Ray Schulman and Gary Green really made a complementar guitar/bass work, sounding fantastic and connected. And also Kerry Minnear, what to say... the splendid heart of the group, with extreme accurate musical technic.
How good could Derek play bass picking it up when Ray would step forward in order to switch to classical guitar to duel it out with Green. The claim is that Derek too was a multi-instrumentalist along with their older brother Phil.
The greatest thing about Gentle Giant is that, for all their complexity, avant garden approach, madcap orchestrations and technical intricacy, they could REALLY rock. A lot of prog bands were all brains, no balls, as it were, but these guys had absolutely everything going for them. A truly fantastic, transcendent band.
Not only could they rock, be funky etc . They can do great renaissance music, jazzy stuff, folky stuff ... There really was no band ever remotely like them
For me, Gentle Giant were the ultimate band. Their musicianship, harmonies, songwriting, etc, were always out of the top drawer. They could be quirky, seriously off the wall at times, and they could kick butt too. Every member of the band was a master of his craft, and the variety of instruments played by the various members was astounding. Very few bands come close to them, and I believe that many prog bands today are heavily influenced by this most amazing and unique outfit. What a band!!
Only got to see them once. Thirty Eight instruments between them. In a two month period I saw GG, Yes, Tull and Zappa. (I think it was back in '74) Zappa was the best and the other 3 all tied for second place.
Bravissimo to Gentle Giant! The complexity of a work is matched only by the pleasure of its discovery! It's not given to everyone to appreciate such complex musical structures -yes!-, but oh! how RICH! such literary or pictorial works in which one can easily get lost yes! So, should we go back to the simplicity of a piece like Think Of Me With Kindness (piano/organ...) or Isn't It Quiet & Cold (violin/cello...) for comforting simplicity. The pleasure of rediscovering the subtleties of a work means that we return to Gentle Giant with ALWAYS the same certainty of hearing the same piece again in a different way. How many times have I played any piece of GG to a friend and discovered all these little musical scores under the main ones, as if there were several pieces in the same room. But yes, polyrithmy, polystructure is not for everyone! But those who indulge in it come back with great pleasure and I AM TO MY GREAT PLEASURE AS A MUSIC LOVER! This is perhaps a bit of what explains why GG is still listened to today. You have to believe that there are still people who refuse the musical simplicity and so standardized that current music presents to us. I know, there is still good music for music lovers, but we are so invaded by standardized music that it is good to return to a more fragmented world like Gentle Giant!!!
You never heard is demos on Scraping the Barrel and Under Construction? Great demos and composing session things, sometimes he needed overdubs to have all the melody lines together. But it's all in his piano: bass linss, guitar lines, keyboard lines.
2:48 Is it jazz? Is it medieval? Counterpoint from the future? Is it possibly an example of the most original writing in rock history? I can't believe how great they are
This whole song just blows my mind but 3:01 through 5:20 neatly sums up why I love these guys. From the simple but haunting bass line to the quad-dueling flutes to yankee doodle and then that incredible climax riff, I could listen to this a million times and love it more each time.
I never followed/discovered them all that much but did and do dabble. They are fun to watch and listen to. The complexity is over the top at times, the raw rocking prog is phenomenal. A++ musicianship.
A very fine album, my only caveat is the cover which is by Roger Dean who did most of the Yes ones. My copy has long since disappeared but such a strong album.
RIP Ray Shulman 3/30/23. 😢. Listen to that bass here!!! God I loved seeing these guys live ! So happy there is so much video so I can smile again with nostalgic Joy. They invented the word versatility. They were the Best band live! And I saw A LOT of bands!! Thank you guys🥰
I have become obsessed with this song. Nothing short of a miracle that something like this exists. How can any group of people get together and this is the result. Astonishing stuff.
JayLib brought me here. Real DJs and producers find the most random music to sample, but it’s usually great. Lots of samples have brought me to some cool ass bands
Underrated YES! But those few 10000"s that we UNDERSTAND and love their Creations will know forever that ther are the greatest influence of many present, past and future fabulous musicians.....Transcendental MUSIC....each and all FABULOUS!!!!! Love LOVE LOVE!!!!!
I was 15 when I've listen to GG for the 1st time at my friend's place. I told myself: WTH? Put back Genesis! And then my friend told me to listen carefully to this piece and especially starting at 2.42. I finally got it and from then I was hooked. A pure gem.
these guys are so lucky to have even been in contact with each other. Every young person today wants to start an alternative indie group, its impossible to find anyone with similar music interest. No one seems to want to make even slightly complex music. There is something so satisfying knowing that you wrote a piece at the fullest of your capabilities. Its what you worked so hard to achieve, instead of creating music that just sells.
I am always looking for a project with odd time signatures and bastard breaks but you are right not many people get it and a lot of those that do can't play it!
John Weathers confessed that he was the one that wasn't a multi-instrumentalist and, unlike the others that could just show up and etch to plastic, he had to take the songs home to practice.
What I love about back in these days (unfortunately before my time), a lot of the audiences are absolutely silent in these old prog clips. I went to see a Sigur Ros gig a few years back now and there where people in the audience screaming in quiet parts and it totally killed the atmosphere. Don't people sit and LISTEN to music anymore?
Simply amazing ... been a fan since the early ’70s but never got to aee them live. This live version is positively ass kicking. Great band, totally underappreciated.
@@christopherwildman3368 One is formalities and the other is arrogance. I don't find GG arrogant in any way. And I would describe their music being formal. I wasn't sure what Vernon said but it didn't fit the description any.
It's incredible example of a band working Together, Listening to each Other; they all know their parts and do them right. It just boggles the mind this accomplished. This seems harder to do than Genesis, ELP, or even King Crimson.
@@chippchipp1 My main problem with GG is that their ONLY goal was to be complex...so the way it turned out for them (in my opinion) is that they have a few good songs among a sea of complete crap. I can sit and listen to an ELP album in full, I might skip a song or two here and there, but with GG I find that maybe one or two songs per album is listenable. The rest just sounds like a musical clusterfuck.
This is what is so great about UA-cam! I get to see an amazing performance by a band I loved THEN, STILL have most of their LPs, but only through YT have I been able to see them. They really sound far more unique than most of the so-called "prog" bands and their music holds up fantastically, and amazingly, 45 years later! Bravo!
With all my sympathy! J'apprend le décès de Ray, ce groupe m'a appris le son de la vrai musique! Ce spectacle montre la versatilité légendaire du groupe et c'est un régal en 2023 de pouvoir entendre et regarder cela!
Their songs mutated in an organic way. The melodies crowned and spread open like mushroom caps. The mood was of wet forests, dark and loamy in the twilight and redolent of pine.
Nah. O Giant foi a melhor. O Crimson vem em seguida, mas a uma certa distância. Entre as recentes, recomendo o Transatlantic, supergrupo dos anos 2000, formado por 4 caras de outras bandas já consagradas.
I was there (the 70's I mean) and I thought these guy were beyond amazing! But as a huge "progressive rock" (that's what we called it anyway) fan, I just want to go on record that when great keyboardists like Rick Wakeman, Tony Banks, Keith Emerson, Rick Wright, etc. etc. are mentioned, Kerry Minnear should really be at or near the top of that list! (He seems to be often been left out of the usual youtube music chatter.)
I will never quite understand why this band don't no join the ranks of YES, Genesis, ELP & Renaissance...Criminally underrated
Agreed.
In my opinion they're far better than Genesis...
Mine too, actually.
I don't think Renaissance ever joined those "ranks" either. Actually, I think Gentle Giant has enjoyed a bit more success, especially nowadays.
I think they are better than all aforementioned groups - Close to the edge is probs the only YES album that compares to these IMHO
Rest in eternal peace, Ray Shulman. Thank you for all the wonderful music. ❤🙏🏼
Ray's bass lines are insane
Ray Schulman and Gary Green really made a complementar guitar/bass work, sounding fantastic and connected. And also Kerry Minnear, what to say... the splendid heart of the group, with extreme accurate musical technic.
Insane is a good word, genious would be more accurate :)
How good could Derek play bass picking it up when Ray would step forward in order to switch to classical guitar to duel it out with Green. The claim is that Derek too was a multi-instrumentalist along with their older brother Phil.
The greatest thing about Gentle Giant is that, for all their complexity, avant garden approach, madcap orchestrations and technical intricacy, they could REALLY rock. A lot of prog bands were all brains, no balls, as it were, but these guys had absolutely everything going for them. A truly fantastic, transcendent band.
Not only could they rock, be funky etc . They can do great renaissance music, jazzy stuff, folky stuff ... There really was no band ever remotely like them
For me, Gentle Giant were the ultimate band. Their musicianship, harmonies, songwriting, etc, were always out of the top drawer. They could be quirky, seriously off the wall at times, and they could kick butt too. Every member of the band was a master of his craft, and the variety of instruments played by the various members was astounding. Very few bands come close to them, and I believe that many prog bands today are heavily influenced by this most amazing and unique outfit. What a band!!
They use complex counterpoint.
I love their music so much.
I was 13 when I first heard Giant! Been a HUGE fan ever since!!
Only got to see them once. Thirty Eight instruments between them. In a two month period I saw GG, Yes, Tull and Zappa. (I think it was back in '74) Zappa was the best and the other 3 all tied for second place.
RIP Ray Shulman, your bass parts are insanely good in this and in Gentle Giants Music.
I was lucky enough to see Gentle Giant three times and get to meet Ray Shulman (RIP). They and he were outstanding.
Bravissimo to Gentle Giant!
The complexity of a work is matched only by the pleasure of its discovery!
It's not given to everyone to appreciate such complex musical structures -yes!-, but oh! how RICH! such literary or pictorial works in which one can easily get lost yes!
So, should we go back to the simplicity of a piece like Think Of Me With Kindness (piano/organ...) or Isn't It Quiet & Cold (violin/cello...) for comforting simplicity.
The pleasure of rediscovering the subtleties of a work means that we return to Gentle Giant with ALWAYS the same certainty of hearing the same piece again in a different way.
How many times have I played any piece of GG to a friend and discovered all these little musical scores under the main ones, as if there were several pieces in the same room.
But yes, polyrithmy, polystructure is not for everyone!
But those who indulge in it come back with great pleasure and I AM TO MY GREAT PLEASURE AS A MUSIC LOVER!
This is perhaps a bit of what explains why GG is still listened to today. You have to believe that there are still people who refuse the musical simplicity and so standardized that current music presents to us.
I know, there is still good music for music lovers, but we are so invaded by standardized music that it is good to return to a more fragmented world like Gentle Giant!!!
R.i.P. Ray..Genius, Wizard of Bass, countless instruments and voice..your legacy will live forever..
Really humble, friendly soul too!
What amazes me is how Minnear plays two completely different melodies at the same time!
You never heard is demos on Scraping the Barrel and Under Construction? Great demos and composing session things, sometimes he needed overdubs to have all the melody lines together.
But it's all in his piano: bass linss, guitar lines, keyboard lines.
Kerry was an incredible musician! Phenomenal xylophone player!
Blows my mind every time I listen to them….they better be talking about these guys 200 years from now
Almost 50 years old and it still sounds ahead of its time!
2:48 Is it jazz? Is it medieval? Counterpoint from the future? Is it possibly an example of the most original writing in rock history? I can't believe how great they are
Oh god yeah f yeah-the greatest band ever
Immensi, di livello impressionante.
I'll still give that to Zappa. Even Frank mentions GG as a "boundary stretching band".
@@tixximmi1 I saw Frank Zappa play a bicycle once. And he played it well...
@@1crashit He's good on spokes.
Michael Douglas show I think.
I like their drummer, he's so deep into their music
+John_Wings ...... as well as the keyboardist.
Kerry Minnear is brilliant! The heart of the band (At least, I think so)
John_Wings he’s fucking high man.
John_Wings I think the drummer is high as fuck.
His drums lines fits perfectly!!!
This whole song just blows my mind but 3:01 through 5:20 neatly sums up why I love these guys. From the simple but haunting bass line to the quad-dueling flutes to yankee doodle and then that incredible climax riff, I could listen to this a million times and love it more each time.
Today I am deeply saddened by the loss of Ray. I will endlessly listen to my irreplaceable GG.
GG number one, i never heard band like this, still feel chills hearing their music.
Super ! One of the BEST BAND for ALL TIME !
I love the way this song leads into Raconteur Troubadour on Octopus. Gather round the village square, come good people both wretched and fair...
I never followed/discovered them all that much but did and do dabble. They are fun to watch and listen to. The complexity is over the top at times, the raw rocking prog is phenomenal. A++ musicianship.
This song simply kicks ass and makes no apologies about it.
This version is awesome. RIP Ray I'm glad I discovered your music before you left us.
I love the way he Humps his Piano
This is like travelling through several timelines at once.
Advent of Panurge is on Octopus. The Tempo and mood changes here are fabulous.
Octopus is pure prog madness i just love it
A very fine album, my only caveat is the cover which is by Roger Dean who did most of the Yes ones. My copy has long since disappeared but such a strong album.
@@progisloveprogislife4501 That makes two of us.
One of the most underestimated bands ever! =)
RIP Ray Shulman 3/30/23. 😢. Listen to that bass here!!! God I loved seeing these guys live ! So happy there is so much video so I can smile again with nostalgic Joy. They invented the word versatility. They were the Best band live! And I saw A LOT of bands!! Thank you guys🥰
They will always be a step ahead. They never needed recognition.
They actually received quite a bit of airplay where I lived. Of course, that was in the NYC area.
I saw them open for Tull in New Haven, I think it was. Can you imagine a better evening (of music)?
The BEST band of the 70's! Damn!!!
The greatest band ever- then now and forever
Third Best. Zappa Tull
just amazing good ...
the movement from the recover/flute part to the heavy drum bass groove into 'so brother hood was made as their bond'.... LEGENDARY
This thing is funky!
RIP Ray, one of the best musicians and songwriter of all times
I have become obsessed with this song. Nothing short of a miracle that something like this exists. How can any group of people get together and this is the result. Astonishing stuff.
They were Idols
That's the first album I heard from them and This is the song that hooked me for life.
JayLib brought me here. Real DJs and producers find the most random music to sample, but it’s usually great. Lots of samples have brought me to some cool ass bands
interesting! that’ll be cool to check out
I love every second of this. These guys are on another level.
Perhaps the perfect prog group? Great stuff.
+Alexander DeWolf Don't get the ”perhaps” bit.
they could use a better voice. I mean, a naturally gifted singer.
@@aiekmeeisnhdye what??!?!??!!/
@@aiekmeeisnhdye listen to gentle giant this shit is hard to sing like i dont blame some flat notes. they are also playing especially fast
Questi dal vivo erano incredibili
Underrated YES! But those few 10000"s that we UNDERSTAND and love their Creations will know forever that ther are the greatest influence of many present, past and future fabulous musicians.....Transcendental MUSIC....each and all FABULOUS!!!!!
Love LOVE LOVE!!!!!
I love how awed in silent the audience is. Reminds me of a King Crimson I went to
I was 15 when I've listen to GG for the 1st time at my friend's place. I told myself: WTH? Put back Genesis! And then my friend told me to listen carefully to this piece and especially starting at 2.42. I finally got it and from then I was hooked. A pure gem.
how are you verified
Saw them in 1976 live in concert with yes,peter frampton, and gary wright. Great musically creative times that I miss so much.
WOW !! One of my fav GG songs.
these guys are so lucky to have even been in contact with each other. Every young person today wants to start an alternative indie group, its impossible to find anyone with similar music interest. No one seems to want to make even slightly complex music. There is something so satisfying knowing that you wrote a piece at the fullest of your capabilities. Its what you worked so hard to achieve, instead of creating music that just sells.
I am always looking for a project with odd time signatures and bastard breaks but you are right not many people get it and a lot of those that do can't play it!
+musicmaan100
it was not difficult for them to find each other, as they are brothers. :)
(O.K., only 3 of them.)
+oriza2 only two of them by this stage in their career. Phil left after Octopus
ok, try some Echolyn for now
musicmaan100 they deigned to play what's in their heart and head not their wallet!!!
An excerpt from the best studio concert the past years... revelation... Great musicians !!
I love watching weathers. His facial expressions crack me up. I love the guy!
The Intro!
Finest multi-keyboard sounds from Kerry Minnear.
And then the five awesome boys in the band.😃👍
This song. Every time I listen to it, I find something else I love!
Astonishingly good and never ever surpassed
John Weathers energy is out of this world.
Good Pfp
John Weathers confessed that he was the one that wasn't a multi-instrumentalist and, unlike the others that could just show up and etch to plastic, he had to take the songs home to practice.
This. Is. Epic.
From what most consider their greatest album.
How can a song called "Advent of Panurge" with significant recorder action rock this hard?
It's like a medieval Led Zeppelin :-)
Recorders beat flutes in rock, but only the Giant knew that.
@@Jlipnicki tell that to Jethro Tull!
Early Tull I like, they were a good blues band, after about 1970, pass.
ua-cam.com/video/7_zQjie3Ipk/v-deo.html
With a super funky drummer! This band us so weird and fun
What I love about back in these days (unfortunately before my time), a lot of the audiences are absolutely silent in these old prog clips. I went to see a Sigur Ros gig a few years back now and there where people in the audience screaming in quiet parts and it totally killed the atmosphere. Don't people sit and LISTEN to music anymore?
I love that drummer
Simply amazing ... been a fan since the early ’70s but never got to aee them live. This live version is positively ass kicking. Great band, totally underappreciated.
John Weathers was on fire!!!
Derek Shulman has one hell of a voice. And that recorder section was admittedly kinda cool
As about as pompous and proggy as it gets.....excellent!
Not pompous one bit.
@@tixximmi1 He means as in Pomp and Circumstance.
@@christopherwildman3368 One is formalities and the other is arrogance. I don't find GG arrogant in any way. And I would describe their music being formal. I wasn't sure what Vernon said but it didn't fit the description any.
amazing
So much fun to listen to.
It's incredible example of a band working Together, Listening to each Other; they all know their parts and do them right.
It just boggles the mind this accomplished. This seems harder to do than Genesis, ELP, or even King Crimson.
ELP is as hard as it's gets
GG is certainly harder to play than most of ELPs stuff
@@chippchipp1 Also much harder to listen to
@@mrgrey361 true, but I was never a huge fan of either band. More of a Yes guy.
@@chippchipp1 My main problem with GG is that their ONLY goal was to be complex...so the way it turned out for them (in my opinion) is that they have a few good songs among a sea of complete crap. I can sit and listen to an ELP album in full, I might skip a song or two here and there, but with GG I find that maybe one or two songs per album is listenable. The rest just sounds like a musical clusterfuck.
Great band!
Great music!
Long Live Gentle Giant! :)
Bravo!!!!!
Derek has so much passion!!
Orgasmic and Energic!! Magic!!!!!!!
Also, doesn't John look like the Gentle Giant?
This is pretty funny to me because of how people also thought that Ray Sawyer looked like he'd be Dr. Hook.
Creak and Ian Anderson is Jethro Tull.....or at least Aqualung.
The lead guy in The Enid does.
SUPERB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Best band ever.
+Joab Basualdo Gago
Oh yeah-absolutely correct
Third best. Zappa Tull GG
Kontrapunktik , Rhythmik, Melodik alles phantastisch 😂🎉❤
Its funny to see the audience sit on their hands during this. Give me a time machine i am there starting a mosh pit!!! Love the Giant!!!!
Tomo sus palabras como mias. Un gran musico menospreciado, como Gentle Giant en el ambiente musical.
Un recuerdo y una flor por Ray 🎉
A wild reinterpretation of this song. Very nice.
?
Perfection! Amazing!
Your comment is awesome-agree a gazillion percent.Without a doubt the greatest most underated band ever.
This is what is so great about UA-cam! I get to see an amazing performance by a band I loved THEN, STILL have most of their LPs, but only through YT have I been able to see them. They really sound far more unique than most of the so-called "prog" bands and their music holds up fantastically, and amazingly, 45 years later! Bravo!
Loved the Octopus album. One of my favourite albums. But to see them do this complex stuff live. Holy smokes. WOW! This is amazing!
Grande categoria, grande criatividade, excelentes performances.
Cool song by them.
Super !!! Gentle Giant !!I Great Band !!!Ever!!!😈
Rest In Peace Legend😇
osamdesetih imao u autu jednu kasetu gentle giant i to se uvek slušalo a koliko se smotalo i ispušilo😉
With all my sympathy! J'apprend le décès de Ray, ce groupe m'a appris le son de la vrai musique! Ce spectacle montre la versatilité légendaire du groupe et c'est un régal en 2023 de pouvoir entendre et regarder cela!
Grandissimi
I nearly cried just now for some reason...
The giant has that effect on me all the time. Just let them roll
i love when that crazy ass hook comes in. these guys were too good for their own good
Ray Shulman = BASS LEGEND
to all prog bands...see GG and silence please!
Amazing
Best band. Ever
Their songs mutated in an organic way. The melodies crowned and spread open like mushroom caps. The mood was of wet forests, dark and loamy in the twilight and redolent of pine.
a melhor banda de rock progressivo de todos os tempos
tem o Porcupine Tree hehe
@@oreticencias Tem o Van Der Graaf Generator também.
Nah. O Giant foi a melhor. O Crimson vem em seguida, mas a uma certa distância.
Entre as recentes, recomendo o Transatlantic, supergrupo dos anos 2000, formado por 4 caras de outras bandas já consagradas.
@@glauciodon.campelo8967 Ascolta anche gli italiani AREA !
@@riccardovannucci6249 Conheço alguma coisa com o Demetrio Stratos, il maestro de la vocce.
One of the best prog songs of all time!
WOW!!!!!
recorders acapella.. stupendous!!
@pencilpauli what the heck took you so long to realize the greatness?.Better late than never.
I was there (the 70's I mean) and I thought these guy were beyond amazing! But as a huge "progressive rock" (that's what we called it anyway) fan, I just want to go on record that when great keyboardists like Rick Wakeman, Tony Banks, Keith Emerson, Rick Wright, etc. etc. are mentioned, Kerry Minnear should really be at or near the top of that list! (He seems to be often been left out of the usual youtube music chatter.)
I could not agree more!
Amen to that! He was also an excellent xylophone player and could play cello
John Weather (the drummer) is the one who really made them rock, IMO. And that bass sound....