and kind of scoffed when I saw their name. Well, they came out with ALUCARD and MIND WAS BLOWN! Ever since then, they have been my favorite band and, even after 50 years of listening to them, I still find something new each time. Sheer Brilliance On Display for All to See!
I am a 72 year old man that was blessed for being born in the 50s. I say that because I was in my twenties in the 70s, and here in UK. As you say in an earlier reaction , you said that you were into Hip Hop only.......only.......only !!! Well here in the UK we had gone through the 60s garbage pop music, and in the seventies there seemed to be an explosion of different types of music ( I wont say genres, that word was unknown in music circles ) So the sky was the limit, anything goes, mix blues with Folk music, Jazz with rock music, drug induced pop music !!! where all these bands came from I have no idea. Every large town or city had at least one Club where all of these bands could be heard. where I live in Plymouth there was a club called The Van Dyke club and I was lucky enough to see 'up and coming bands' like Jethro Tull, Rory Gallagher, Free, The Nice, plus other bands that never made the big time, like Skid Row (the original Irish three piece band with 17 year old Gary Moore ) also EGG, if you are into complex timings, please check out The Polite Force. I'm sorry I am rambling..... comes with old age!!! Anyway sometime in the early 70s I went to watch a band called The Groundhogs and the support band was Gentle Giant,,,,,, I knew that they were previously called Simon Dupree so I was expecting 60s pop music rubbish. Instant I mean instant fan
Chod, we in the '70's had a very, very hard but great time keeping up with the GREAT music that was out there. Do you know how hard it was to study for school!! We wanted to go to concerts all the time" I saw GG at the Shrine Theater in L.A. and was blown away. The same year I saw Chick Corea and Return to Forever at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. So hard not to be an audiophile then building our LP inventory was expensive! But worth every penny.
GG presents a line (musical theme or motive) and then just takes it in every direction imaginable. There are soooo many great GG albums/ tunes, check out Octopus, Acquiring the Taste, Free Hand, 3 Friends, to name a few. Every band member plays multiple instruments, from horns, strings, vibes, to their primary instruments of guitar, bass, keys and drums. I believe that the Schullman bros. are graduates of a London Music Conservatory.
That was just the keyboard player Kerry Minnear, who graduated with a degree from The Academy of Music. The Shulman brothers first developed their skills in R&B and soul music, their whole family were artistic and musical.
Chod, two worlds just collided for me, love your intelligent, musically informed, reactions, and have loved Gentle Giant since they first began. Just couldn't believe you might get to this band so soon (if ever), so a massive thanks for whoever requested them. I have tried over the years to convert many friends to GG with only a very few successes. I did finally drag two of them to a GG concert, I needed a lift there and they knew how passionate I was about their music. They had to sit and listen for a couple of hours and they were totally mesmerized, and finally got it and were converted enough to go and get every one of their albums the following day. Gentle Giant truly demands an open mind and deep understanding of music to begin to appreciate what these musicians had achieved. Theirs was a mission of take it or leave it, no compromise (Well, that is until sadly their last two or three patchy albums, when they tried to be more commercial and had finally realised the world had never been ready for them, and might never be). They were the epitome of 'progressive music', so I would recommend you hear the tracks in album order to hear their development. Maybe add a live version of each song after hearing the audio (which is usually the way you work, I know). The live versions were generally much expanded upon and rearranged on sometimes completely different instruments. Most of the band were singers, they were all multi-instrumentalists, and they were all great performers, they fused rock, jazz, classical, and medieval styles into something brand new which has never been matched. They are a musicians band. Live is a whole different experience again, where you realise they swopped from one instrument to the next, maybe playing an assortment of two or three within one song (like having a handful of Edgar Winters in one band). For a first live video I would recommend 'Funny ways', off the same first album as 'Alucard' BTW that's 'Dracula' backwards, and gives a clue to the track's darkness. This came out in 1970 and two years later Edgar Winter released 'Frankenstein', which could almost be a companion piece, I wonder if he was influenced by GG? . Check out 'Proclamation/ Funny ways' live, two great numbers, the second one is probably one of their most melodically accessible, and showcases a range of some of the many instruments the band members could play. Please, let's have many more GG tracks, you will truly have never heard anything like it before. ruclips.net/video/2F_C4Y8n16I/видео.html
Gentle Giant was amazingly good over their first eight albums. Super proggy, not very psychedelic. “Alucard” (read it backwards) is from their debut album. They get even better, weirder, and more polished with time. One of the best loved and most influential 70’s prog bands. Somebody else suggested the song “In A Glass House” as your next GG exposure, and I’ll second that suggestion. There are lots of other good 70’s prog bands to explore. Try Caravan, PFM, Camel, Renaissance, Gryphon, Van der Graff Generator, Nektar, Hawkwind, Egg, National Health, Mike Oldfield, Tangerine Dream, should I go on?
That man on the cover is Pantagruel, he's the giant of the story written by Rabelais. The giant lives in an Abbey, where do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
Yes (particularly the "Fragile" and "Close to the Edge" albums) combined Western European classical (Romantic period - Mozart, Brahms, Chopin) with rock. Emerson, Lake, and Palmer combined Eastern European Romantic (Mussorgsky, Greig, Wagner) with rock. Gentle Giant reached much further back - about 250 years earlier - to combine the styles of the Renaissance and baroque eras of classical music with rock! All the members of Gentle Giant were multi-instrumentalists, with most of their albums listing between 20 - 45 different instruments played *by the 5 or 6 members*! For a great example, check out their "Features from Octopus" - a medley of songs from their 4th album "Octopus" running a bit under 15 minutes. It shows off the vocal and instrumental versatility of the band as much as can be in a single "song" - and particularly their ability to choreograph "quick-change" instruments in mid-song! ruclips.net/video/Ga2HdehNtyY/видео.html
Props for starting out listening to a song off their first and their most difficult album musically. Damn! You are a trooper! Their second album is called Acquiring the Taste and that's definitely how to describe them. Dive deep and you won't be disappointed. Bravo!
I love your WTF expressions! Honestly, man, Prog is the gift that keeps on giving. I’ve been listening to it for 20 years now (I discovered the genre in my early 20s) and I still find new songs and bands from around the world. Psychedelic rock is usually dated from ‘66-‘69. Then King Crimson happened (and arguably Pink Floyd). Prog is 70s. Everything after is trying to capture the spirit of that decade.
Chod, I am subscribing and commenting for the first time, having only just "discovered" music reaction videos. I am a 70's+ UK male who lived and rocked through the time when most of the music in the videos appeared. Chod's recent top 10 consisted of 7 UK bands and he mentioned Gentle Giant as outside and above his top 10. Thanks Chod, it's my first hearing of Gentle Giant, how did I missed them back in the day, great.
Yes! Gentle Giant! Pretty heavy prog (not psychedelic, tho), but their melodies will stick in your head for decades. Maybe try "The Advent of Panurge" next... You could also try the song "Metamorphosis" by Curved Air to continue your voyage of discovery...
Wow. I'm late to this party, but I had to jump in on your recommendation for Metamorphosis by Curved Air. One of my all time favorites. Absolutely gorgeous music. Eddie Jobson's piano playing is stunning for being a teenager.
GG has been my favorite band since the 70s. I saw them live back then in Chicago twice. PLEASE watch a live concert on RUclips and especially pay attention to these songs: On Reflection, Cogs in Cogs, Free Hand and In A Glass House!
I always feel like the break after the first verse is kind of like Dracula morphing into a bat and flying away. This, along with the lyrics, makes for a terrific piece of program music. Gentle Giant rules!
Gentle Giant were a unique band.... really enjoyable prog.... Dude it's simple - ENGLISH PROGRESSIVE ROCK. You're in for a real treat the further you explore it's a deep rabbit hole.... ELP, King Crimson, Caravan , Steve Hillage, Gentle Giant, Hawkwind, Camel, YES, Jethro Tull, early Queen, Black Sabbath , Gong, May Blitz, there's tonnes more... other European countries had their equivalents too from that time....
Thanks, this is one of the better blind reactions I've seen. Gentle Giant was so tight as a group that most of what they recorded, didn't require overdubs! Yes, prog rock came out of psychedelic music so they have some things in common. I'll have to see if you have reviewed more Giant like "Glass House" and "Octopus" Thanks that was fun.
You don't hear Gentle Giant that often on the channels. And if so, then hardly a song like "Alucard". Thanks for that. This is definitely music that not everyone likes (but me ;-)), but reveals the musician's artistic potential. One of my favorite Gentle Giant songs is "In A Glass House" from the album of the same name (1973)(the whole album is great) . As a "contrast program" I would like to suggest a completely different masterpiece. "Fast Car" by Tracy Chapman. Preferably in the live version ruclips.net/video/AIOAlaACuv4/видео.html here. But the studio version is also ok.
These guys are classically trained. I read that felt that they weren't hard enough and consciously put an effort into sounding harder. They remind me of minstrel music and do Madrigals. Unique with crazy time signitures. Good choice.
Another prog rock band you must react to is Captain Beyond... their song Dancing Madly Backwards on a sea of air will blow your mind... the drummer will blow you away... trust me I wouldn't steer you wrong.
@Wilburn Reactions, GG was one of my favourite bands. Alucard always reminded me of something by George Duke, or early Funkadelic. I’m glad that you dug it. 😺
When you said Emerson Lake and Palmer it was an instant sub, you're definitely not wrong. Yeah this fits the psychadelic genre, most prog rock from the late 60's through early 70's is heavily influenced, and quite a few of the artists would play in multiple groups. Greg Lake of Emerson Lake and Palmer did the vocals on the first King Crimson album, Court of the Crimson King (which is an incredible song, I'd definitely give it a listen).
You can react or just listening to other tracks from the same band, "Proclamation" (very groovy and more straightforward), and "School days" (one of my favorite, very smooth sound with complex vocal harmonies and a cool jazzy part)...anyway they were true great musicians and there is no real bad songs from them
By the mid-1970s the theatrical side of prog had well and truly taken over - Rick Wakeman's attempts to stage the exploits of King Arthur... on ice... attest to that - but in the end it became too much. King Crimson retreated from the scene in 1974, as if seeing the writing on the wall, and wouldn't emerge until 1981 - with 'Discipline', which has rhythms and polyrhythms that make you think, at first, it must all be done with machines. Gentle Giant had a curious relationship with classical music - you should try out 'Knots'.
Great reaction! When I saw that your first Gentle Giant song was going to be Alucard, I thought you might not appreciate it. That is not where I would start with my Gentle Giant recommendations, and the lead vocals can be a hurdle for most first-time listeners to GG. But then again, you are at the head of the class when it comes to young people discovering old music. Please play more Gentle Giant. Also, a band called Family with Roger Chapman may intrigue you if you like challenging prog/folk/jazz. There are a lot of Family songs I would not start with but I recommend The Weaver's Answer or Between Blue and Me. Again, liking Family requires appreciating the sometimes challenging lead vocals.
I suppose it's post-psychedelia, but taken up a notch. Also you can detect the growing influence of jazz-fusion, leaning on the synthesizers and shifting meter.
Here we go Gentle Giant. Prog. Royalty. Please go back to 1973 for some Peter Gabriel fronted Genesis. Firth of Fifth off the Selling England by the Pound album. Masterpiece. With your musical background you will wonder why you didn't listen sooner. I predict you will then dive deeper and will hold Yes in one hand and Genesis in the other and try and decide who is better.
Yes, ELP shares their complexity. They both fall down the prog rock hole. GG leans more jazzy than ELP, and ELP tends more classical, though they both cross over.
Rock/Jazz/Gregorian Chant Fusion? Yes, there is more. You still have to sample the power and the glory of Pavarotti, the romance-without-a-word of Chopin and Debussy, the majesty of Beethoven.
They're amazing man. I know they sound strange, freak and complex. And they are. But once you acquire the taste by their sophisticated music, you'll enjoy with so much pleasure and happiness.
Hi Wilburn! I like your tasteful reactions! Just a bit more info for you.......These guys consisted of three brothers and two others, and all multi instrumentalists!
Ah, Grasshopper, I envy your journey! For more mind-blowing fun, check out Frank Zappa Montana (A Token Of His Extreme). Make sure it's the live version! Welcome to the Rabbit Hole...
HEY CHOD MY MAN!!! NICE MY FRIEND!! GENTLE GIANT!! Went to the comments!! We're all in agreement with how AWESOME THEY WERE!! ADVENT OF PERNURGE FOR SURE!! FRANK ZAPPA, RETURN TO FOREVER, YEP MY FRIEND!! I SUGGESTED 2 OTHER PROG- ROCK BANDS ON YOUR YES REACTION VIDEO!! BAND#1- THE STRAWBS WITH 2 SONGS! SONG#1- ROUND AND ROUND AND SONG-#2- HERO AND HEROINE!! BAND #2- PFM! THEY ARE AN ITALIAN PROG- ROCK BAND!! SONG#1- PHOTO OF GHOSTS, SONG-#2- CELEBRATION! BAND #3- RIVER WHYLESS!! THEY ARE A PROG- FOLK BAND WITH A REALLY UNIQUE SOUND!! PLEASE REACT TO THEIR LIVE STUDIO VERSION OF- STONE- ON AUDIOTREE LIVE AND SONG-#2- ALL DAY ALL NIGHT( OFFICIAL VIDEO) BTW- CHOD IM THE RETIRED CHEF FROM PHOENIX WITH THE AWARD WINNING BLUES MUSICIAN NEPHEW WHO PASSED AWAY 2 YRS AGO. I GAVE YOU SOME SONGS TO REACT TO OF HIS!! THEY ARE LIVE VERSIONS WHICH YOU MUST DO MY FRIEND!!! #1- IS AN AMAZING COVER OF A B.B.KING CLASSIC- 3 OCLOCK BLUES BY THE NICK MOSS BAND! MIKE IS THE LEAD SINGER OF THE BAND, SONG #2- DANIELLE NICOLE & MICHAEL LEDBETTER- NIGHT TIME IS THE RIGHT TIME LIVE!! SONG#3- I WANT THE WORLD TO KNOW- THE NICK MOSS BAND LIVE AT THE BING LOUNGE!! GRAB YOUR DAD AND HAVE HIM.WATCH THESE WITH YOU!!! AN AMAZING VOICE SILENCED WAY TOO SOON!!! OKAY IM OUT!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND HARD WORK!!! YOUR THE COOLEST KAT OUT THERE WITH A TRULY SINCERE SMILE!!! NEVER LOSE THAT MY FRIEND!! YOUR#1- AZ FAN MICHAEL😊😊😊
You truly do, if you like this track then you're ready for a wonderful journey. Check out some youTube live performances to see how amazing they were as multi-instrumentalists.
LOL, I can't belive you did a Gentle Giant tune. I don't think I've ever seen anyone react to them. A lot of people have never heard of them. The song you did isn't my favorite Gentle Giant tune. They used a lot of dissonance in it, sometimes I like it, sometimes I don't care so much for it. I didn't think it was used well in this track. That was from their first album, Gentle Giant from 1970, track 3. I like 'The Boys in the Band' from their 1972 release Octopus better. I really like 'In A Glass House' from their 1973 album of the same name. 'Just The Same' from their 1975 album Free Hand is nice too.
That was my fist lp I bought of King Crimson. Though I already heard their first In the court ...around 1970 on "Beaker Street" KAAY 1090am LITTLE ROCK many of times.
Do you know why this song sounds as it does? Bc ALUCARD spelled backward is DRACULA! Intelligent Bands that make music which create atmosphere relating to the intended mood are the best. So I am a Brotha who's been into Prog and complex Rock since the early 70's in my teens. Great ProgRock incorporates psychedelic, jazz, classical, folk, blues even Funk (especially with GG). And this song is simple compared what Giant did after this first album. They just became more and more sophisticated with each album. You're in for a mind expanding roller coaster if you stay on the GG trip!!! From your previous reactions I see you've hardly dipped your toe into the serious stuff. more GG, more YES, King Crimson, Genesis, PFM (Italian), Van der Graaf Generator, Happy the Man, ELP, Curved Air, Renaissance and plenty more less popular obscure masterworks will take you down the rabbit hole of sonic wonders! have fun!!!
I'm not sure why, but it appears that my comment keeps disappearing. I did recommend this song and I'm glad you liked it so much! Here are a few more songs by them that I think you will also like: Prologue Schooldays Peel the Paint Giant Just the Same On Reflection Free Hand Time to Kill The Advent of Panurge A Cry for Everyone Knots Think of Me with Kindness
Not sure what you're reaction will be, but Gentle Giant is way out in the deep part of the ocean. Will be interested to hear your thoughts, even if you weren't into it.
Thanks for showing interest in our music! Keep up the awesome reactions!
THANK YOU GG!
GOAT
Greatest band ever.
Gentle Giant are like NOOOOOOBODY else. They prided themselves as entertainers, and were ALL classically trained musicians who played many instruments... very well. I would say some influences would be early blues, Beatles, Dvorak or maybe Vivaldi and the classic Renaissance-era classical themes. Then you add in the funky jazz grooves? WTF man?! Been lisetening to GG for a long time and they are still unique and still fun to listen to. All of it!
Gentle Giant were a British progressive rock band active between 1970 and 1980. The band were known for the complexity and sophistication of their music and for the varied musical skills of their members. All of the band members were multi-instrumentalists. Although not commercially successful, they did achieve a cult following.[1]
I’m so glad to see you do this. Gentle Giant is the most underrated prog rock band ever. This is from their first album and it only gets better. Whoever requested this, thank you!
Their first album is good but you're right it's gets better...
I requested this one. Not sure if anyone else did, but I certainly did suggest it.
@@Alix777. I'm 54, and iv'e only just discovered this remarkable band! I kept putting them off for some unknown reason, but now that iv'e seen the very bright light, would you please advise me where to start! Thankyou and Peace.
@@Katehowe3010 Personally I would start with Octopus and then check out In A Glass House, The Power and the Glory, Free Hand, then go back to the beginning and listen to Gentle Giant, Acquiring the Taste, and Three Friends, then Playing The Fool (Live Album), Interview, and then you can stop there if you want. However, if you're into it enough that you want to hear the later stuff when they tried to go "pop", I'd check out The Missing Piece, Giant for a Day!, and Civilian. Those last three albums don't have quite the genius flourish that the older and middle albums have, but they're still very good in their own right and are worth hearing after you've explored their more complex stuff. But yeah Octopus through Free Hand is the quintessential "GG" Experience, if you ask me (20+ year fan here)
Gong and klaatu: are we a joke to you?
In 1976, I saw Gentle Giant open for Yes. My most memorable concert.
@@esdel1955 I saw them on their first tour of the UK, bottom of the bill from Groundhogs and Ten Years After. Same thing, I remember nothing of either of the headliners, they just had nothing to compete with GG's opening performance and audience reaction. I was only 4th row back from the stage and the 3 Shulman brothers looked like giants; solid build, big boots, blouse like tops and wide leather belts. At the end of this song they all jumped in the air at the same time, it was one of the oldest theatres in the country and I thought they'd crash through the stage. They really did bring the house down but in a powerfully musical way.
My current fav gentle giant song is “in a glass house” . Very unique band, bravo to you for trying them out!
I was just listening to “IAGH” earlier today.
@Bookhouse Boy for sure. Easily in my top 10 prog albums of the classic era
The Runaway from In a Glass House is a great opener! The whole album is great but for me that song is maybe the best.
I love their song "I Lost My Head." It goes from one end of the spectrum to the other. It is one of their hardest rockers at the end!
Their party trick live was to stand in a line playing all kinds of instruments but 'daisy chained' with each hand on a different instrument, so one would be bowing a violin while the next man played its fingerboard as with his other hand he picked the bass that someone else was fretting and so on with trumpet, guitar etc. etc. It was insane showing off, but it worked. And they could switch to being a string quartet, a recorder ensemble, playing a virtuoso xylophone and vibraphone duet, intricate vocal gymnastics, and also rocking out with hard blues/jazz guitar, bass and drums. They can be exhausting to listen to and not to everyone's taste at all. But I think you will enjoy exploring their weird and wonderful world.
I loved that in concert. Such great music, great musicians, and then they were funny and goofy and clearly just having the best time on stage. .
Wrong
I saw them at the Dallas Electric Ballroom after the Genesis "And then we're three" concert over at SMU around 78.
There was an announcement right at the end of the Genesis concert that GG was playing there. So I was heading to Southside Oak Clift anyway.
They did walk around the instruments there. About 50 of us lucky fans sat on the cement floor because it was an impromptu concert. And the floor was their stage.
Gentle Giant tunes I'd recommend: Advent of Panurge, Knots, Peel the Paint, Proclamation, Free Hand. They are rock, jazz, folk, psychedelic, prog and probably medieval/baroque. Also, when playing live they would switch instruments every few songs. Multi-instrumentalists!
Your mind is blown by this, all our minds are blown by this. They were the best band ever to walk the planet. Very enjoyable watching your reactions.
I fucking love this song. So groovy, creepy and unmistakably Gentle Giant
Gentle Giant was one of the few bands Zappa found nice words for. What is a proof for Zappa's good taste. What makes Gentle Giant special was their ability to play real polyphony. The keyboarder dag studied music with the main disiplines piano and composition with main attention on polyphony. This is most obvious being heard on their tricky a capella parts that became one of their trademarks after the 4th album Octopus. More than most other groups they destroyed borders between different genres and mixed everything together to a music of their own. Another important part is the multitude of instruments some of them rather unusual in Rock as clavinet, cello, violin, metallophon, recorders and most important : vibraphon . The keyboarder was a real virtuoso on vibes, too. Not to forget breaking glasses, flipping coins, the sound of one of the first computer games and so on.
And surprise surprise : they could do that on stage. The proof is here: ruclips.net/video/RpvbRdSiXUY/видео.html&ab_channel=OscarD%27Arcangeli
@maraboo72 Thank you for that! It was a joy to watch. Ear candy, every step of the way.
@@douglasgonzalez7561 I'm glad you enjoyed it.
There is SO MUCH more. Try Return to Forever's Romantic Warrior. (RIP Chick Corea) Or anything from the Mahavishnu Orchestra.
YES and YES 😀
Yep, my thoughts exactly.
YES YES YES>>>>>Saw them live twice in the 70's Amazing band!!! try "Free Hand"...love it
Sometimes I think “Freehand” is my favorite GG album.
Found the vinyl for 1 euro... Not my favorite but a very good album for sure.
I was fortunate to have seen this band play three times. Unbelievable live. Most everything you heard on the studio albums they could replicate in concert. I saw them in 1975, in St. Louis. They were the opening act for Rick Wakeman. Gentle Giant was touring to support their album Free Hand. Rick Wakeman was ob tour for this King Arthur (actual title is ridiculously long) album. Sadly Rick Wakeman was so drunk and played so badly that we left his performance early. Honesty, I think even Rick Wakeman may have been a little bit intimidated by these guy's music prowess.. which is no small feat.
Speaking of feat...you shuold check out the band Little Feat. Most people would implore you to do Dixie Chicken, Willing' or any of this other great songs but I think you would really dig their jam Day At The Dog Races. They drummer Richie Hayward (RIP) is a beast.and one of my favorite drummers.
Or 'The Fan', if not Day at the dog races.
Yes...The Fan. Another great jazz fusion jam. If Wilburn Reacts were to react to Dixie Chicken I hope that he would do the Waiting For Columbus version that morphs into Tripe Face Boogie. The first time I saw Little Feat they did a medley of Cold, Cold, Cold - Dixie Chicken - Tripe Face Boogie.
This is fantastic! I don't see to many Gentle Giant reactions. They were like King Crimson. They were in a league of their own. Total masters of their craft.
Thanks for giving GG a spin! They are without a doubt one of the most original and talented bands ever. Not every listener is appreciative of their style however if you really make an effort to listen it begins to become appealing. In my experience the rewards definitely outweigh the listening challenges. The compositional complexity, contraptual rhythms ,counterpoint harmonies, melodies and time signature changes all over the place can challenge the listener. If you listen to this band and "get it" it will change how you perceive music for the rest of your life. It seems they are very popular amongst other musicians because they immediately perceive the difficulty of performing their compositions. The GG band members have the chops and are multi instrumentalists. They are my favorite band of all time bar none. All hail the Power and the Glory that is Gentle Giant.
Wow! Another group I’ve never heard of, and I’m blown away! THAT WAS PHENOMENAL! ...Another rabbit hole for me to explore! (The Mars Volta was the last group I discovered on this channel. A progressive/psychedelic rock band with great talent) I recognize “Alucard” is Dracula spelled backwards. (This I know from the video game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night). There’s a segment in this song where the vocals sounds like it was played backwards. The only way I can figure that could be done would be to sing and record it, play it backwards and learn to sing the backwards vocal, then record the backwards sung vocals backwards. (This is the only way I can imagine they were able to get that sound) If anyone has any idea if that was how they did it, or if it was done a different way, I’d be very curious to know. I LOVE this track, and I’m very exited to explore more of their music. ...I’m also curious to know how a 70’s band with this much OBVIOUS talent, didn’t get any airplay on Classic Rock stations. I feel the radio has let me down.
They were too clever, it was hard to hear them on the radio in the UK. My introduction to Gentle Giant was listening to John Peel on late night radio in '72. I would have been 13. Went out and bought 'Octopus' as soon as I could.
When your favorite bands are Zappa Tull Neal Morse, Gentle Giant and Arjen Lucassen you need nothing else.
The first time I saw them, they were opening for Jethro Tull in Frankfurt, Germany in '72 while I was in the Army. I had never heard of them and kind of scoffed when I saw their name. Well, they came out with ALUCARD and MIND WAS BLOWN! Ever since then, they have been my favorite band and, even after 50 years of listening to them, I still find something new each time. Sheer Brilliance On Display for All to See!
just to check how they could write poetry with words AND sounds, try Three Friends, last song from the album Three Friends. It is simply beautiful...
I am a 72 year old man that was blessed for being born in the 50s. I say that because I was in my twenties in the 70s, and here in UK. As you say in an earlier reaction , you said that you were into Hip Hop only.......only.......only !!! Well here in the UK we had gone through the 60s garbage pop music, and in the seventies there seemed to be an explosion of different types of music ( I wont say genres, that word was unknown in music circles ) So the sky was the limit, anything goes, mix blues with Folk music, Jazz with rock music, drug induced pop music !!! where all these bands came from I have no idea. Every large town or city had at least one Club where all of these bands could be heard. where I live in Plymouth there was a club called The Van Dyke club and I was lucky enough to see 'up and coming bands' like Jethro Tull, Rory Gallagher, Free, The Nice, plus other bands that never made the big time, like Skid Row (the original Irish three piece band with 17 year old Gary Moore ) also EGG, if you are into complex timings, please check out The Polite Force. I'm sorry I am rambling..... comes with old age!!! Anyway sometime in the early 70s I went to watch a band called The Groundhogs and the support band was Gentle Giant,,,,,, I knew that they were previously called Simon Dupree so I was expecting 60s pop music rubbish. Instant I mean instant fan
Now you're ready for Frank Zappa.
Chod, we in the '70's had a very, very hard but great time keeping up with the GREAT music that was out there. Do you know how hard it was to study for school!! We wanted to go to concerts all the time" I saw GG at the Shrine Theater in L.A. and was blown away. The same year I saw Chick Corea and Return to Forever at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. So hard not to be an audiophile then building our LP inventory was expensive! But worth every penny.
GG presents a line (musical theme or motive) and then just takes it in every direction imaginable. There are soooo many great GG albums/ tunes, check out Octopus, Acquiring the Taste, Free Hand, 3 Friends, to name a few. Every band member plays multiple instruments, from horns, strings, vibes, to their primary instruments of guitar, bass, keys and drums. I believe that the Schullman bros. are graduates of a London Music Conservatory.
That was just the keyboard player Kerry Minnear, who graduated with a degree from The Academy of Music. The Shulman brothers first developed their skills in R&B and soul music, their whole family were artistic and musical.
@@MrDiddyDee thanks! I wasn't quite sure.GG is one of my all time favorites!
Chod, two worlds just collided for me, love your intelligent, musically informed, reactions, and have loved Gentle Giant since they first began. Just couldn't believe you might get to this band so soon (if ever), so a massive thanks for whoever requested them. I have tried over the years to convert many friends to GG with only a very few successes. I did finally drag two of them to a GG concert, I needed a lift there and they knew how passionate I was about their music. They had to sit and listen for a couple of hours and they were totally mesmerized, and finally got it and were converted enough to go and get every one of their albums the following day.
Gentle Giant truly demands an open mind and deep understanding of music to begin to appreciate what these musicians had achieved. Theirs was a mission of take it or leave it, no compromise (Well, that is until sadly their last two or three patchy albums, when they tried to be more commercial and had finally realised the world had never been ready for them, and might never be).
They were the epitome of 'progressive music', so I would recommend you hear the tracks in album order to hear their development. Maybe add a live version of each song after hearing the audio (which is usually the way you work, I know). The live versions were generally much expanded upon and rearranged on sometimes completely different instruments. Most of the band were singers, they were all multi-instrumentalists, and they were all great performers, they fused rock, jazz, classical, and medieval styles into something brand new which has never been matched. They are a musicians band.
Live is a whole different experience again, where you realise they swopped from one instrument to the next, maybe playing an assortment of two or three within one song (like having a handful of Edgar Winters in one band). For a first live video I would recommend 'Funny ways', off the same first album as 'Alucard' BTW that's 'Dracula' backwards, and gives a clue to the track's darkness. This came out in 1970 and two years later Edgar Winter released 'Frankenstein', which could almost be a companion piece, I wonder if he was influenced by GG? .
Check out 'Proclamation/ Funny ways' live, two great numbers, the second one is probably one of their most melodically accessible, and showcases a range of some of the many instruments the band members could play. Please, let's have many more GG tracks, you will truly have never heard anything like it before. ruclips.net/video/2F_C4Y8n16I/видео.html
Definitely didn't expect a dive into Gentle Giant so soon. One of the lesser known prog bands. Very complex music, but so much fun to listen to.
Gentle Giant was amazingly good over their first eight albums. Super proggy, not very psychedelic. “Alucard” (read it backwards) is from their debut album. They get even better, weirder, and more polished with time. One of the best loved and most influential 70’s prog bands. Somebody else suggested the song “In A Glass House” as your next GG exposure, and I’ll second that suggestion.
There are lots of other good 70’s prog bands to explore. Try Caravan, PFM, Camel, Renaissance, Gryphon, Van der Graff Generator, Nektar, Hawkwind, Egg, National Health, Mike Oldfield, Tangerine Dream, should I go on?
read it backwards, no way!
@@ertlk24 makes the lyrics more understandable.
@@markdrechsler5660 no doubt, never new that! Great pick up!
Audience. From the House on the Hill album. All great.
You have no idea how good that band becomes after that first album!
That man on the cover is Pantagruel, he's the giant of the story written by Rabelais. The giant lives in an Abbey, where do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
Yes (particularly the "Fragile" and "Close to the Edge" albums) combined Western European classical (Romantic period - Mozart, Brahms, Chopin) with rock.
Emerson, Lake, and Palmer combined Eastern European Romantic (Mussorgsky, Greig, Wagner) with rock.
Gentle Giant reached much further back - about 250 years earlier - to combine the styles of the Renaissance and baroque eras of classical music with rock!
All the members of Gentle Giant were multi-instrumentalists, with most of their albums listing between 20 - 45 different instruments played *by the 5 or 6 members*!
For a great example, check out their "Features from Octopus" - a medley of songs from their 4th album "Octopus" running a bit under 15 minutes. It shows off the vocal and instrumental versatility of the band as much as can be in a single "song" - and particularly their ability to choreograph "quick-change" instruments in mid-song!
ruclips.net/video/Ga2HdehNtyY/видео.html
Props for starting out listening to a song off their first and their most difficult album musically. Damn! You are a trooper! Their second album is called Acquiring the Taste and that's definitely how to describe them. Dive deep and you won't be disappointed. Bravo!
3 family Members in this...Prog/Rock meets Zappa....these guys Rocked the live stage
I love your WTF expressions! Honestly, man, Prog is the gift that keeps on giving. I’ve been listening to it for 20 years now (I discovered the genre in my early 20s) and I still find new songs and bands from around the world. Psychedelic rock is usually dated from ‘66-‘69. Then King Crimson happened (and arguably Pink Floyd). Prog is 70s. Everything after is trying to capture the spirit of that decade.
Chod, I am subscribing and commenting for the first time, having only just "discovered" music reaction videos. I am a 70's+ UK male who lived and rocked through the time when most of the music in the videos appeared. Chod's recent top 10 consisted of 7 UK bands and he mentioned Gentle Giant as outside and above his top 10. Thanks Chod, it's my first hearing of Gentle Giant, how did I missed them back in the day, great.
Yes! Gentle Giant! Pretty heavy prog (not psychedelic, tho), but their melodies will stick in your head for decades. Maybe try "The Advent of Panurge" next... You could also try the song "Metamorphosis" by Curved Air to continue your voyage of discovery...
Wow. I'm late to this party, but I had to jump in on your recommendation for Metamorphosis by Curved Air. One of my all time favorites. Absolutely gorgeous music. Eddie Jobson's piano playing is stunning for being a teenager.
Agreed!
GG has been my favorite band since the 70s. I saw them live back then in Chicago twice. PLEASE watch a live concert on RUclips and especially pay attention to these songs: On Reflection, Cogs in Cogs, Free Hand and In A Glass House!
Gary Green - guitar, mandolin, vocals, recorder, bass guitar, drums, xylophone (1970-1980)
Kerry Minnear - keyboards, lead vocals (on recordings only), cello, vibraphone, xylophone, recorder, guitar, bass guitar, drums (1970-80)
Derek Shulman - lead vocals, saxophone, recorder, keyboards, bass guitar, drums, percussion, "Shulberry" (3-string custom electric ukulele)[32] (1970-1980)
Phil Shulman - lead vocals, saxophone, trumpet, mellophone, clarinet, recorder, percussion (1970-1973)
Ray Shulman - bass guitar, trumpet, violin, vocals, viola, drums, percussion, recorder, guitar (1970-1980)
Martin Smith - drums, percussion (1970-1971; died 1997)
Malcolm Mortimore - drums, percussion (1971-1972)
John "Pugwash" Weathers - drums, percussion, vibraphone, xylophone, vocals, guitar (1972-1980)
I always feel like the break after the first verse is kind of like Dracula morphing into a bat and flying away. This, along with the lyrics, makes for a terrific piece of program music.
Gentle Giant rules!
Gentle Giant were a unique band.... really enjoyable prog.... Dude it's simple - ENGLISH PROGRESSIVE ROCK. You're in for a real treat the further you explore it's a deep rabbit hole.... ELP, King Crimson, Caravan , Steve Hillage, Gentle Giant, Hawkwind, Camel, YES, Jethro Tull, early Queen, Black Sabbath , Gong, May Blitz, there's tonnes more... other European countries had their equivalents too from that time....
What a hell of a groove this drops into, so ahead of their time. Great vid, love seeing first reactions to this band!
This is 'fusion'. Kind of prog/jazz rock. Gentle Giant are outrageously good, consistently!Enjoy. Cheers!!!
Thanks, this is one of the better blind reactions I've seen. Gentle Giant was so tight as a group that most of what they recorded, didn't require overdubs! Yes, prog rock came out of psychedelic music so they have some things in common. I'll have to see if you have reviewed more Giant like "Glass House" and "Octopus" Thanks that was fun.
You are a connoisseur Wilburn, thank you so much for your reactions!
You don't hear Gentle Giant that often on the channels. And if so, then hardly a song like "Alucard". Thanks for that. This is definitely music that not everyone likes (but me ;-)), but reveals the musician's artistic potential. One of my favorite Gentle Giant songs is "In A Glass House" from the album of the same name (1973)(the whole album is great) . As a "contrast program" I would like to suggest a completely different masterpiece. "Fast Car" by Tracy Chapman. Preferably in the live version ruclips.net/video/AIOAlaACuv4/видео.html here. But the studio version is also ok.
These guys are classically trained. I read that felt that they weren't hard enough and consciously put an effort into sounding harder. They remind me of minstrel music and do Madrigals. Unique with crazy time signitures. Good choice.
Time to understand FRANK ZAPPA he is the actual composer of his music and nothing about it is normal.
Another prog rock band you must react to is Captain Beyond... their song Dancing Madly Backwards on a sea of air will blow your mind... the drummer will blow you away... trust me I wouldn't steer you wrong.
@Wilburn Reactions, GG was one of my favourite bands. Alucard always reminded me of something by George Duke, or early Funkadelic. I’m glad that you dug it. 😺
When you said Emerson Lake and Palmer it was an instant sub, you're definitely not wrong. Yeah this fits the psychadelic genre, most prog rock from the late 60's through early 70's is heavily influenced, and quite a few of the artists would play in multiple groups. Greg Lake of Emerson Lake and Palmer did the vocals on the first King Crimson album, Court of the Crimson King (which is an incredible song, I'd definitely give it a listen).
One of the greatest prog bands. I suggest you "On Refletions" and "The Runaway", two epic tunes of them.
You can react or just listening to other tracks from the same band, "Proclamation" (very groovy and more straightforward), and "School days" (one of my favorite, very smooth sound with complex vocal harmonies and a cool jazzy part)...anyway they were true great musicians and there is no real bad songs from them
A definite sci-fi feel to this one!👍🏻
By the mid-1970s the theatrical side of prog had well and truly taken over - Rick Wakeman's attempts to stage the exploits of King Arthur... on ice... attest to that - but in the end it became too much. King Crimson retreated from the scene in 1974, as if seeing the writing on the wall, and wouldn't emerge until 1981 - with 'Discipline', which has rhythms and polyrhythms that make you think, at first, it must all be done with machines. Gentle Giant had a curious relationship with classical music - you should try out 'Knots'.
Great reaction! When I saw that your first Gentle Giant song was going to be Alucard, I thought you might not appreciate it. That is not where I would start with my Gentle Giant recommendations, and the lead vocals can be a hurdle for most first-time listeners to GG. But then again, you are at the head of the class when it comes to young people discovering old music. Please play more Gentle Giant. Also, a band called Family with Roger Chapman may intrigue you if you like challenging prog/folk/jazz. There are a lot of Family songs I would not start with but I recommend The Weaver's Answer or Between Blue and Me. Again, liking Family requires appreciating the sometimes challenging lead vocals.
I suppose it's post-psychedelia, but taken up a notch. Also you can detect the growing influence of jazz-fusion, leaning on the synthesizers and shifting meter.
Here we go Gentle Giant. Prog. Royalty. Please go back to 1973 for some Peter Gabriel fronted Genesis. Firth of Fifth off the Selling England by the Pound album. Masterpiece. With your musical background you will wonder why you didn't listen sooner.
I predict you will then dive deeper and will hold Yes in one hand and Genesis in the other and try and decide who is better.
Yes for sure. Go for some old school Genesis!
Firth of Fifth is a perfect start for Peter Gabriel-era Genesis
I still am 'trying' to decide that after 40 something years
thanks for your open mind. I have all their albums, and I love them. Quite unique. They weren't even that popular amongst "regular" progrock fans
Yes, ELP shares their complexity. They both fall down the prog rock hole. GG leans more jazzy than ELP, and ELP tends more classical, though they both cross over.
Rock/Jazz/Gregorian Chant Fusion? Yes, there is more. You still have to sample the power and the glory of Pavarotti, the romance-without-a-word of Chopin and Debussy, the majesty of Beethoven.
Fantastic Band.
They're amazing man. I know they sound strange, freak and complex. And they are. But once you acquire the taste by their sophisticated music, you'll enjoy with so much pleasure and happiness.
Hi Wilburn! I like your tasteful reactions! Just a bit more info for you.......These guys consisted of three brothers and two others, and all multi instrumentalists!
It’s a masterpiece!
"In A Glass House" is my favorite Gentle Giant song. Recommend for a reaction!
Watch out for Gentle Giant !!! The height of classical-rock fusion!
Ah, Grasshopper, I envy your journey! For more mind-blowing fun, check out Frank Zappa Montana (A Token Of His Extreme). Make sure it's the live version! Welcome to the Rabbit Hole...
I agree with the picture. They also reminded me of Emerson, Lake & Palmer. How many instruments were used?
Tyr some of their middle-period stuff: In A Glass House, The Advent of Panurge, Just the Same...
you need to listen to Frank Zappa - the Black Page....
So much greatest from Gentle Giant.
HEY CHOD MY MAN!!! NICE MY FRIEND!! GENTLE GIANT!! Went to the comments!! We're all in agreement with how AWESOME THEY WERE!! ADVENT OF PERNURGE FOR SURE!! FRANK ZAPPA, RETURN TO FOREVER, YEP MY FRIEND!! I SUGGESTED 2 OTHER PROG- ROCK BANDS ON YOUR YES REACTION VIDEO!! BAND#1- THE STRAWBS WITH 2 SONGS! SONG#1- ROUND AND ROUND AND SONG-#2- HERO AND HEROINE!! BAND #2- PFM! THEY ARE AN ITALIAN PROG- ROCK BAND!! SONG#1- PHOTO OF GHOSTS, SONG-#2- CELEBRATION! BAND #3- RIVER WHYLESS!! THEY ARE A PROG- FOLK BAND WITH A REALLY UNIQUE SOUND!! PLEASE REACT TO THEIR LIVE STUDIO VERSION OF- STONE- ON AUDIOTREE LIVE AND SONG-#2- ALL DAY ALL NIGHT( OFFICIAL VIDEO) BTW- CHOD IM THE RETIRED CHEF FROM PHOENIX WITH THE AWARD WINNING BLUES MUSICIAN NEPHEW WHO PASSED AWAY 2 YRS AGO. I GAVE YOU SOME SONGS TO REACT TO OF HIS!! THEY ARE LIVE VERSIONS WHICH YOU MUST DO MY FRIEND!!! #1- IS AN AMAZING COVER OF A B.B.KING CLASSIC- 3 OCLOCK BLUES BY THE NICK MOSS BAND! MIKE IS THE LEAD SINGER OF THE BAND, SONG #2- DANIELLE NICOLE & MICHAEL LEDBETTER- NIGHT TIME IS THE RIGHT TIME LIVE!! SONG#3- I WANT THE WORLD TO KNOW- THE NICK MOSS BAND LIVE AT THE BING LOUNGE!! GRAB YOUR DAD AND HAVE HIM.WATCH THESE WITH YOU!!! AN AMAZING VOICE SILENCED WAY TOO SOON!!! OKAY IM OUT!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND HARD WORK!!! YOUR THE COOLEST KAT OUT THERE WITH A TRULY SINCERE SMILE!!! NEVER LOSE THAT MY FRIEND!! YOUR#1- AZ FAN MICHAEL😊😊😊
Great choice...their first album Is my favourite but another killer tune free hands.
Love that you chose this song, Gentle Giant are insane. Would recommend Scorched Earth by Van der Graaf Generator
Ooh, I really enjoyed this. Guess I need to listen to more Gentle Giant. Cool stuff.
You truly do, if you like this track then you're ready for a wonderful journey. Check out some youTube live performances to see how amazing they were as multi-instrumentalists.
@@MrDiddyDee thanks. Prog is the best. Too bad all the great bands stopped playing Prog in the 80s. Just stupid
That was cool. I thought I knew GG, but no. MORE. (love your reaction) They are masterful, yes. Quirky Funk?
Oh you're in for a treat, this is from their debut album so you ain't seen nothing yet! Everyone plays every instument :-D
K, if you haven’t yet dug into Frank Zappa, you must! Try Inca Roads off the One Size Fits All album.
The first six albums are all pretty great.
Say alucard backwards. Brings new meaning to the song.
LOL, I can't belive you did a Gentle Giant tune. I don't think I've ever seen anyone react to them. A lot of people have never heard of them.
The song you did isn't my favorite Gentle Giant tune. They used a lot of dissonance in it, sometimes I like it, sometimes I don't care so much for it. I didn't think it was used well in this track. That was from their first album, Gentle Giant from 1970, track 3. I like 'The Boys in the Band' from their 1972 release Octopus better. I really like 'In A Glass House' from their 1973 album of the same name. 'Just The Same' from their 1975 album Free Hand is nice too.
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Meeting of the Spirits
They were a lot like King Crimson on a different level for alternative music.
Gentle Giant is my boss’s favorite group. So l love them!
In truth, I do like them. Been listening to their album 'Octopus' recently.
Give Cirkus by King Crimson. Try to isolate the drums when listening.
boy, those drums!
That was my fist lp I bought of King Crimson. Though I already heard their first In the court ...around 1970 on "Beaker Street" KAAY 1090am LITTLE ROCK many of times.
Love GG they are in my top 5.
Do you know why this song sounds as it does? Bc ALUCARD spelled backward is DRACULA! Intelligent Bands that make music which create atmosphere relating to the intended mood are the best. So I am a Brotha who's been into Prog and complex Rock since the early 70's in my teens. Great ProgRock incorporates psychedelic, jazz, classical, folk, blues even Funk (especially with GG). And this song is simple compared what Giant did after this first album. They just became more and more sophisticated with each album. You're in for a mind expanding roller coaster if you stay on the GG trip!!! From your previous reactions I see you've hardly dipped your toe into the serious stuff. more GG, more YES, King Crimson, Genesis, PFM (Italian), Van der Graaf Generator, Happy the Man, ELP, Curved Air, Renaissance and plenty more less popular obscure masterworks will take you down the rabbit hole of sonic wonders! have fun!!!
Alucard is Dracula spelled backwards. It's from one of the old Dracula movies.
That was fun to watch!
check out them live 1978 BBC
You definitely should listen to their song, Knots 😉
I'm not sure why, but it appears that my comment keeps disappearing. I did recommend this song and I'm glad you liked it so much!
Here are a few more songs by them that I think you will also like:
Prologue
Schooldays
Peel the Paint
Giant
Just the Same
On Reflection
Free Hand
Time to Kill
The Advent of Panurge
A Cry for Everyone
Knots
Think of Me with Kindness
Ooooh snap you some Emerson lake and Palmer, good for brother check out bitches crystal by ELP You're going to love it
Beck, Bogert, and Appice.......'Lady'. that's Carmine Appice.
ALUCARD is Dracula spelled bakwards. And WOW!!!! You got an actual comment from Gentle Giant themselves!!!
Ha ha, surprise!!!
Not sure what you're reaction will be, but Gentle Giant is way out in the deep part of the ocean. Will be interested to hear your thoughts, even if you weren't into it.
Tech N9ne has a song by the same title which refers to DRACULA spelled backwards
How about BTO Bachman Turner Overdrive's "Blue Collar" it's a good jam song. IMO.
Alucard = Dracula :O
Edgar Winter Frankenstein is another out there song!!
:O