What are the best Gentle Giant albums IYO?

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

As any of you who know me realize, I'm not a huge fan of the Popular Symph Rock style Prog acts from Britain (not into Genesis, VDGG, YES, Tull) except for Crimso and Camel which are generally excellent. But recently I was asked privately to do a remaster on GG's Glass House album and I find it to be quite a nice Symph album. I tried to get into GG back in the day but they didn't really grab me. About a decade ago I tried again by remastering their first 3 albums and once again they left me cold. Is IAGH their best album? Because, IMO there really isn't a dud tune on it, as opposed to Octopus where I wouldn't cry if I never heard Dog's Life or Think Of Me With Kindness again.

How do you rank GG's albums and which tunes would you not miss if you never heard them again?

[Enid]

In A Glass House is special . I can do without the ballad . I don't recall it's title. Power and The Glory, like the entire album minus "No God's A Man"...that bores the crap out of me. Free Hand with the exception of "On Reflection" which is brutally annoying to me and rattles my chain. Interview is fine minus the title track. Aquiring The Taste has a song I admire titled "On The Edge Of Twilight" I dislike "The Wreck" ...I think it is corny. Octopus minus the two tracks you mentioned. Three Friends.....I could have done without Gary Green's guitar solo excursion into echo delay mania with distortion on "Peel The Paint". Most of the songs are hauntingly good. Their first album is weak in sections such as a phased drum solo and the song "Why Not".


Some of my distaste was based on how they combined Blues with Prog. When Procol Harum wrote a couple of Blues songs ...but they way they did it was outstanding because Keith Reid was being himself in the lyricism . They were taking on a style that was unusually connected to their albums ...but was fitting between their Folk type material and the Classically oriented epic songs influenced sometimes by J.S. Bach....where Gentle Giant were just jamming on Blues when they felt it was appropriate and that was less appealing to me.

[Paulrus]

As any of you who know me realize, I'm not a huge fan of the Popular Symph Rock style Prog acts from Britain (not into Genesis, VDGG, YES, Tull) except for Crimso and Camel which are generally excellent. But recently I was asked privately to do a remaster on GG's Glass House album and I find it to be quite a nice Symph album. I tried to get into GG back in the day but they didn't really grab me. About a decade ago I tried again by remastering their first 3 albums and once again they left me cold. Is IAGH their best album? Because, IMO there really isn't a dud tune on it, as opposed to Octopus where I wouldn't cry if I never heard Dog's Life or Think Of Me With Kindness again.

How do you rank GG's albums and which tunes would you not miss if you never heard them again?

This comes up about once a year on PE, it seems. But here's my top 5, sort of in order:

In A Glass House
The Power and the Glory
Free Hand
Three Friends
Acquiring the Taste

Honorable mention for the live album Playing The Fool. It sort of serves the same function as Yessongs or Seconds Out.

As for songs I could stand not hearing ever again, "Betcha Thought We Couldn't Do It" was a serious mistake, as is about half of Giant for a Day.

But I have to take you to task for dissing "Think of Me with Kindness". IMO that's the kind of song that sort of redeems the really out there experimental stuff. It's a palette cleanser, if you will, and just utterly sweet.

[Scrotum Scissor]

Free Hand, Three Friends, In A Glass House, Octopus and The Power and the Glory. In no particular order.

[Yellow Jester]

As any of you who know me realize, I'm not a huge fan of the Popular Symph Rock style Prog acts from Britain (not into Genesis, VDGG, YES, Tull) except for Crimso and Camel which are generally excellent. But recently I was asked privately to do a remaster on GG's Glass House album and I find it to be quite a nice Symph album. I tried to get into GG back in the day but they didn't really grab me. About a decade ago I tried again by remastering their first 3 albums and once again they left me cold. Is IAGH their best album? Because, IMO there really isn't a dud tune on it, as opposed to Octopus where I wouldn't cry if I never heard Dog's Life or Think Of Me With Kindness again.

How do you rank GG's albums and which tunes would you not miss if you never heard them again?

Here's my favorite GG albums (in order)-
Free Hand
Octopus
The Power And The Glory
Playing The Fool: Live
Acquiring The Taste
And the songs by them that I could live without hearing again are-
"The Queen"
"Plain Truth"
"Design"
"The Power And The Glory"

[dpt3]

I'm not sure they ever recorded a completely flawless album, but the closest, imo, is The Power and the Glory. Three Friends, Octopus, and In a Glass House are my other favorites, with Free Hand, Interview, and Acquiring the Taste ever so slightly below.

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

I have to take you to task for dissing "Think of Me with Kindness". IMO that's the kind of song that sort of redeems the really out there experimental stuff. It's a palette cleanser, if you will, and just utterly sweet.

mainly it's the ridiculous quote of the Bonanza (or whatever Western they lifted it from) theme song. The song could have been good, but I cant listen to it without a MAJOR cringe when that line is played

[gojikranz]

power and the glory is my favorite. though playing the fool might be ideal for a newcomer sort of a best of.

I like em all to varying degrees though definitely save giant for a day until you are a fan.

[zravkapt]

How do you rank GG's albums

Acquiring The Taste
Three Friends
The Power And The Glory

In A Glass House
Octopus
Free Hand

Gentle Giant
Interview
The Missing Piece



Civilian


Giant For A Day


BTW I've never considered GG to be a 'symph' band.

[miamiscot]

FREE HAND
POWER AND THE GLORY
OCTOPUS
IN A GLASS HOUSE

[Fracktured]

FREE HAND
POWER AND THE GLORY
OCTOPUS
IN A GLASS HOUSE

That's my favorites there, but most of them I find something to enjoy from them. I still can't believe knots was a very popular tune on the local philly radio station when octopus came out.

[Poisoned Youth]

It is a group that get different results from fans in ranking. For me, the first 3 are my "go-to" albums. Using zravkapt's spacing method, I would go this way...

Three Friends
Acquiring the Taste
Gentle Giant

In A Glass House
Freehand

The Power and the Glory
Octopus

Interview
Civilian

The Missing Piece
Giant for a Day

[TheH]

Simply all albums up to (and including) Interview are awesome and must haves. The beginning and the end album of that period maybe the weaker ones.

The Missing Piece I would still consider as a good album.

If I had to live with only one GG album it would be without any doubt Playing the Fool Live, one of the best live albums ever.

[soundsweird]

The self-titled first album, "Interview", "Missing Piece": good. "Acquiring the Taste" through "Free Hand": great. "Giant for a Day" and "Civilian": okay. Non-studio albums "Playing the Fool", "King Biscuit", BBC releases "Out of the Woods" and "Out of the Fire", and both of the DVD's: great. Other live albums and box sets: I understand that most have sound quality issues, so ask somebody else.

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

well, it seems that my latest foray into GG has some legs left as I have only done my remastering work on the first 5 and many of you seem to be suggesting that Freehand and TP&TG are 2 of their very best albums. I'll be giving them the remastering treatment next.

I do find it very interesting to hear which tunes people favor and dislike.
Of the first 5 albums I have recently tried to get into, each one has 1-3 tunes that just do not work for me. So far though, IAGH doesn't have any unlistenable stuff. I could cut the ballad, but it's so short there's really no reason to

[The Dark Elf]

In a Glass House
Octopus

[Fracktured]

Free hand could maybe use a remaster if it's done well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[mozo-pg]

Everything up to Interview. I don't see them as a symph band though.

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

well, it really doesn't matter what anyone classifies them as
I put them in the same category with Camel, Genesis, YES, early Crimso, PFM, Banco...
it's composed Rock with little improv, so I call it Symphonic Rock. They sure aren't Jazz Rock or Avant Rock or Space Rock/Kosmische. Label them however you like AFAIC. Make up an entirely new Prog style, I dont care. They seem like Symph to me but it matters not to this thread

[Sputnik]

I put them in the same category with Camel, Genesis, YES, early Crimso, PFM, Banco...

Me too! I call that "Progressive Rock."

Here's how I order them, but really I think everything from Acquiring the Taste through Interview are "must haves":

Power & the Glory
Freehand
Three Friends
Acquiring the Taste
Octopus
Interview
In a Glass House (yeah, it's my least favorite of their great albums, but I still dig it)

<big gap>

Civilian
S/T
Missing Piece

<another big gap>

Giant for a Day

Bill

[Buddhabreath]

I'll have a different opinion tomorrow but at the moment.

The Power and the Glory
In A Glass House
Three Friends
Octopus
Freehand
Interview - Enid I love the title track esp. the crashing piano chords!
Acquiring the Taste
Gentle Giant
The Missing Piece
Civilian
.
.
.
Giant for a Day (dog shit sell-out attempt).

[notallwhowander]

Free Hand, Three Friends, In A Glass House, Octopus and The Power and the Glory. In no particular order.

Yeah, this is a good rec.

I've found IAGH kind of a dividing line with their sound. Stuff before it live Three Friends and Octopus are more pastoral, whereas The Power and the Glory and Free Hand are more rock. However, Gentle Giant is hard to pin down, being seriously idiosyncratic, so YMMV.

[yesstiles]

1st place tie:

Three Friends
In A Glass House
The Power and the Glory

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

Me too! I call that "Progressive Rock."

but of course Symph is Progressive Rock Bill. I dont think anyone doubts that... yet Symph is but one of many styles of Progressive Rock

back on the topic of the thread though
I'm really eager to re-hear Freehand again with fresh ears all these decades later since so many rate it so highly

[Svetonio]

Octopus is their best album IMO.