For Y'all Gong - 1986 A Wingful Of Eyes

This is a compilation from 3 of Gong's mid-'70s releases, Shamal, Expresso II, as well as Gazuese!. There's non a weak vocal inwards the bunch, but thus i time again all 3 of the aforementioned recordings were all excellent. This menstruation for Gong flora them playing generally instrumentals amongst a heavy percussive audio which tin flaming endure attributed to the leadership of drummer Pierre Moerlen. Although they are unremarkably listed equally i of the slap-up progressive stone bands, closer inspection reveals that this lineup truly offered to a greater extent than to the jazz-rock fusion drive of the mid-'70s. Their contributions went largely unnoticed at the time, but it afterward became clear that they had carved out a unique as well as fresh approach to what had operate a fashion bogged downwards inwards technical showmanship. It wasn't until bands such equally Ozric Tentacles as well as afterward Phish, began to surface inwards the '80s as well as '90s that the influence of Gong began to endure felt again. This is the master copy jam music.

This first-class mid toll compilation gathers together the cream of the 3 postal service Daevid Allen Gong albums (sometimes credited to Pierre Moerlen's Gong) on Virgin. None of them could endure called essential, but they are oftentimes unfairly dismissed. Following Allen's departure, Gong developed a jazz fusion audio that featured some superb playing, but which lacked the quirky sense of humour as well as psychdelic touches of the previous incarnation. 'Shamal' was likely the closest inwards spirit to Allen's Gong, as well as 4 pieces are on here, including the championship rails (which too features this CDs alone vocals). The remaining tracks are taken from 'Gazeuse' as well as 'Espresso 2', as well as it is on these tracks that Pierre Moerlen's leadership is stamped. They characteristic a percussion heavy sound, amongst vibes, marimba as well as glockenspiel playing intricate interlocking patterns. The other players, especially the first-class Allan Holdsworth, larn to play complex solos higher upward it all. If you lot similar the variety of jazz fusion purveyed past times the likes of Brand X, Mahavishnu Orchestra or afterward incarnations of Return to Forever there's a lot to bask on this collection. Just don't human face whatsoever pot caput pixies or flight teapots. 

While I similar as well as appreciate Daevid Allen's lineups of this band, I dearest Pierre Moerlin's much more. I simply bask the percussion based tight fusion much to a greater extent than than Allen's loose, pixie gnome fantasy silliness.
This collection takes all of it's tracks from the kickoff 3 Moerlin led Gong albums, Shamal, Gazeuse (or Expresso) as well as Expresso II. When I purchased this collection, none of those albums were soundless available on CD. This is a fine introduction to this version of Gong. The songs are all fantastic fusion, equally expert equally whatsoever the famous fusion bands of the seventies were creating. Who says you lot cause got to come upward from a jazz background to endure truly expert at this style? The Expresso album peculiarly are inwards a tuned percussion fashion that Bill Bruford too excelled inwards amongst his Holdsworth/Stewart/Berlin ring approximately the same time.

Tracks Listing

1. Heavy Tune (6:26)
2. Cat inwards Clark's Shoes (7:43)
3. Night Illusion (3:48)
4. Golden Dilemma (4:55)
5. Winful of Eyes (6:23)
6. Three Blind Mice (4:51)
7. Expresso (6:00)
8. Soli (7:41)
9. Shadow of (7:52)
10. Mandrake (5:02)
11. Bambouji (5:10)

Total Time: 65:51

Line-up / Musicians

- Mireille Bauer / marimba, vibraphone, glock, toms
- Francois Causse / congas
- Allan Holdsworth / electrical guitar, acoustic guitar, beat guitar, violin, pedal steel guitar
- Bon Lozaga / beat guitar, guitar
- Didier Malherbe / Tenor sax, flute
- Benoit Moerlen / vibra, marimba, percussion, tubular bells, glockenspiel, claves, xylophone
- Pierre Moerlen / drums, glock, marimba, vibraphone, xylophone, timpani, tubular bells
- Francis Moze / Fretless bass, gong, acoustic & electrical piano
- Hansford Rowe / bass, beat guitar
- Mick Taylor / atomic number 82 guitar
- Darryl Way / violin