..:: audio-music dot info ::..


Main Page      The Desert Island      Copyright Notice
 Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz


Van der Graaf Generator: Real Time

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Fie! Records
Released: 2007.03.05
Time:
 70:10 / 58:36
Category: Progressive Rock
Producer(s): Van der Graaf Generator
Rating:
Media type: CD duble
Web address: www.vandergraafgenerator.co.uk
Appears with: Peter Hammill, David Jackson
Purchase date: 2012
Price in €: 1,00





 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


Disc One

[1] The Undercover Man (P.Hammill) - 8:29
[2] Scorched Earth (P.Hammill/D.Jackson) - 10:05
[3] Refugees (P.Hammill) - 6:01
[4] Every Bloody Emperor (P.Hammill) - 7:36
[5] Lemmings (P.Hammill) - 13:20
[6] (In the) Black Room (P.Hammill) - 11:16
[7] Nutter Alert (P.Hammill) - 6:05
[8] Darkness (P.Hammill) - 7:20


Disc Two

[1] Masks (P.Hammill) - 6:47
[2] Childlike Faith in Childhood's End (P.Hammill) - 12:34
[3] The Sleepwalkers (P.Hammill) - 10:44
[4] Man-Erg (P.Hammill) - 11:36
[5] Killer (H.Banton/P.Hammill/G.Smith) - 9:55
[6] Wondering (H.Banton/P.Hammill) - 7:01

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Peter Hammill - Guitar, Vocals, Keyboards, Liner Notes, Producer
Hugh Banton - Organ, Bass Pedal, Mixing, Producer
Guy Evans - Drums, Percussion, Producer
David Jackson - Saxophone, Flute, Producer

Julie Gardner - Engineer
Paul Ridout - Cover Art
Ed Clarke - Photography
Daniel Thurnes - Photography
Gail Colson - Management

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


Recorded live at The Royal Festival Hall, London, 6th May 2005. This was the first VdGG live performance since their reformation, and since the "Van der Graaf" band broke up around 1978.



Van der Graaf Generator went through a number of lineups in its eventful life, most of which went by undocumented as live units, at least officially (and even on the bootleg front, VDGG fans have few quality recordings to fall back on). There has been one official live album, Vital, but, as necessary as it was in chronicling the group's transformation into a ferocious stage beast, it features a short-lived incarnation of the band. All in all, what is largely considered the "classic quartet" lineup was never decently recorded on-stage, and would never be. At least, that was the story up until May 6, 2005, when Hugh Banton, David Jackson, Guy Evans and Peter Hammill walked on-stage together for the first time in almost 30 years. Recently re-formed, VDGG had released a new studio album (the more-than-decent Present) and a European tour had been booked. The quartet would get better, meaner and wilder with every show (as bootlegs testify), but the one show that mattered, the one that had to be recorded for posterity (righting the aforementioned wrong in the process) was that historical first reunion at London's Royal Festival Hall, in front of a sold-out and very international house. Nostalgia was in the air, of course, and it soon became clear that this first reunion tour would be about giving old neglected fans what they wanted and letting younger unsuspecting fans catch up with VDGG as a live force. The set list almost picks up where this particular lineup had left off in early 1977, with the exception of two tracks off Present, here given the typical VDGG live treatment: louder, heavier, grittier. The concert opens with the first two pieces off the group's magnum opus Godbluff, performed with lots of gusto. If "Refugees" suffers from Hammill's less-than-delicate vocals, several other songs are rightfully treated, including "Darkness," "Childlike Faith in Childhood's End," "Lemmings" (with improvised introduction), and probably the definitive live version of "(In The) Black Room," a song written for and first performed by VDGG, even though it ended up on one of Hammill's solo records. After the encore, "Killer," has burned the house down, the guys come back for a second encore, a lovely rendition of "Wondering," which not only seems to question the reality of the whole experience ("Wondering if it's all been true"), but brings the concert full circle as Jackson concludes with a single repeated flute note, just like the beginning of "The Undercover Man" played a little over two hours earlier. Yes, this is nostalgia, but unlike most reunion shows, this one features four men still in full possession of their talent and eager to push onward. Real Time (so titled because nothing has been edited out or added) is a must for the fan and, with such a stellar cross-section of material, an excellent starting place for the newcomer.

François Couture - All Music Guide



Van Der Graaf Generator was always different than its '70s progressive rock contemporaries. Groups like Yes continued to record new material despite considerable acrimony and comings and goings amongst their classic lineups, but on tour they almost exclusively emphasized their '70s repertoire. VDGG dissolved in the late '70s—the result of the rigors of touring and bad finances—but everyone remained in touch, often showing up on singer/primary songwriter Peter Hammill's subsequent solo albums.
The group reconvened in 2004 to see if there was anything left to be said, and Present (Charisma/Virgin, 2005) suggested that not only was there life left in the group, but it was capable of new material reflective of artistic growth while maintaining its own characteristic identity. VDGG's subsequent European tour in support of Present was enthusiastically received. With the release of the double-disc Real Time, as good as anything the band has ever recorded, fans who missed the tour can now assess for themselves whether or not VDGG still "has it."

It does. VDGG was never about instrumental virtuosity, even though Hammill, organist Hugh Banton, saxophonist/flautist David Jackson and drummer Guy Evans are anything but slouches. Hammill recently revealed that during the recording of Present they spent a lot of time listening to Miles Davis' A Tribute to Jack Johnson (Legacy, 1970). Real Time may not speak that language, but in its adventurous pursuit of the unexpected, VDGG might be considered to be aligned with the spirit, if not the letter, of jazz.

VDGG has always been about the songs. Often dark and disturbing, the group majestically delivers the material with a maelstrom of energy that often feels like a vicious animal trying to escape its cage. It's no surprise that the punk/new wave movement of the late '70s related to VDGG, a raw and visceral alternative to progressive rock's impressive but often meaningless virtuosity. Hammill's fervent, sometimes primal scream-like delivery may be melodramatic, but it's never less than completely honest.

The fourteen songs on Real Time represent a cross-section of material from the group's entire discography, positioning material from Present (the disturbingly transcendent "Every Bloody Emperor" and equally powerful but less turbulent "Nutter Alert") as new classics alongside old ones, including the tumultuous "Killer" and stately "Refugees." Other highlights include vital versions of "Lemmings" and "Man-Erg" from the group's classic Pawn Hearts (Charisma, 1971). The studio versions were built on layers of instrumentation and effects; here the group is stripped down, but no less powerful—or terrifying.

While a significantly altered version of VDG (dropping the "Generator" from the name) released a live album in the day—Vital (Charisma, 1978)—Real Time is the disc fans of the classic lineup have been waiting for. It delivers on every count, so the only question now is: was this a one-time reunion, or will VDGG continue? One can only hope.

John Kelman - March 5, 2007
© 2015 All About Jazz



Real Time is a live album by Van der Graaf Generator, released in 2007 on Fie! Records (the label owned by the group's singer and principal songwriter Peter Hammill). It contains the entire recording of the group's reunion concert at the Royal Festival Hall in London, England on 6 May 2005. The Japanese release of the album includes a bonus disc of three songs recorded live at the reunion tour that followed the RFH concert, plus one track of improvisation recorded while the group were soundchecking ("Gibberish").

Wikipedia.org
 

 L y r i c s


Currently no Lyrics available!

 M P 3   S a m p l e s


Currently no Samples available!