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Gentle Giant
Tour History
***
Part Two ***
***
Hitting the Road ***
(1972 -
early 1973)
new information will be in RED
1972
Finally, at the beginning of 1972, Gentle Giant dropped
its previous piecemeal approach and jumped headlong into extensive European
touring. For the first couple months of
the year, they supported Jethro Tull on that band's tour of the continent. This was their first lengthy organized tour
experience and could be considered their first "big break". It was a grueling tour, with very few nights
off built in. The two bands got along
quite well but Ian Anderson of Tull claims that Giant frequently argued bitterly
among themselves after the concerts.
Supposedly, Anderson was invited occasionally to sit in with Giant on
stage, but always declined, modestly claiming to not be a good enough musician
for the job. On the other hand, many
stories have circulated through the years of Anderson being upset at the
enthusiastic responses Giant frequently received, fearing Tull would be
upstaged. Tracing the validity of such
stories is quite difficult.
It's believed that, generally,
Giant kept the same setlist they had been using in the latter half of
1971. It had been rumored that they
played live, at least briefly, all the songs from the not-yet-released THREE
FRIENDS album, with some quickly determined to be ineffective on stage and
dropped. No real evidence of this has
turned up. For instance, Malcolm has
stated that he has no memory of ever playing the title song, Three Friends,
live on stage. The band did continue
their trick of playing onstage a tiny portion of the National Anthem from
whichever European country they happened to be in at the time. This would be worked into the very end of The
Queen, which was generally used to finish the shows. Audiences would, of course, respond favorably
to this nod to their nationalism. Why
Not? was apparently played on occasion only at the very beginning of the
tour with Tull before being permanently dropped.
TYPICAL SETLIST (Early 1972)
Giant
Funny Ways
Alucard
Nothing at All - This still included
Kerry and Ray joining Malcolm on the percussion section of the song.
Plain Truth - This was still the
only song from ACQUIRING THE TASTE that was regularly played on stage,
both at the time and in subsequent years.
The Queen
New
Musical Express, which had already
published several erroneous reports on Gentle Giant television appearances in
Europe, did so again in its Dec. 18, 1971 issue. There, a notice stated that GG was lined up
to star in a series of six half-hour shows for Belgian TV, all set to be filmed
early in 1972. Although Belgium had been
singled out in every false report, it doesn’t look
like any of these film projects ever took place, in Belgium or anywhere
else. Mid-1972 is believed to be when GG
finally debuted on TV.
Jan. 6 Holstelbro,
Denmark Holstebrohallen
opened
for Jethro Tull before 1,300 spectators.
The Hostelbro Dagblad newspaper
gave GG a lukewarm review and claimed the audience did the same with evening definitely belonging to Tull.
Jan. 7 Odense, Denmark Fyens Forum
opened
for Jethro Tull. A review in the Morgenposten newspaper again downplayed Giant’s set,
claiming the audience did not relate well to the band’s music which was very
loud and heavy.
Jan. 7 Three
out of the four songs recorded at the band's third BBC session on Dec. 12, 1971
were included on this very first broadcast of a new program oddly entitled Friday
Night Is Boogie Night, hosted by John Peel.
Others appearing with sessions on the program were Keef Hartley, Miller Anderson and Anne Briggs.
The GG songs broadcast were Alucard, Plain Truth
and Giant. The other song, Funny
Ways, was intended to be broadcast on Feb. 4, but was not.
Jan. 8 Copenhagen, Denmark KB-Hallen
opened
for Jethro Tull. It had been believed
that there were two sets, an early and a late show, on this evening, but it now
seems more likely there was just one, with a review in the Politiken
newspaper putting attendance at 3,000.
There was, however, a second Tull-Giant show scheduled in Copenhagen on
Jan 15 at Tivoli Konsertsal. An earlier Politiken story explained
the reason for the two concerts being scheduled at different venues. Apparently, KB-Hallen was chosen on Jan. 8
because it could provide a more relaxed atmosphere, where spectators may find
it “possible to dance.” The Tivoli Konsertsal on Jan. 15 was then planned as a “pure
concert”. It turns out there was indeed
some dancing at this first show but, ironically, it caused some unrest with
“small riots” being reported. Back in
early December 1971, the Reading Evening Post advertised a double bill
of Gentle Giant and support act Jude at the Haymarket Theatre in Basingstoke,
England on Jan. 8 but by mid-December, the ads were changed to a bill of Jigsaw
and Jude. GG did indeed appear in
Copenhagen instead.
Poster for two shows in
Copenhagen Jan. 1972
The band
had three dates in Sweden lined up next but Malcolm says that, for some reason,
they were not allowed into that country.
Instead, they stayed in Copenhagen for a few days. As it turned out, jazz musician Stan Kenton
was also in Copenhagen, staying at the same hotel. Kenton was playing a gig in that city and
Giant attended the show.
Jan. 9 Gothenburg, Sweden Konserthuset
GIANT DID NOT PLAY.
scheduled to open for Jethro Tull but they were not
allowed into Sweden, as explained above.
Tull went on without them.
Jan. 10 Oslo, Norway Njardhallen
Apparently,
the band gave up their aforementioned rest and
relaxation in Copenhagen long enough to travel to Norway for this one gig,
where they opened for Jethro Tull before a packed crowd. Although conventional wisdom among both Tull
and Giant fans placed this gig at Konserthuset, it
turns out that is incorrect. Konserthuset was not even built until 1977. Phil remembers this gig fondly. However, an Aftenposten newspaper
review called out the crowd for poor behavior, such as throwing bottles and
blocking other fans’ view. The newspaper
also strongly criticized the venue’s management for poor security,
uncomfortable seating and allowing large numbers of people to sneak in for
free. After this gig, GG returned to
Copenhagen.
Oslo
article and ad Jan. 10, 1972
Jan. 11 Stockholm, Sweden Grottan
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. again scheduled to open for Jethro Tull but did not, due to
not being allowed into Sweden. One
report has Konserthuset as being the correct venue.
Jan. 14 Lund, Sweden University of Lund - Akademiska Foreningen
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. once again
scheduled to open for Jethro Tull but did not, due to still not being allowed
into Sweden.
Jan. 15 Copenhagen, Denmark Tivoli
Konsertsal
Their
banishment over, Giant rejoined the Jethro Tull tour as the opening act. Still in Copenhagen, the venue this time was located in an amusement park.
Jan. 16 Copenhagen, Denmark Tivoli
Konsertsal
opened
for Jethro Tull. This was their third
Copenhagen gig in nine days, though this one was not part of the original
schedule.
Press notice for German tour
dates Jan. 1972
Jan. 17 Munster, Germany Munsterlandhalle
opened
for Jethro Tull. A partial tape exists of
just the last song of GG’s set, The Queen, during which Ray can be heard
playing a few notes of the West German National Anthem on his bass. It would be logical to assume more of Giant’s
performance may have been recorded but, if so, it has not surfaced.
Jan. 18 Berlin, Germany Deutschlandhalle
opened
for Jethro Tull who, according to New Musical Express, set a house
attendance record. A tape of Giant’s set
has recently turned up. Plain
Truth with Ray’s violin solo, a mainstay of the set, was not played on
this night. In its place, the group
played Why Not?, a rare
occurrence by 1972. Once again, Ray did
play a bit of the West German National Anthem during The
Queen, this time repeated by Kerry on organ. Phil also remembers this gig fondly.
Berlin
ticket Jan. 18, 1972
Jan. 19 Hamburg, Germany Musikhalle
opened
for Jethro Tull
Hamburg ad and ticket Jan. 19, 1972
Jan. 20 Lubeck, Germany Hansahalle
opened
for Jethro Tull
Jan. 21 Essen, Germany Grugahalle
opened
for Jethro Tull. A tape of this show has
recently been included in the 2019 UNBURIED TREASURE boxset. On it, Ray can again be heard playing a few
notes of the West German National Anthem during The Queen. A second
tape of this same show, from a different source in the audience, once existed,
but the original tape has since deteriorated and is no longer usable.
Jan. 22 Frankfurt, Germany Festhalle Messgelande
opened
for Jethro Tull. GG was very well
received. An enthusiastic crowd called
for repeated encores but the band had to eventually yield to the headliners. This audience reaction was not really a
surprise. Ray revealed in an interview
shortly afterwards that Giant’s first couple albums,
particularly ACQUIRING THE TASTE, had received a lot of radio airplay in
Frankfurt even before this European tour began.
There has been conflicting evidence as to the exact location of this
concert. There have been indications
that the show was moved to the Stadthalle in nearby
Offenbach. There was even a newspaper
review that did describe the show as having taken place in Offenbach. However, both used and unused ticket stubs
and a surviving concert poster, as well as convincing fan recollections,
corroborate the likelihood that the show was, in fact, in Frankfurt. Whatever the case, a tape believed to be of
this show does exist, of course including Ray's nod to the West German
National Anthem during The Queen.
While in the area for this January show, Ray stopped into a music store
in Frankfurt and bought the Fender Precision bass that he used from then
on. Sounds reported that, with
this concert, Tull broke another house attendance record, this time a record
previously held by Led Zeppelin.
Frankfurt ticket and
review Jan. 22, 1972
Jan. 23 Nuremberg, Germany Meistersingerhalle
POSTPONED. Giant
intended to open for Jethro Tull, but both bands ended up playing in Nuremberg
two days later instead.
Jan. 24 Vienna, Austria Konserthaus
opened
for Jethro Tull at yet another gig Phil remembers fondly. A tape of this particular
show exists which includes the band playing a snippet of the Austrian
National Anthem during The Queen.
Malcolm recalls an indoor concert hall gig in Vienna during which he had
to play his drum set with just his right arm.
He had hurt his left arm after actually being
knocked down by a car. Fortunately, he
recovered quickly and was back to full strength the next night. He actually recalled
the gig in question as being held in a hall usually used for classical music,
and that was indeed the case with Konserthaus. However, a fan at the show does not have any
memory of anything unusual going on with the drummer, so this is still
unconfirmed.
Jan. 25 Nuremberg,
Germany Meistersingerhalle
opened
for Jethro Tull. This show was probably
a replacement for the canceled show from two days earlier.
Jan. 26 Ludwigshafen, Germany Friedrich-Ebert
Halle
opened
for Jethro Tull
Ludwigshafen poster and ticket Jan. 26, 1972
Jan. 27 Hannover, Germany Niedersachsenhalle
opened
for Jethro Tull. It’s often said this
gig took place at Kuppelshalle, but surviving ticket stubs
clearly list Niedersachsenhalle as
the venue. Kuppelshalle
was actually part of the same complex but was used
mainly for classical concerts. Niedersachsenhalle, used more for rock concerts, was a
narrow rectangular hall but the stage was set up in the middle of one of the
long sides, rather than on one of the shorter ends. This was an ingenious innovation, as it
allowed more people to be closer to the stage.
Sadly, someone close to the Gentle Giant camp had passed away shortly
before this gig, so the band announced from the stage that they were dedicating
their set to that person’s memory. The
concert was sold out with an attendance of around 3,600.
Jan. 28 Offenburg, Germany Oberrheinhalle
opened
for Jethro Tull
Offenburg Jan. 28, 1972
Jan. 29 Zurich, Switzerland Hallenstadion
opened
for Jethro Tull
Jan. 30 Bern, Switzerland Festhalle
opened
for Jethro Tull. True to form, the band
included a couple bars of the Swiss National Anthem during The Queen. This is one of the
concerts where a fan report has Tull’s Ian Anderson being upset by the great
response Giant was getting from the audience.
This fan claims Anderson went so far as to cut their power so they could
not play any longer. This seems quite
unlikely. On an existing tape of
Giant’s set, Phil comments that the show is taking place on a Sunday
afternoon. A poster confirms that the
show indeed began at 3:00.
Bern
flyer Jan. 30, 1972
Tull and Giant ran into scheduling difficulties when they
reached
Italian tour dates - Ciao
2001 ads with original and revised schedules
Jan. 31 Milan, Italy
UNCONFIRMED. As stated above, a Torino concert with
Tull was canceled for this evening, and it was rumored that a Milan concert was
scheduled in the vacated slot. Some Tull
sources have claimed this to be the case.
One or two uncertain fan recollections of a Milan Tull/GG concert
appearance have come to light, as well as a couple vague references in the
local Milan newspaper from a year later, but absolutely no definitive written
evidence of either band appearing in Milan on this or any other date in early
1972 has been found. Therefore, this gig
remains very suspect.
Feb. 1 Rome, Italy Palazzo dello Sport
opened
for Jethro Tull. A tape exists of this
concert. A band member recalls 20,000 in
attendance, although other reports claim a more modest crowd of 17,000 or
18,000. Either way, a notice in Sounds revealed that this concert broke yet another
house attendance record, this time one previously held by the Rolling Stones.
Throughout the 1970’s, whenever a name act like Tull played Italy, the venues
were most often the city’s primary sports facility, known as the Palazzo dello Sport or Palasport. The country had frequent rioting at rock
concerts, so many smaller theater managers were afraid to stage rock
events. The sports facilities were
supposedly more easily controlled by the local police departments. Giant themselves, when headlining there later
in the decade, usually frequented these same venues. On this particular evening, GG almost didn't
make it to the show when the security guards didn't recognize them and wouldn't
let them in. They were trapped outside,
circling the building, for about an hour with a Ciao 2001 journalist
with whom they had spent much of the day.
Malcolm, who was not with the rest of the group, recalls being inside
when he saw his bandmates in distress and finally got them through the
gates. The Italian newspaper L’Avanti gave a longer review to Giant’s performance
than it did to Tull’s. They particularly
singled out the Italian National Anthem snippet at the end of the set,
with the audience’s fists raised high in solidarity, as the high point of the
entire evening.
Rome Feb. 1, 1972
Feb. 2 Bologna, Italy Palazzo dello Sport
opened
for Jethro Tull at two shows, one in the early evening and one later at
night. Both were sold out with a
capacity crowd of somewhere around 7,000 fans.
This date of Feb. 2 seems definitive, even though some Tull sources
listed a gig in Naples on this night, which Gary remembers being canceled. A Feb. 2 gig in Bologna was indeed advertised
at the time in both the national Italian press and a local Bologna newspaper,
and fan recollections further corroborate this date. A tape of Giant’s set from the late show
exists which includes a brief snippet of the Italian National Anthem
played by Ray and Gary at the end of The Queen. By all accounts, Giant was
extremely well-received in this city, the audience clamoring for the band to
return even after an encore. One report
even has a number of disappointed fans at one of the shows leaving the venue
when the lights came up after Giant finished.
Reportedly, Tull’s Ian Anderson was again somewhat angry about the
audience response to GG in Bologna. A
press report at the time even claimed that Anderson insisted on a contract
clause prohibiting Giant from playing any more encores. Giant went on to become a highly revered band
in Italy and these Bologna shows seem representative of their early impact on
that country.
Bologna Feb. 2, 1972
Feb. 3 Treviso, Italy Bocciodromo Ovest
opened
for Jethro Tull. Tull apparently had
some trouble narrowing down a venue for this gig. Early ads listed it at the Bocciodromo Ovest while later ads
were revised to list it at the Palazzo dello Sport,
but it ended up being held back at the first location. This is unfortunate as the Bocciodromo Ovest was actually
built as a facility for the Italian sport of bocce and was a long, narrow
building with quite poor acoustics. A
tape exists showing that GG played a shortened set of only 30 minutes, leaving
out the normally played Nothing at All.
The reason for this is unknown, although Ian
Anderson’s reported anger at the band’s wonderful reception in Bologna the
night before could have been a factor. They
did still include a snippet of the Italian National Anthem at the end of
The Queen. Some Tull sources
claim that this was actually the night of the Bologna show, but that is false.
Treviso Feb. 3, 1972
Feb. 4 Varese, Italy Palazzo dello
Sport
Tour
schedules listed GG as opening for Jethro Tull here. This has been a contested date for some time,
mainly because Varese is quite near to Novara where the two bands played the
following two nights. However, one
eyewitness account and three printed sources, including a concert flyer and an
issue of Musica e Dischi, lend credibility to
the claim that this gig did take place.
Some feel that Varese is too small of a city to have hosted such an
event, but their Palazzo dello Sport is actually
twice the size of the one in Novara.
Varese flyer Feb. 4, 1972
Feb. 4 On this episode of John Peel’s Friday
Night Is Boogie Night BBC radio program, all four songs from the Dec. 12,
1971 session were scheduled to be rebroadcast, including Funny Ways
which was missing on the initial Jan. 7 broadcast. However, studio logs indicate that only Alucard
and Giant were actually aired on this date, with both Funny Ways
and Plain Truth being absent.
Also presenting studio sessions on the program this time around were
Mick Abrahams, Lindisfarne and Miller Anderson.
Feb. 5 Novara,
Italy Palazzo
dello Sport
An
early ad in Ciao 2001 listed no gigs in Novara, although the revised
itinerary published later actually listed Giant opening for Jethro Tull at two
Novara dates on Feb. 5 and 6. The
Italian newspaper La Stampa also advertised these Novara dates, claiming
they were replacements for the canceled Torino gig from Jan. 31, Torino being
about an hour away. Several eyewitnesses
have now come forward verifying these two Novara dates, plus a tape of their
complete Feb. 5 set exists. What had
made this so confusing for so long is that many Tull sources incorrectly show
that band traveling to Lyon, France on Feb. 5, while the February 1972 issue of
Rock and Folk Magazine noted Tull as actually being in Bordeaux, France
on both Feb. 5 and 6, also incorrect. As
is the case with the tape of the Bologna show, the tape from Feb. 5 includes a
bit of the Italian National Anthem played at the end of The Queen. One report has the
venue being sold-out and overcrowded with many unable to purchase tickets.
Novara
- ad for two consecutive nights Feb.
1972
Feb. 6 Novara, Italy Palazzo dello Sport
This
date was also eventually advertised in Ciao 2001. Jethro Tull sources often incorrectly list
that band as playing in Paris, France on Feb. 6 or, as mentioned in the above
listing, in Bordeaux. However, when the
dust settled, Giant found themselves opening for Tull in Novara again, as confirmed by three different sources. One fan has fond memories of this
double-bill Sunday concert which he claimed was an afternoon show before
another sold-out audience. A very short 10-minute tape exists claiming to be from Novara
1971 but, since GG likely did not perform in Italy in 1971, the tape is clearly
mislabeled. It is obviously an early
recording and, since it does not match any of the other known live recordings
from the period, it could very well be taken from this Feb. 6 concert in
Novara. Unfortunately, there is no way
to determine the origin of the tape for sure.
Jethro Tull had two Dutch dates planned for Feb. 11 and 12 in
Rotterdam and Amsterdam, respectively, and Gentle Giant was again scheduled and
advertised as being the opening act.
However, it appears that Giant backed out. A Ciao 2001 article published shortly
afterwards indicated that Giant returned to their home country of England after
finishing their Italian dates. It’s not
known who took over the support slot in Rotterdam, but singer/guitarist Mike
Tingley supported Tull in Amsterdam.
Rotterdam and Amsterdam
ads - Giant did not appear at these shows
Feb. 1972
Several UK press notices from
late 1971 and the beginning of 1972 stated the band set aside the second half
of February and the month of March for a concert and college tour in the UK, as
well as some European dates. Only a few
British dates have been located so far. Additionally, ads appeared in Pop Music Magazine and Rock
and Folk Magazine which indicate some French dates were scheduled in early
March. These ads were quite vague,
unfortunately, and there has been found little proof that these French concerts
went ahead as planned. These same UK
press notices also announced plans for GG’s first tour of the USA beginning on
April 3, but this tour was eventually scrapped.
On the other hand, the March 12, 1972 issue of Ciao 2001 stated
the band returned to the recording studio immediately after their tour with
Jethro Tull, though for what purpose is not indicated. Clearly, the band’s exact activities during
this time period still need to be nailed down.
Feb. 28 Cleethorpes,
England Winter Gardens
GIANT DID NOT PLAY.
The band had been scheduled to open for Arthur Brown’s
Kingdom Come at a dance sponsored by the Students’ Union of the nearby Grimsby
College of Technology. A reviewer for a
local newspaper expected this to be an exciting double bill, but reported that
Giant failed to show up, for some unspecified reason. Instead, Arthur Brown extended his set by an
additional hour. At the time, many areas
of England were dealing with imposed restrictions on electrical use, resulting
in a number of events being canceled.
However, ads for this gig promised no danger of that happening on this
night.
Ad for canceled Cleethorpes
appearance Feb. 28, 1972
Mar. 1 Paris,
France Gibus
Club
UNCONFIRMED
Mar. 4 Dourges, France Piblokto
Club
UNCONFIRMED
Mar. 5 Dourges, France Piblokto
Club
UNCONFIRMED. One
fan seems to recall attending this show, but there is no additional
corroboration.
Mar. 11 Bradford,
England Bradford
University
UNCONFIRMED.
A concert listing in Melody Maker places Giant at this
University on this date but, oddly, a listing in New Musical Express has
Focus scheduled to play there instead. A
search of the University’s school newspaper turned up no mention of either
bill, and no other evidence one way or the other has
surfaced.
Mar. ? Chippenham,
England Neeld Hall
UNCONFIRMED. In mid-February, the Evening
Post in nearby Bristol announced that The Chippenham College of Further
Education had scheduled a dance and disco event featuring Vinegar Joe and
Gentle Giant as part of their Student Union’s Charity Week. Charity Week began on Mar. 11, but the exact
date of the planned dance has not been determined. It is also not confirmed the dance even went
ahead at all since no follow-up announcements have been located. Additionally, at the time, many areas of
England were dealing with imposed restrictions on electrical use, resulting in
a number of events being canceled. The
Bristol area was one of the areas hard hit by this situation.
Mar. 13 Gravesend,
England New Lord’s Club - Civic Centre
The
band Writing On the Wall served as the support act.
Gravesend
ads Mar. 13, 1972
Mar. 17 Lancaster,
England Lancaster
University - Great Hall
Playing
support for the band on this night was the progressive band T2. According to a flyer distributed on campus,
this was billed as an Easter Party.
Roger Ruskin Spears’ Giant Kinetic Wardrobe also entertained the crowd,
plus the University provided disco lights, late buses and a bar, all for only
45p.
Lancaster
- handwritten flyer Mar. 17, 1972
At some
point in late March, Malcolm was injured in a motorcycle accident, breaking his
left arm, left leg and pelvis, and the band was forced to find yet another
drummer on very short notice.
Discussions were held with Mike Giles, formerly of King Crimson, to have
him fill the position, but that plan fell through. Running out of time, they then managed to
recruit, as a temporary fill-in, John Weathers, who had just left his position
with the Greaseband a short time earlier and had been
working in a carpet factory. With him,
they went into some quick rehearsals and then straightaway into a tour of the
New Musical Express notice about Malcolm
Mortimore’s motorcycle accident March,
1972
The UK tour
with John originally comprised 19 dates, although adjustments were made and a
number of new dates were booked as it went along. Looking back, the tour may have been a
somewhat humiliating experience for the group, as they actually had to serve as
the opening act for a movie, the Jimi Hendrix live concert film, Jimi Plays
Berkeley. Certain ads for the tour
had the band's name in large, bold print, as if they were headlining, but they
did, in fact, take the stage first each night, before the movie. This tour also had its share of problems and
for that reason, not all the dates listed below can be confirmed. At one gig, the film never arrived. At another unknown date on the tour, Giant's
equipment didn't arrive, due to a van breakdown, so they were unable to
perform. This also caused a further
problem for the film, as the band's PA system was supposed to be used for the
soundtrack. Roadie Phil Freeman recalls
that the angry crowd actually beat up the projectionist on this occasion, out
of frustration. An alternate version of
this story has the projectionist’s violent misfortune coming about because he
himself arrived late. Whatever the case,
it was certainly a trying tour at times, and Kerry has commented that being
relegated to opening for a movie was a sure sign that Giant was not really
gaining any ground with English audiences.
John, on the other hand, has said that he was just happy to “have a gig”
and was pleased that Hendrix’ popularity ensured some packed houses. The three Shulman brothers have all recently
joked about the tour, Derek saying the band really needed to find somewhere to
play and this was all they could find at the time. Gary remembers it as an odd bill, certainly,
but he enjoyed watching Hendrix every night.
UK tour ad - opened for
Jimi Hendrix film Apr. 1972
TYPICAL SETLIST (Apr. 1972)
Prologue - This THREE
FRIENDS song was now used to begin Giant's shows.
Alucard
Funny Ways
Nothing at All - During this tune, the "drum
bash" continued with the new drummer.
During his percussion break, John used to enjoy displaying amusing
little tricks to the audience. He would
sometimes change the pitch of his floor tom by blowing air into it through a
plastic tube. Another trick was to tap
the snare drum vertically with a stick, then slide his hand down the length of
the stick to create a continuous rolling sound.
There is also at least one photo confirming that he sometimes wore an
actual rubber mask of the infamous “giant head” during his solo.
Schooldays - another song from their new album,
added to the regular set for this tour only
Plain Truth
The Queen
Peel the
Paint -
It’s believed this was played as an encore, though it’s not known how
often. It’s also not known if the same
arrangement was used as was done at the German gigs the following month.
This may
be the time after which the song Giant was no longer played on a regular
basis. However, it is possible that the
song did turn up now and again as late as early 1973.
Apr. 1 Blackburn,
England Windsor Hall
At
this, John’s first show as Gentle Giant’s drummer, the band was scheduled to
open for Jimi Plays Berkeley. The
Lancashire Evening Telegraph reported that over 250 fans showed up and
watched Giant’s set. However, the
soundtrack for the film which followed would not operate, so the film portion
of the evening had to be canceled. The
promotor then tried to book the film for a different evening but was unable to,
eventually offering half the admission fee back to all ticket holders several
days later.
Apr. 3 Folkestone,
England Leas Cliff Hall
UNCONFIRMED. scheduled to open for Jimi Plays
Berkeley but Ray believes this may have been the gig when the film never
arrived.
Folkestone
flyer Apr. 3, 1972
Apr. 4 Croydon,
England Fox at
Greyhound
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley
Croydon ticket Apr. 4, 1972
Apr. 5 Stafford,
England Stychfields Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley
Apr. 7 Epsom,
England Ebbisham Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. Gary has
a very specific memory about a gig in early April in this general area of
England where Malcolm Mortimore made a surprise appearance. As the band arrived at the gig, Malcolm was
there to greet them. It turns out the
band still had his drums in their van and he wanted them back. Although not confirmed, it may very well have
been this Epsom gig.
Apr. 8 Barry,
Wales Memorial
Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. A
spectator at the show estimated that about half of the audience spent Giant’s
set at the bar. A second spectator, while
visiting with the band backstage after the show, remarked that he preferred
their two previous drummers over John Weathers.
This angered John who rose to retaliate.
Fortunately, Kerry and Ray intervened.
Apr. 9 Oakengates, England Town
Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley
Apr. 11 Bradford,
England St. George's
Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. Venue personnel
sometimes set up seats for scheduled events but on this night, they did not, so
the crowd either stood or sat on the floor for the entire evening. In the band's early years, a roadie would
either kneel near or lie under the vibraphone with a microphone during Kerry's
solo in Funny Ways. At this
particular show, an eyewitness recalls the roadie having a lot of trouble
keeping up with Kerry's hands. Since St.
George’s Hall was not generally used for showing movies, it did not have its
own built-in screen, so a large portable screen was erected for the Hendrix
film. This may have been quite common
during this tour.
Apr. 13 Cambridge,
England Guildhall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. The
sound in the hall may have been a bit inferior during Giant’s set. An audience member recalls that when the
"drum bash" began, the participants started in the middle, playing on
John's kit, then moved away, hitting on stands and other objects around the
stage. Finally, they reconvened in the
center for the conclusion. At one point,
John is said to have bounced his sticks off the floor, caught them, and
continued without missing a beat.
Cambridge ad Apr. 13, 1972
Apr. 14 Corby,
England Civic
Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley
Apr. 14 Although at one time planned for
March, it’s believed that this is when the group released THREE FRIENDS
in England, though one report claims that the album didn’t see its UK release
until June. Apparently, it was rush
released in Italy as much as two months earlier, possibly to capitalize on
their recent live successes there. Upon
its release in Italy, the album gained immediate widespread attention. It’s been said that some of the later GG
albums were also released first in Italy.
Apr. 15 Norwich,
England St. Andrew's
Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley
Apr. 16 Kenilworth,
England Chesford Grange
CANCELED. Although GG’s published tour schedule included
this stop opening again for Jimi Plays Berkeley, local newspaper notices
confirm that it did not take place, the band Skid Row playing at the Chesford Grange on Apr. 16 instead. The Hendrix film was shown at this venue on
Apr. 30 but, on that occasion, the band Nazareth was in support. There are also indications that the film may
have been shown here one earlier time but, again, without Giant.
Apr. 17 High
Wycombe, England Town Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. Though
not absolutely certain, one attendee believes Kerry played the final selection,
The Queen, on the Town Hall’s own pipe organ which, since this had not
been cleared through proper channels, somewhat annoyed the management at the
venue.
High Wycombe ad - Apr. 17, 1972
Apr. 18 Southport,
England Floral Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. One fan
recalls the band playing Wreck at this show, but another fan refutes
this claim. In fact, no evidence
indicates them ever playing this particular song live. Gary says the band rehearsed it at one time
but came to the conclusion it wouldn’t work as a concert number. Attendance was not strong on this night and,
of the people who were there, a good number left before the film.
Apr. 19 Liverpool,
England Liverpool
Stadium
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. Although
not in the original advertisements, Giant and the Hendrix film did appear in
Liverpool on this date. The promoter at
the Liverpool Stadium, who worked under the name Dragonfly Promotions,
confirmed this concert but mistakenly recalls it as being on April 27. The Stadium was not actually a huge outdoor
sports facility, as the name may imply, but rather an indoor boxing arena which
also hosted a fair number of concerts.
The acoustics were reported to be quite horrible for GG’s
performance. This could help explain why
one newspaper reviewer, while raving about the Hendrix film, wrote that Giant’s
opening set wasn’t worth remembering.
Liverpool
ad Apr. 19, 1972
Apr. 20 East
Kilbride, Scotland Olympia
Ballroom
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley, although not on the originally advertised tour
schedule. Only a modest number of people
attended this show. There was a dance
floor in front of the stage and the small number of people in attendance were
asked to move their chairs onto that floor, so as to consolidate them into some
semblance of a crowd.
Apr. 21 Sunderland,
England Top Rank Suite
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. A fan in
attendance remembers an exceptionally long wait between Giant’s set and the
Hendrix film. The picture and sound for
the film were also subpar due to the use of makeshift projection and screen
equipment.
Apr. 22 Northwich,
England Memorial Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley.
Advertising for this event also promised a “spectacular disco”.
Northwich ad Apr. 22, 1972
Apr. 23 Edinburgh,
Scotland Caley Picture
House
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley
Edinburgh
ticket Apr. 1972
Apr. 24 Glasgow,
Scotland City Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. It was a
relatively small venue with chairs set up on wooden flooring. Once again, a free-standing projection screen
was erected for the Hendrix film. This
points out the rather low key production values of this particular tour. Additionally, the hall was only about a
quarter full, possibly because it was raining heavily on that night. One attendee wrote to Sounds magazine
with his own personal review of the show.
Sounds published his letter in which he stated that, although he
enjoyed Hendrix’s music, he thought the film was poor and was dismayed that the
film received a better audience reception that GG did for their “incredible
set”. There was at one time a rumor that
a live tape of this gig existed.
Glasgow ad Apr. 24, 1972
Apr. 25 Sheffield,
England City Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. Giant’s
transport broke down on the way to this gig, so the Hendrix film was shown
first, with Giant playing second.
Unfortunately, by the time the band hit the stage, many in the audience
had left. One local newspaper advertised
this film showing, but listed the live portion of the program as being provided
by two American acts, the band Cat Mother, and the soul duo of Jimmy and Vella. These two acts did play a few UK dates
supporting the Hendrix film, but it was in the month of February, long before
Giant’s participation. It seems the
newspaper failed to update an older ad.
Sheffield poster (with correct
bill) Apr. 25, 1972
Apr. 26 Lincoln,
England Drill Hall
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. The band was scheduled
to open for Jimi Plays Berkeley. but canceled at the last minute,
possibly due to transportation problems.
It’s not known if the film was still shown.
Lincoln - Disc Magazine notice
for canceled gig Apr. 26, 1972
Apr. 27 Northampton,
England Guildhall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley. As
stated above, the promotor of this tour’s Liverpool appearance remembers Giant
being in that city on Apr. 27. However,
it seems he was mistaken.
Apr. 28 Cheltenham,
England Town Hall
This
show did not appear on the group’s original tour itinerary, but this date was
added afterwards, the band again opening for Jimi Plays Berkeley. Due to electrical problems, they were late
starting their set, a situation Derek blamed on the tour manager. A tape of this gig exists which includes the
only known live recording of Schooldays.
As can be heard on that tape, Phil got caught up in a microphone stand
early in the show and ripped the back of his trousers. Derek took the opportunity to tease him on stage
over this unfortunate mishap. In 2003, Schooldays
was included on an official live Gentle Giant release called PROLOGUE on
the European Glass House label. It was a
direct copy from an earlier bootleg traded among collectors. Between 2000 and 2005, Glass House released
ten titles, mostly exact copies of previous bootlegs of audience recordings,
soundboard recordings, or radio broadcasts, with no attempt to clean up any
sound defects. The band members did not
endorse the sub-par sound quality of these releases, but they did receive some
small royalties from them.
Apr. 29 St. Albans,
England City Hall
opened
for Jimi Plays Berkeley, although this one was not on the original tour
schedule either
St.
Albans ad Apr. 29, 1972
Apr. 30 London,
England Greyhound
The
band played alone at this particular gig, which was a free admission show.
Ad
for London’s Greyhound Apr. 30, 1972
May 5 Burton-on-Trent,
England 76 Club
GIANT DID NOT PLAY.
New Musical Express
erroneously advertised this and the following gig in Chichester, both with GG
opening for Jimi Plays Berkeley, but GG’s association with the Hendrix
film seems to have ended by April 29.
Besides, a local newspaper advertised the Mick Abrahams band as playing
the 76 Club on May 5.
May 6 Chichester,
England Bishop Otter
College
GIANT DID NOT PLAY.
Like happened with the May 5 listing, New
Musical Express advertised Giant as opening for Jimi Plays Berkeley
again, but that was apparently in error as there is no credible evidence that
such a gig took place. Giant’s tour with
the Hendrix film ended on April 29.
While
with Jethro Tull earlier in the year, Giant was particularly well-received in
Germany. Because of this, they made it a
point to return there on their own as soon as possible, therefore scheduling a
German headlining tour with the bands Chicken Shack and Man, the latter being
the band that John Weathers became a member of in the 1980's. This tour was, on some posters and tickets,
billed and promoted as the "London Rock Scene '72". Although printed materials seemed to give
each group equal billing, John has confirmed that Man opened, GG played second
and Chicken Shack topped the bill.
On stage,
most of the group's live repertoire remained in rotation, though Peel the
Paint was added and Schooldays seems to have been dropped.
TYPICAL SETLIST (Mid 1972)
Prologue
Alucard
Funny Ways
Nothing at All
Plain Truth
The Queen - A portion of the host country’s National Anthem was
again added to the tail end of this song.
Peel the Paint - The second half of this song, featuring Gary on guitar, was played
for the first time on this tour and was done separately, instead of
combined with other songs, as would be done in later years. It appeared only when an encore was needed.
May 9 Germany
UNCONFIRMED.
New Musical Express
stated that the band’s German tour may have started on this date but, if so,
the exact city is unknown. Variety
had earlier published a notice that the German tour would start on May 11.
May 11 Oldenburg,
Germany Weser-Ems Halle
This
show definitely took place and may have been the beginning of the tour. The order of bands was Man, Giant and
headliners Chicken Shack. One fan at the
show believes Giant played Schooldays, but there is no corroborating
evidence that song was played live after the April UK tour. It does not appear on complete tapes of the
band’s performances on May 12 or 13.
Oldenburg ad May 11, 1972
May 12 Offenbach, Germany Stadthalle
A
tape exists of this concert which includes the encore Peel the Paint. The West German National Anthem was
again played during The Queen but the excerpt was a bit longer than that
played at the January German concerts.
Once more, they played second, after Man and before Chicken Shack. One odd report had Deep Purple brought in at
the last minute to replace Giant and headline the show, but this report is
absolutely false, especially considering that Purple were at the time without
guitarist Ritchie Blackmore who was recovering from hepatitis. A fan has reported attendance as 300 or
slightly less.
Offenbach
ticket May 12, 1972
May 13 Kronau,
Germany Grosse Mehrzweckhalle
The
order of bands was Man, Giant and headliners Chicken Shack. A tape exists of Giant’s set. The longer portion of the West German
National Anthem again appears on that tape during The Queen.
Kronau poster May 13, 1972
May 14 Ludenscheid,
Germany IKA-Traglufthalle
The
order of bands was Man, Giant and headliners Chicken Shack.
May 15 Munich,
Germany Circus Krone
Building
The
order of bands was Man, Giant and headliners Chicken Shack.
May 16 Nurnberg,
Germany Messehaus
The
order of bands was Man, Giant and headliners Chicken Shack.
Nurnberg
ticket May 16, 1972
May 17 Dusseldorf,
Germany Rheinhalle
The
order of bands was Man, Giant and headliners Chicken Shack. An unconfirmed report has Lindisfarne also
appearing.
May 18 Munster,
Germany Halle Munsterland
The
order of bands was Man, Giant and headliners Chicken Shack.
May 19 Hamburg,
Germany Musikhalle
The
order of bands was Man, Giant and headliners Chicken Shack. Notices in Melody Maker and the local
press mentioned GG had been slated to appear in the Great Hall at Polytechnic
in Huddersfield, England on the same date.
In Huddersfield, they were to perform along with Michael Chapman and the
band Help Yourself at the school’s annual Architect’s Ball. However, Giant did not participate and they
ended up playing in Hamburg. BBC
presenter Stuart Maconie has written about an unusual event that took place during
this visit to Hamburg when all three bands were staying in the same hotel in
the Reeperbahn, the redlight section of the city. After the concert, all the musicians were
partaking of some heavy drug use with the exception of Giant, who chose to get
only mildly involved, sharing just one joint between them. In walked British R&B legend Graham Bond
who was staying at the same hotel. Bond,
known for his larger-than-life personality, walked right up to Derek who had
his alto sax around his neck. He grabbed
the sax, breaking the strap in the process, and started playing Charlie Parker
tunes before turning and leaving again.
Derek was quite surprised and more than a little upset, especially
considering Bond had also taken Giant’s only joint and smoked it.
Hamburg ad May 19, 1972
May 21 Berlin, Germany Waldbuhne
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. This
Berlin venue hosted the "Super Pop Festival" from May 19 to May
22. Giant was booked and their name did
appear in the printed program, showing they were scheduled for a May 21 slot. However, it’s recently been reported that
they did not appear, after all. Some of
the other scheduled bands also did not show up although, interestingly, Man and
Chicken Shack did.
Berlin
- canceled appearance at “Super Pop Festival”
May 21, 1972
June 2 Widnes, England Queens
Hall
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. It has
been confirmed that this gig was booked early on, but GG canceled in favor of
the German tour listed above and Italian appearances, as described below. Replacing them in Widnes on short notice was
the Mick Abrahams Band.
Band
itineraries and plans seemed to be unsettled for a while in mid-1972, with
press reports conflicting and mostly incorrect.
New Musical Express provided the most confusing information. One report placed the band in Italy for sixteen
days starting in early June, then five weeks in America beginning at the end of
June, while another issue of the same magazine gave detailed information about
concerts in Czechoslovakia, then concerts and TV in Belgium, Holland and
Luxembourg, then twelve days in Germany and at last, an American tour
commencing in early August. As if this
was not bewildering enough, a May 1972 issue of Melody Maker reported on
a planned short tour of Eastern Europe starting on June 20 with five dates in
Poland, followed by two dates in Czechoslovakia, and two dates in
Yugoslavia. Next was to be ten more days
in Germany in July and then, at last, two weeks in Italy. It seems likely that, no matter how many
plans were made, the band actually spent minimal time in Europe over this
summer. Gary Green claims that no
Eastern European gigs ever took place.
Nothing whatsoever has been found in any source to confirm summer dates
in Germany, a country in which they had just toured in May. The long discussed American tour did not
finally begin until late August.
As for
Italy, this was another country that had embraced the band during their
appearances with Jethro Tull, so they were itching to return there and
capitalize on that. Unlike the other
countries mentioned, it is certain that they did spend a bit of time in Italy,
either before or immediately after the June 13 BBC session listed below, but
what exactly transpired while there is tougher to pin down. The May issue of Melody Maker
mentioned above, while reporting on the upcoming trip to Italy, stated that it
was to include some “concerts and club dates”.
However, the July 1972 issue of Musica e Dischi,
while confirming that Giant had recently spent a little time in Italy, reported
that it was for filming “a series of TV programmes”
and did not include any live gigs.
Nonetheless, further corroboration of live work in Italy came from a
June 29 issue of the British newspaper Runcorn Weekly News which
mentioned the band having just returned from Germany and Italy where they were
“working in” their new drummer. The
German visit referred to here was no doubt the May dates, as outlined above,
while Italy would logically have been into June. At least two band members make the argument
that the group probably did play at least some live dates there in June, as
they would not have driven all the way to Italy just for a small number of
television projects. Unfortunately,
written confirmation of specific live appearances has not been found. One fan seems to recall the band
playing an afternoon show at a club near Modena, Italy called Bob Club 2000
which could have been in this time period, but details are sketchy. Also, an online biography of the Italian band
Gli Alluminogeni states that they opened a few
Italian dates for Giant at some point, again possibly in this time period. Unfortunately, there is absolutely no
confirmation of this. Besides, the
biography lists the year of these shared bills as 1971 which is almost
definitely wrong. If Giant was indeed able to secure some live appearances while
in Italy, it was apparently not a well-organized national tour and it seems to
have not garnered national press coverage.
On the
other hand, at least two Italian television film projects have been confirmed
for June of 1972, one in Milan and one in Jesolo.
June ? Although the exact date cannot be
determined, Gentle Giant was definitely filmed in Milan, Italy by the Italian
RAI TV Network for broadcast in either mid-July or late July. It’s believed that, when broadcast, this was
the first time the band appeared on television anywhere. Also filmed for this same program was the
popular Italian progressive band Formula 3, as confirmed by John Weathers and a
couple members of Formula 3. The two
bands each played sets of their own material.
A proposal was made for the groups to unite for one improvised jam to
air during the final credits and, while Formula 3 was more than willing to do
this, Giant was more reluctant, due to their habit of generally playing only
written, arranged music. The Formula 3
band members remember differently as to whether this improvised number was
ultimately included or not. In a
September 1972 issue of Ciao 2001, a reporter described watching this
filming taking place. Giant ran through
several live songs with Prologue and Peel the Paint being singled
out by the magazine reporter who was also quite impressed by the progress the
band had made since their early 1972 Italian tour with Jethro Tull. Gary and John specifically recall making this
film in Milan, with John adding that it was an all-day affair, from early
morning until well into the evening.
Things did not go well, as the band and the film crew kept missing each
other throughout the day. Frustrated,
the band spent much of their time in the local pub. Gary freely admits he had too much to drink
and, finally back in the hotel after filming, he got himself into some trouble
with the hotel management, due to his accidentally slipping in the bathroom and
damaging a window and sink. John, who
was Gary's roommate at the time, swears it was unintentional. Sadly, all indications point to this Milan
film as no longer existing.
June ? Giant was also definitely filmed at
some point in June at an event in Jesolo, Italy, a
seaside town near Venice. It took place
at the Kings River Club, one of the largest and best-known beach-side
nightclubs in the area, offering many indoor and outdoor facilities. This event, at which the band appeared on an
outdoor terrace or courtyard, was actually a private party hosted by Patrick
Meehan, their manager at WWA. Meehan
owned a residence nearby and had many business connections in the area. In fact, this entire event may have been
promotional in nature. Some members of the
press were present, as was the Italian RAI TV Network. In the course of the day, RAI filmed some
sort of promotional “music video”, the band miming to the album version of Peel
the Paint, with no audience present.
John recalls how difficult it was for him to mime to Malcolm’s original
drum part on the song. It is worth
noting that this mimed promotional film is still believed to reside in RAI’s
archives, where they describe it as a “soundcheck”. The mimed film was originally broadcast at
least once, on the Permette Questo Ballo? program on Nov. 14 but, being promotional
in nature, it may very well have appeared on other programs, too. Interestingly, a second RAI film clip from
this day in Jesolo has also been located which
includes both live material and a brief interview with Phil. Gary has revealed that the band played
possibly a full live set, this time for a sizable assembled crowd, though only
a small amount appears on this second clip.
RAI may not have been set up that day to record live concert audio, as
the live portion of this second clip is coincidentally also overdubbed with the
album version of Peel the Paint.
During Phil’s interview, he states that John had been with the band for
a “couple months”, again pointing to June as the proper timeframe for this day
on the beach. RAI’s records show that
some portions of film made in Jesolo were also shown
on the Adesso Musica program one or more times during 1972. This may very well have included the second
clip with the live appearance and Phil’s interview, as well as possibly the
mimed clip or other yet unseen segments of film. Regardless of what was broadcast, the live
set performed that day is the only live Italian concert in the summer of 1972
to be confirmed so far. This second RAI
film clip described here was released online in 2021 by the band
themselves.
Jesolo June 1972
Hints of
additional Italian television and film projects in mid-1972 have surfaced now
and again but, at this point, they all remain barely more than conjecture and
educated guesswork. Melody Maker
stated at the time that GG planned to record some music they had written for an
Italian film. Possibly referring to the
same project, a 1976 article in Trouser Press referred to some point in
Giant’s earlier years when they were considering providing a soundtrack for an
animated Italian film, but the production company went out of business before
the project could get off the ground.
The July 1, 1972 issue of Billboard provided information on
another possible film. Apparently, an
Italian disc jockey named Nico Metta was currently touring discotheques in that
country with his 90-minute “Pop Show”, during which he would play the latest
records and show a 20-minute film of various bands and musicians. Giant was one of the bands included in his
film, although Metta himself has recently stated that he believes his film to
be lost now. A notice in Musica e Dischi even reported that the band was to film a
segment for the Italian Festivalbar
contest. This was a long running annual
competition based on radio play around the country. There is no further corroboration to back up
this claim but, whatever the case, Giant were not finalists and were certainly
not included in the September televised finale.
June 13 The
band did their fourth BBC studio session at London's Transcription Service
Studio T1, recording Mister Class and Quality?, Prologue and Schooldays. It seems that the song Three Friends
segued out of Mister Class and Quality?, according to one fan who
recorded the original broadcast. This is
similar to the way the two songs were connected on the THREE FRIENDS
album. On the BBC session, the title
track was heavy on bass and mellotron, but did not include vocals. Prologue had some additional bass
parts and an extra saxophone part in the middle, not found on the album
version. Sadly, the tape made by this
fan is now lost, as is the BBC's master recording of the session.
June ? The June 29 issue of the Runcorn
Weekly News that was referenced above also stated that GG was “now engaged”
on a short British tour after returning from Italy. The article went on to say they were using
these dates to break in a new act for their upcoming visit to America. Of course, initial plans to tour the States
starting as early as June and July did not materialize, the group not arriving
on those shores until the end of August.
Since no other information has been found about British dates in this
time period, this newspaper claim must be viewed as suspect.
It is
very unlikely that Giant played any live concerts at all in July. After returning from Italy, the band’s
attention would have shifted to preparing for their next album. John estimates Ray and Kerry would have
needed a couple weeks to finish writing the material, after which they would
have gone into rehearsals in Portsmouth.
Following that was the actual recording sessions in London beginning on
July 24, as described below.
July 10 This is believed to be the date that THREE
FRIENDS was released in America.
Less likely is the possibility of a release in August, although it has
been suggested. As stated earlier,
Gentle Giant’s exact album release dates are often difficult to trace, with
projected dates frequently changing and contradictory information often
appearing in print. While still
remaining with Vertigo in England, Giant was now signed to Columbia in the US and
it was Columbia who issued this album there.
However, instead of using the same cover artwork as had been used in the
UK, Columbia chose instead to reuse the George Underwood cover painting of the
iconic “giant head” that appeared on the very first album, itself not released
in America.
July 14 Giant's fourth BBC session, recorded
June 13, was broadcast on Friday Night Is Boogie Night, hosted by John
Peel. Others with sessions on the
program were Ashman Reynolds, Slade and Tir Na Nog.
July ? The Milan television film described
above was announced in the July issue of the Italian magazine Musica e Dischi as being shown in either mid-July or late July
over the RAI TV Network. It was between
45 minutes and an hour in length and featured both Gentle Giant and the Italian
band Formula 3. An exact date of
broadcast is unknown.
July ? As described above, RAI-TV’s records
confirm that portions of the film made in Jesolo in
June appeared on the Adesso Musica program, possibly more than once,
although the records are incomplete and do not reveal the exact contents of the
episodes or give exact broadcast dates.
Referring to Giant’s appearance on this program, one Italian press
notice gives a broadcast date of late July, although the dates of possible
additional episodes are still unknown.
Opening titles for Italian TV “Adesso
Musica” program July 1972
An
article about Giant appeared in the July 15, 1972 issue of Melody Maker. It included an interview with Phil who, while
discussing the band’s future plans, announced they were going to be playing at
the upcoming Arts Festival in Venice, Italy, an event he believed would be good
for the band. The festival ran from June
to October but no other details are known about a GG appearance and, more than
likely, there was none. July and August
would have been highly unlikely due to the group’s other activities and
commitments. One press report had
Italian dates planned for September, but they ended up in America that entire
month. Italian dates were finally
officially scheduled for October, as explained below, but a date in Venice was
not on that schedule and, as it turned out, that entire tour was canceled.
July - Aug. Between July 24 and Aug. 5, the band
recorded their fourth album, OCTOPUS, at
Aug. 8 They recorded their fifth BBC studio
session at Maida Vale Studio 4 in
Ad for U.S. tour dates
with Black Sabbath Aug. - Sep. 1972
By the latter part of 1972, they had made it, at last, to
At their
North American shows, they continued to play most of the same songs they had
been playing for a while. However, The
Queen was apparently dropped at this time, probably due to its unique
British flavor not translating well for North American audiences. There are rumors, possibly true, that they
did perform rare material from THREE FRIENDS, as well as material that
would appear on OCTOPUS, which was still unreleased in America at that
time. Gary remembers A Cry for
Everyone being played one time, before being dropped, but it's not known
where that was or even which year.
TYPICAL SETLIST (Fall 1972)
Prologue
Alucard - This was apparently included in the set
less and less as the year went on.
Funny Ways
Nothing at All
Plain Truth -
Ray's violin solo continued to get longer and wilder.
Aug. 24 Charleston,
South Carolina County Hall
opened
for Black Sabbath in a somewhat run down old building. There had been conjecture that this gig was
held in Charleston, West Virginia.
However, a surviving ticket clearly proves the show was in South
Carolina. It seems Sabbath only played
two songs. Partway into the third, Ozzy
threw his microphone stand over the amplifiers and stormed off, never to
return. The crowd was told that his
voice was shot and the rest of the show was canceled. Fortunately, the Sabbath crowd was relatively
supportive during Giant’s opening set, but they were not as understanding when
the headliner canceled. About 600-800
angry fans pelted band members with whatever they had handy. Police had to come in and disperse the crowd
but some rioting continued in the parking lot after the show.
Charleston ticket Aug. 24, 1972
Aug. 25 Nashville,
Tennessee Municipal
Auditorium
Although
scheduled, Sabbath canceled at the very last minute their appearance at this
general admission concert. The show went
on, however, with the other two scheduled bands, Gentle Giant and Black Oak
Arkansas. In fact, Giant had already
finished their opening set before the promoter took the stage to announce that
Sabbath would not appear and that BOA would play a double set for those who
wished to stay and watch. Audience
members were, of course, given the option of a refund but, reportedly, only 570
did so of the 5,553 in attendance. One
eyewitness thinks GG may have played Working All Day, but this is
unconfirmed. However, this same
eyewitness does clearly remember them playing The Advent of Panurge, not
yet released in America. This is also
not confirmed, but is certainly possible.
More than one fan at the concert and at least one press review have
indicated the band went over fairly well, considering they were relatively
unknown in the States. However, a second
review reported the audience greeted them with “unsympathetic ears” and “dumb
stares”. Several band members have
recounted staying in Nashville for several days with very little to do on this
tour, due to Sabbath’s canceling the next few gigs. Fortunately, they were staying at Nashville’s
King of the Road Motor Inn, known as an exciting vacation spot.
Nashville - a gig played without Sabbath Aug. 25, 1972
Aug 25 John Peel’s
BBC program Friday Night is Boogie Night rebroadcast the Giant session
recorded on June 13, along with sessions by Medicine Head and Miller Anderson.
Aug. 26 Louisville,
Kentucky Louisville
Gardens
POSTPONED. planned as part of the Kentucky
State Fair festivities but eventually rescheduled for Louisville’s Freedom Hall
on Sep. 6. GG was supposed to open for
Black Sabbath.
Press
notices about Black Sabbath concert cancelations Aug. 1972
Aug. 27 Detroit,
Michigan Cobo Hall
POSTPONED.
This time GG was supposed to open for Edgar Winter and headliners Black
Sabbath but, again, it was canceled at the last minute and rescheduled for Aug.
31.
Aug. 28 Minneapolis,
Minnesota Minneapolis Armory
POSTPONED.
rescheduled for the same venue on Sep. 5. GG was supposed to open for Black Sabbath.
Ad for original postponed Minneapolis
show Aug. 28, 1972
Aug. 30 Knoxville,
Tennessee Civic Coliseum
opened
for Argent, then headliners Black Sabbath, who were finally able to appear
again after missing several dates.
Knoxville
ad Aug. 30, 1972
Aug. 31 Detroit,
Michigan Cobo Hall
Originally,
the band was scheduled to open for Black Sabbath at the Civic Center in
Roanoke, Virginia, but that was changed for some unknown reason. Instead, press reports confirm that the
canceled Aug. 27 Detroit concert took place on this date instead, with GG
opening for Edgar Winter and headliners Black Sabbath. Winter appeared with Giant together several
times over the 1972-73 period, and Phil professed great admiration for
him. Interestingly, Derek stated in a
press report at the time that he did not share his brother’s respect for
Winter.
Sep. 1 Savannah,
Georgia Civic Center
Arena
UNCONFIRMED. Two
separate fan reports reveal that, while the audience was waiting in the arena,
it was announced that Sabbath would not perform. The reason given at the time was that Ozzy’s
throat was again giving him trouble.
It’s not known if Giant had already played its set before this
announcement was made, although one of these fan reports indicate that may be
the case, similar to what had happened in Charleston and Nashville already. Further evidence either way has yet to turn
up.
Sep. 3 Chandler,
Indiana Bull Island
Giant
did participate at this three-day Erie Canal Soda Pop Festival, held between
Sep. 2 and Sep. 4. The exact date that
they played has long been a matter of debate, even with published accounts and
hundreds of fan recollections appearing online and elsewhere. It is believed that they flew into nearby
Evansville on the first day, Sep. 2, and even though there are some indications
they may have taken the stage that day, best evidence seems to indicate they
finally performed on the afternoon of the second day, Sep. 3. GG endured a difficult hour and a half bus
ride to the site and took to the stage immediately upon arrival. However, they did not really get a chance to
play for very long. John has confirmed
what a couple fans at the event also recall, that problems with an electrical
generator made it impossible for Kerry’s
Chandler
- “Erie Canal Soda Pop Festival” Sep.
3, 1972
Sep. 5 The
group's fifth BBC session from Aug. 8 was broadcast on Top Gear hosted
by John Peel. Other sessions on the
program were by the Sutherland Brothers Band and the Albion Country Band.
Sep. 5 Minneapolis,
Minnesota Minneapolis Armory
Along
with JoJo Gunne, Giant opened for Black Sabbath. This was one of the rescheduled dates,
originally planned for Aug. 28.
Sep. 6 Louisville,
Kentucky Freedom Hall
opened
for Black Sabbath before a mostly well-behaved audience. This concert was originally scheduled for
Aug. 26 at Louisville Gardens during the Kentucky State Fair. An attempt was made to reschedule the show
for Aug. 31 in Freedom Hall, but that didn’t happen either. Instead, the rescheduled concert finally took
place on Sep. 6. Giant took the stage
just after 8:00 but, due to their equipment not arriving on time, Sabbath had
to scramble and rent a lot of replacement gear locally. This caused them to not start their own set
until nearly 10:30. The promoter
estimated the size of the crowd at about 5,000, while one press report gave a
number of only 3,000. Either way, this was
quite small for a hall that seated 18,000.
One possible reason given for the meager crowd was that the school year
had started by this rescheduled date and many students were away at college or
otherwise occupied. Because of the small
audience, a special smaller stage area was set up in the center facing one long
side of the building only. The Courier-Journal
reported that quite a few people left before the show ended, possibly because
of the lateness of the hour.
Sep. 7 Jackson,
Mississippi Memorial
Coliseum
opened
for Black Sabbath. This was probably a general admission show. A brief silent 8mm film clip of this
performance is known to exist. Argent
again was on the bill, as well, in the middle position. Rod Argent recalls his band sharing the bill
with GG a number of times, so there may be additional GG/Sabbath shows from
this tour on which they appeared.
Jackson ad Sep. 7, 1972
Sep. 8 New Orleans,
Louisiana Municipal
Auditorium
opened
for Black Sabbath at this gig, the only time GG ever played in New
Orleans. The Municipal Auditorium was
one of the two major rock venues in this city, the other being known simply as
Warehouse. A couple inaccurate newspaper
notices advertised this show as being booked at Warehouse but it truly was held
at the Municipal Auditorium. Beaver
Productions, the premier rock promotors in the area and the company responsible
for this gig, actually owned Warehouse but they also promoted shows at the
Auditorium, as was the case with this show.
A soundboard recording has turned up of Giant’s opening set, the only
known live soundboard recording of a Gentle Giant concert with Phil Shulman
still in the band. It clearly shows that
Phil had little patience for the antics of an unruly crowd. During the vibraphone portion of Funny
Ways, he called the rowdy members of the audience an unpleasant name and
told them to “shut up”. Prologue
from this recording first appeared on the 2011 CD remaster of THREE FRIENDS,
but in 2019, the entire recording was included in the UNBURIED TREASURE
boxset. Sadly, it is short and
incomplete but is still a historically significant recording.
New
Orleans ad Sep. 8, 1972
Sep. 9 Mobile,
Alabama Municipal
Auditorium
opened
for Black Sabbath. Early on, Sabbath had
planned to play to play the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum in Shreveport, Louisiana
on this evening.
Mobile press notice Sep. 9, 1972
Sep. 10 San Diego,
California Sports Arena
opened
for Black Sabbath in front of a surprisingly small audience. One reviewer liked Sabbath’s set well enough
but felt Giant came across as very disorganized. He wrote that the band created “gigantic
noise, disguised as music”.
San
Diego ad Sep. 10, 1972
Sep. 11 Salt Lake
City, Utah Salt Palace
At
this general admission show, Giant hit the stage first, followed by a Latino
rock band from Los Angeles called Malo, run by George Santana, brother of
Carlos Santana. Last appeared headliners
Black Sabbath. Giant was fairly well
received and reportedly even got to perform an encore. Official attendance figures list about 9,500
tickets sold.
Salt Lake City press notice Sep. 11, 1972
Sep. 13 Portland,
Oregon Memorial
Coliseum
opened
for Black Sabbath in front of 5,700 fans.
The reviewer in the local Oregonian gave Sabbath a truly horrific
write-up but failed to mention Giant at all.
Portland - press notice with
incorrect Black Sabbath information
Sep. 13, 1972
Sep. 15 Los Angeles, California Hollywood
Bowl
Captain
Beyond started this show, with Giant in the middle, then headliners Black
Sabbath. A few reports claim the venue
was packed with attendance between 20,000 and 25,000, while Amusement
Business magazine more modestly claimed the Bowl was “slightly over
two-thirds” full. It has sometimes been
said that Iron Butterfly was on the bill, but that is incorrect. Iron Butterfly had broken up the previous
May, but two of their members were in Captain Beyond. Because of the importance of Giant’s first
major market appearance in the Los Angeles area, a large billboard with the
Giant's head was erected in town prior to the show to publicize GG's upcoming
concert and to advertise
the recently released THREE FRIENDS
album. This concert has indeed
become one of Giant’s most talked-about and notorious gigs, but not necessarily
for the right reasons. Much of the crowd
was particularly unkind to the band, throwing beer bottles and the like. Firecrackers were set off during the
introduction to Funny Ways, causing Derek and Phil to yell at the crowd,
Phil with language even cruder than that used in New Orleans a week
earlier. Still, a reviewer writing in
the L.A. Free Press claimed GG’s set to be one of the most powerful
performances he’d seen in quite some time.
A tape exists of this concert.
That recording has been released as part of the 2019 UNBURIED
TREASURE boxset, officially documenting GG’s difficulties on this
night. Unfortunately, Sabbath's Tony
Iommi collapsed while on stage at this show, ending Sabbath’s set a bit
prematurely. Even so, one press review
curiously stated that Sabbath “got excellent notices and put on a fine show”,
while mentioning nothing about Iommi’s collapse or the shortened set. It’s possible that some 8mm film footage of
the show may also have been shot but, if so, it is now believed lost.
Los
Angeles - infamous Hollywood Bowl show
Sep. 15, 1972
Sep. 16 Sacramento,
California Civic Auditorium
CANCELED. This gig with Black Sabbath did
not take place, due to Tony Iommi's collapse the night before.
Ad for canceled Sacramento gig Sep. 16, 1972
After finishing
their dates with Sabbath, Giant managed to take a few days off before
continuing. They spent them in Fort
Wayne, Indiana. Next, they did a small
number of dates opening for several other acts, including Yes. This led to more bookings and Phil recalls
them even headlining the odd gig here and there. One early report had them planning some gigs
opening for Chicago, though it doesn’t appear that happened.
Rolling
Stone magazine reported at the time that Columbia Records
had arranged a promotional stunt of having a real life giant appear on stage
during the band’s first North American concert tour. The gentleman in question was 36-year old Ed
Carmel, an incredible nine-foot, one-inch tall New York City resident who had
once worked with the Ringling Brothers Circus.
He was to introduce the band and carry them to their spots on stage. Record World added that this was to
come at a cost to Columbia of $18,000.
However, the Rolling Stone article went on to state that Mr.
Carmel died of a heart attack before the tour even began, causing Columbia to
struggle to find a replacement. Derek
himself mentioned this in an interview with Record Mirror shortly after
the tour. He added that someone had even
suggested replacing the deceased giant with dwarves, but the band didn’t like
the idea. However, other band members
have no memory of these events. A press
report from 1977 also refers to Columbia’s plan, saying a giant actually did
appear at some of the band’s early American gigs. Other unsubstantiated rumors have since
popped up, seeming to lend credence to the idea that, for at least some shows,
some sort of long-haired, costumed giant did indeed introduce the band, after
carrying them to the stage. Much of this
may not seem likely, but it has not yet been definitely ruled out.
Additionally,
on some early live recordings, including before and after the Fall 1972 U.S.
tour, a voice can be heard introducing the start of the show with the words,
"the sweet sound of Gentle Giant", but the identity behind the voice
remains a mystery. It may have been a
pre-recorded voice, or possibly a roadie came out to do the intro. This same phrase was also known to be used in
radio ads, adding further to the mystery.
Related to this story is the Sept. 16, 1972 issue of Record World
which stated that anyone over nine feet tall would be admitted free of charge
to any Gentle Giant concert.
Record World article about real-life giant late 1972
Sep. 19 Cincinnati,
Ohio Cincinnati
Gardens
It
appears that Giant played first before the Eagles, both headlining for Yes
before a disappointingly small crowd of 3,801.
Acoustics were reportedly quite awful, not uncommon in this large venue. For all three bands, the drums were too loud
in the mix, while the bass was too low.
Although the Eagles opened for Yes at quite a few shows around this
time, Giant only appeared on a few of the bills and their name was not always
present on posters or ticket stubs, even when they did appear. Additionally, it’s believed that the running
order of these concerts with Yes was not always consistent, with the Eagles
sometimes playing before Giant, instead of the other way around. On this evening, the original bill had Malo and
Eggs Over Easy opening the show instead of the Eagles and Giant.
Cincinnati ads Sep. 19, 1972
Sep. 20 Indianapolis, Indiana Fairgrounds
Coliseum
Played
first, before the Eagles and headliners Yes in front of about 3,500 fans. GG started their set about 15 minutes early
for some reason, when just a third of the audience were even in their seats. The crowd was quiet and respectful, even
while filing in, a fact appreciated by the band. The group performed in their street clothes,
possibly because their stage clothes did not arrive in time. John actually performed with no shirt at all
for most or all of the concert. Derek
began the evening wearing a short sleeve shirt but then followed John’s lead,
removing his shirt for the rest of the set.
Photographic evidence shows that bare-chested John came down onto the
floor in front of the stage at one point with a tambourine to try to whip up
more enthusiasm from the crowd. After
Yes took the stage and started their second song, the police over-reacted with
force to a small group of rambunctious fans in the very front. The show actually came to a stop temporarily
until things got back under control. At
the time, Yes was reportedly a bit wary of Giant, concerned that they played
too well for a support act.
Indianapolis
ad Sep. 20, 1972
Sep. 21 Detroit,
Michigan Cobo Hall
played
first before the Eagles and headliners Yes.
One newspaper review gave Giant a lukewarm reception at best, while
referring to them as “Humble Giant”.
Detroit Sep. 21, 1972
Sep. 23 Minneapolis,
Minnesota Minneapolis Armory
Although
some Yes sources have conflicting information, it’s been confirmed that GG, the
Eagles and headliners Yes played this evening in Minneapolis. It was a general admission concert, with no
chairs and the audience sitting on the floor.
The order of bands is not clear with one fan remembering the Eagles
playing first as people were filing into the hall, and another fan definitely
recalling Giant going first.
Sep. 24 Milwaukee,
Wisconsin Mecca Arena
This
is another show where the order of the program is unclear. Both the Eagles and Giant preceded headliners
Yes, but there are conflicting reports as to who played first and who played
second. The arena, also known simply as
the Milwaukee Arena, seated about 13,000, though only about 3000 attended this
gig. Originally, the date was believed
to have been Sep. 25. However, Yes and
the Eagles, without Gentle Giant, were in Hartford, Connecticut on that date
playing a rescheduled show after being rained out there in August. One fan at the
An
article in an October issue of Record World indicated that Giant was one
of the musical acts that had performed for a new late-night music TV program
called Tube Trip that was being produced in St. Louis, Missouri. This program aired twice in July 1972 and
twice more in October, and it’s very possible film of Giant was included in one
of those episodes, with further corroboration coming from a 1973 Melody
Maker article that stated that a 1972 St. Louis program was Giant’s very
first US television appearance.
Unfortunately, no hard evidence has been found to prove the band’s
inclusion in a 1972 episode, although it’s known that their film clip was shown
during three episodes in the first months of 1973. All that can be ascertained so far is that
Giant’s filmed segment had already been prepared by the time of the 1972 Record
World article, even though there is no firm evidence of broadcast before
the 1973 episodes.
Determining
the exact content of the band’s Tube Trip film has also proven
difficult, since none of the program’s episodes seem to have survived. The producers of the program sometimes filmed
acts while they were passing through town, but it’s believed that Giant did not
actually play a gig in the St. Louis area during their 1972 US tour. However, newly surfaced evidence indicates
the band may have been in St Louis immediately prior to the Sep. 29 Houston gig
listed below. There are several days
unaccounted for after the Sep. 24 Milwaukee gig and this could have provided a
perfect opportunity for the group to film a television segment in a St. Louis
studio setting. On the other hand, it’s
also possible the producers secured the rights to broadcast an already existing
film such as one of the Italian films from June, perhaps the mimed promotional
film of Peel the Paint that was filmed in Jesolo. This all remains pure speculation at this
point but whatever was shown and whenever it was first broadcast, Gentle
Giant’s Tube Trip film was indeed their first US television appearance.
Sep. 29 Houston,
Texas University
of Houston - Houston Room
The
band put on a free concert at this University, arranged by the school’s Program
Council. Originally, this was arranged
as an outdoor performance on Thursday, Sep. 28 at 2:00 P.M. but that was
canceled on the day of the event as negotiations fell apart between the
University, Columbia Records and the promotors of the Oct. 1 Houston Music Hall
gig already scheduled. Concerns were
raised that the free show on Sep. 29 would hurt ticket sales for the Oct. 1
show. The free show was quickly
rescheduled for noon in the school’s Houston Room on Friday, Sep. 29 while
negotiations continued, but was canceled yet again by Thursday night. The school’s daily newspaper followed the
story closely as talks continued with things not resolving until the last
minute. Finally, at noon on Friday, the
band did manage to perform at the University before 2,000 fans, although it was
not an easy gig. A later published
review pointed out the “horribly distorting sound system” and claimed the show
was saved by Phil Shulman’s clowning around during the various equipment
hassles, thereby lightening the mood in the room. The several hundred people in the crowd did
respond with a standing ovation at the end but Phil told the reviewer, when
describing the PA system, that “it was positively bloody useless for a
professional band!” One press report
erroneously stated that the original date was changed because the airline lost
the band’s equipment coming out of St. Louis.
This was definitely not the reason although, with several days unaccounted
for after the above Milwaukee gig, the band may very well have been in St.
Louis prior to coming to Houston.
Houston
- free concert with scheduling problems
Sep. 29, 1972
Sep. 29 San Antonio,
Texas Trinity
University - Laurie Auditorium
CANCELED. Considerable advertising in local
newspapers prior to Sep. 29 shows that Giant was booked to open for Frampton’s
Camel but, curiously, Trinity University’s own student newspaper made
absolutely no mention of this concert.
However, the University’s Public Relations Department also published a
daily news bulletin and the Sep. 29 bulletin announced the evening’s concert
was canceled due to insufficient ticket sales.
Had the show gone ahead, it would have made for a very busy day as Giant
had just finished a rescheduled free concert in Houston that very afternoon, as
described in the above listing.
Ad
for canceled San Antonio show Sep. 29,
1972
Sep. 30 Arlington,
Texas University of
Texas - Texas Hall
Steve
Miller headlined here, supported by Frampton’s Camel and Giant, who probably
opened the show. 3,500 were in the
audience, making the concert a sellout.
Arlington ad Sep. 30, 1972
Oct. 1 Houston,
Texas Music Hall
opened
the show, followed by Frampton’s Camel and headliner Steve Miller. One report called this a Standing Room Only show,
while another claimed 2,800 out of a possible 3,000 seats were filled. A tape of GG’s set is known to exist. On it can be heard a remarkably respectful
audience. Giant played Houston several
times through the years, but Gary recalls one particularly tough gig there that
they played after engaging in too much sunbathing in the nearby city of
Galveston. John got the worst of it,
ending up with the top of his head seriously sunburned, but he didn’t let it
affect his playing at the show.
Unfortunately, it’s not known at which concert or in which year this
took place.
j
Houston Oct. 1, 1972
Oct. 2 Columbia,
South Carolina University of
South Carolina - Carolina Coliseum
opened
for the Eagles and headliners Yes. John
recounts an amusing story involving this show.
At the end of the evening, Eddie Offord, Yes’ sound man, having
apparently had too much to drink, announced from the stage that there was to be
an after-concert party at the Holiday Inn, the hotel across the street where GG
happened to be staying. The members of
Giant did not hear his announcement and were quite surprised to have to fight
their way through massive crowds when they returned to the hotel.
??? Tampa,
Florida University
of South Florida
UNCONFIRMED. There are
unverified reports that Giant played in a gymnasium at this college sometime
around 1972 or 1973, but there is conflicting information as to the events
surrounding this concert. One fan says
GG was extremely popular on campus and public demand led to their being booked
for the gig. Another fan says few on
campus had heard of the band and the audience was very small, a situation made
worse by the band's being late for the show.
The first fan claims the band's amplifiers were set on the sides of the
stage facing inward, allowing the band to hear each other without the need for
monitors. The second fan remembers the
acoustics as being terrible, yet Giant seemed to enjoy themselves, talking and bantering
with the small crowd. Verification as to
exactly when this gig was held is certainly needed.
Around this time, Giant had originally planned to end their
North American tour with a concert supporting Mahavishnu Orchestra at New York
City’s Carnegie Hall, but this did not occur, the two bands not coming together
in New York until March 16, 1973. After
this, they originally hoped to play some more shows in the UK and were also
considering going on to play in New Zealand, Australia and Japan, but none of
this took place either. Instead, they
lined up their first three Canadian dates.
Giant went over extremely well when they played these shows, as headliners
no less. These appearances garnered the
band quite a bit of good publicity. Peel
the Paint is known to have again turned up in their setlist while in
Canada, though this may not have been a regular occurrence.
Ad for first Canadian
tour Oct. 1972
Oct. 6 Rimouski, Quebec Centre
Civique
Giant
was the last English rock band to play in this particular city until Van der
Graaf Generator played there in 1976.
1,000 people were in attendance and they supposedly erupted in a
mini-riot and were quite angry when Giant ended their set after only one hour
or slightly less. The band did not play
an encore but it was explained to the audience that they did not feel
comfortable playing longer because they were working with a new drummer. When asked about it later, Gary confirmed
that John’s newness in the band was a factor, but also explained that they
expected there to be an opening act, like there would be at the remaining two
Canadian shows. There was, in fact, no
opener in Rimouski. Giant was never a
band to play exceptionally long sets in this time period, even when
headlining. Additionally, although John
had been with the group for half a year by this point, they had served as a
support band for virtually the entire time, and preparing a full evening of
music would have been a fairly new experience for John.
Oct. 7 Montreal, Quebec Centre
Sportif de l'Universite de Montreal
This
was the first concert of the University’s 1972-1973 season and was another gig
that Phil says was very successful, even though it was a rainy night. Reviews placed between 1,800 and 2,000 people
in the audience, rather low numbers for this venue, but these same reviews said
the crowd really enjoyed themselves. One
reviewer even remarked this was the best concert he himself had ever seen. A local comedy/folk duet of Plume Latraverse and Pierre Landry opened this show. It had been assumed the openers were Plume
and Cassonade, but that particular lineup came into
being a bit later. The crowd erupted
with cheers and applause during the Nothing at All percussion
break. During this break, the band used
their sticks, in sequence, on the drums, the drum stands, the microphone
stands, the microphone cables and the floor, before reversing the order,
finally returning to the drums. The crowd was again cheering wildly by the end
of the show but, like what happened the night before, Giant did not return for
an encore. Le Petit Journal, in
its review, did point out how remarkably short Giant’s set was, but blamed that
on the fact that the band had a long bus trip from the previous night’s show
and were facing another long bus trip to the next show. An existing tape of the concert does show
they ended their set with Peel the Paint again done as a separate song,
as was done in May, but in a slightly modified version from what was done
then. A very brief silent 8mm film clip
of the show is also known to exist.
Montreal Oct. 7, 1972
Oct. 8 Ste-Foy, Quebec Pavillon
Maurice-Pollack - Universite Laval
Although
Ste-Foy is today incorporated as part of Quebec City, in 1972 it was
technically a separate, more residential city adjacent to Quebec City. Nonetheless, tickets and ads in several
publications all advertised this gig as taking place in Quebec City. Attendance here was greater than in Montreal
on the previous night. In fact, all the tickets were sold out in advance and more
fans continued to sneak in through an emergency exit. Since there were no security personnel
present, the promoter generously allowed them to pass. The press attributed this strong
turnout to the fact that there was less competition from other venues in this
area. The concert
took place in a cramped, very low-ceilinged basement, with some obscured lines
of sight and the audience sitting on the floor. Nevertheless, this was another gig that Phil
remembers as being very successful and one published
source claimed the band was quite surprised by their warm reception. Opening was a local progressive band
called William D. Fisher. This show was
at one time advertised for Oct. 9, but it did take place on Oct. 8. There is an unsubstantiated report that some
silent 8mm film footage of the concert exists.
Ste-Foy ad and ticket Oct. 8, 1972
An October 1972 ad in Ciao 2001 confirms that an
entire Italian tour had been finalized for October 12 through October 22. However, this tour and all other plans were
subsequently canceled. Instead, they
accepted another offer from Jethro Tull to play support at some of the stops on
their U.S. tour and ended up staying another month in North America.
Printed material for
canceled Italian tour Oct. 1972
Unlike
the Sabbath fans, the Tull audiences tended to accept the band more readily, as
they had when the two bands worked together in
Very few
live recordings from this
Oct. 13 Buffalo, New York Memorial
Auditorium
opened
for Jethro Tull. The concert was sold
out which would prove to be quite commonplace on this particular Tull
tour. In fact, Tull sold out this
concert weeks in advance, the first act to do so at this venue since Elvis
Presley. Derek has said that Buffalo is
one of the U.S. cities in which the band most enjoyed playing. However, on this evening, the concert was
marred by unruly Tull fans and violence, resulting in $30,000 in damage to the
box office.
Oct. 14 Rochester, New York War
Memorial
opened
for Jethro Tull. A tape of this show
exists. As had happened before, one fan
in the crowd remembered that, during the Nothing At All percussion
break, band members were seen hitting their drumsticks on the floor. Even though other fans have recalled this
same activity at other shows, Gary has no memory of it. The show was sold out over a week in advance,
but published attendance figures conflict, ranging from
9,300 to a more likely 12,000. The
Times Union commented that the War Memorial’s bad acoustics gave GG an
inferior sound but the audience still enjoyed their performance. A review in another newspaper went a step
further, stating that Giant “received an ovation that rocked the house”. Oddly, the house lights in the War Memorial
were not turned down until halfway through Giant’s opening set.
Rochester
review Oct. 14, 1972
Oct. 15 Bangor,
Maine Bangor
Auditorium
opened
for Jethro Tull. In its review, the Bangor
Daily News gave an attendance of 7,000 which was clearly a sell-out. In fact, the newspaper made note of those
without tickets who managed to listen and catch the occasional glimpse of the
musicians from vantage points in the parking lot.
Oct. 16 Springfield,
Massachusetts Civic Center
GG
definitely opened for Jethro Tull, although there is a possibility that Captain
Beefheart may also have been on the bill.
This show was sold-out with 9,500 in attendance, described at the time
as one of the largest crowds to date in this fairly new facility. As was becoming fairly routine at Tull shows,
there were problems again on this night with about 300 unruly people without
tickets causing trouble outside and in the lobby, resulting in a strong police
response, several arrests and a couple minor injuries. However, the manager of the Civic Center said
there were no problems inside. Nonetheless, out of an abundance of caution, authorities at
the venue temporarily canceled the next scheduled rock concert there, Alice
Cooper on Oct. 29, before relenting and allowing that show to go ahead. As for the music, a reviewer for the Daily
Collegian was a bit disappointed with Tull’s performance but was far more
dismissive of GG, claiming they offered “little of interest”.
Oct. 17 Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania Civic Arena
opened
for Jethro Tull before at least 13,000 fans in this sold-out gig. Scalpers did a brisk business outside the
venue, so high was the demand for tickets.
One fan in the crowd seems to recall A Cry for Everyone being in
this show, which is possible, though unconfirmed. Even though his wife hails from this area,
Ray eventually began to dislike Pittsburgh, claiming the city had a very
unadventurous musical climate.
Pittsburgh
ad Oct. 17, 1972
Oct. 18 Charleston,
West Virginia Civic Center
opened
for Jethro Tull. The Charleston
Gazette was rapturous in its praise for Giant, referring to them as
“perhaps the year’s sleeper act” and “one to watch”.
Charleston Oct. 18, 1972
Oct. 19 Columbia,
South Carolina University of
South Carolina - Carolina Coliseum
opened
for Jethro Tull as part of the University’s Homecoming Week festivities. The concert was sold out with an attendance
of nearly 10,000. A review in The
State gave GG high marks, but heaped evn higher
praise on Tull. This same review
incorrectly claimed that Giant had a “bassman that
has played with the London Symphony.”
Ray was indeed a classically trained violinist, but his career never
included a stint with the LSO.
Oct. 21 Cleveland,
Ohio Public Hall
opened
for Jethro Tull before a capacity crowd of 10,500 fans. This show actually sold out a month in
advance. Curiously, though, this show
does not appear on Giant’s original transportation itinerary, which had them
going directly from Columbia to Memphis on Oct. 20.
Oct. 22 Memphis,
Tennessee Mid-South
Coliseum
opened
for Jethro Tull. A Memphis college
newspaper commented on the heavy-handed yet ineffective methods employed by the
reserve police officers working security at the Coliseum, but failed to mention
anything at all about the music. Another
local paper, while correctly identifying Tull as a British band, curiously
described Giant as American, calling them “domestic rockers”. Coliseum records indicate that 8,264 tickets
were sold.
Memphis press notice Oct. 22, 1972
Oct. 23 Little Rock,
Arkansas Barton Coliseum
opened
for Jethro Tull. This concert was sold
out but, although official capacity was a bit over 7,000, a press report
estimated between 8,000 and 10,000 fans were crammed in. It was a general admission concert and the
doors did not open until a half hour before showtime, resulting in a dangerous
stampede of eager fans hoping for good seats.
Fortunately, there were no reports of injuries.
Oct. 24 Nashville,
Tennessee Municipal
Auditorium
Jethro
Tull played here on this night and, although there have been some dissenting
opinions, it is most likely that Giant again played in support.
Oct. 25 Louisville, Kentucky Convention
Center
opened
for Jethro Tull. A relatively
well-behaved sell-out crowd of 6,500 witnessed this show and enjoyed the
reportedly excellent acoustics in the venue.
The crowd was impressed enough to give GG a standing ovation after their
four-song set but, unfortunately, time constraints did not allow them to come
out for an encore. Originally, Captain
Beefheart was advertised as the support act, but it was changed to Giant in
later ads.
Louisville
ad Oct. 25, 1972
Oct. 26 Bowling
Green, Kentucky Western Kentucky
University - Diddle Arena
During
homecoming festivities, GG opened for Jethro Tull at this university. One newspaper reported attendance of over
6,500, which would be near capacity. However, university officials reported a more modest
attendance of 5,500 which, after paying Tull’s sizable fee, resulted in the
school losing money on the event. The
university’s yearbook also made mention of this concert, describing it as a
“major financial loss”.
Oct. 27 Jackson, Mississippi Memorial
Coliseum
There
had been some confusion regarding this date with some early evidence indicating
Dr. John served as the opener for headliners Jethro Tull. However, enough fan recollections and written
sources have since surfaced to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Giant
indeed opened.
Oct. 28 Baton Rouge,
Louisiana Louisiana
State University - Assembly Center
opened
for Jethro Tull. Press reports varied in
their attendance estimates, placing it anywhere from 10,000 to over 12,000, and
the audience rapturously received both groups.
Giant received a standing ovation and calls for an encore, but it’s not
known if they obliged. For most of their
dates with Black Sabbath and Jethro Tull, GG had an English roadie by the name
of Sam Simpson. During their headlining
set, Tull would recruit Sam and have him dress as a gorilla or as a deep sea
diver, as part of their legendary stage theatrics. During this particular show, Sam was visited
by his American girlfriend whom he had met earlier in the tour and added her
into the festivities by carrying her across Tull’s stage when he was in
costume. A few nights later, when the
two bands reached Florida, Sam left Giant’s employ and decided to stay in the
US with his girlfriend, the two of them later to be married.
Baton Rouge Oct. 28, 1972
Oct. 29 Macon,
Georgia Macon
Coliseum
opened
for Jethro Tull. There was a near
capacity crowd in this 9,000-seat facility.
One published report stated that, even though this crowd was mostly
well-behaved, the police patrolling the floor were too strict and
heavy-handed. Early on, the Virginia
Gazette advertised Tull playing at William and Mary Hall at the College of
William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia on this evening, but that did not
occur.
It had
long been assumed that Giant opened for Tull at the Spectrum in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania on Oct. 30 and 31, but this is incorrect. Tull did play there, but Captain Beefheart
was the support act both nights. GG’s
own transportation itinerary lists them as staying in Boston between Oct. 30
and Nov. 2.
Nov. 1 Boston,
Massachusetts Boston
Garden
opened
for Jethro Tull before a sellout crowd of 15,000. Strangely, all the newspaper reviews that
have surfaced so far were negative towards Giant, ranging from merely
dismissive to downright hostile. The Morning
Record conceded that Giant was “well received” but otherwise gave short
shrift to their performance. Likewise,
the Randolph Herald was somewhat kind to Giant, but commented that they
seemed “noticeably insecure” on stage.
Writing in the Suffolk Journal, a reviewer commented that GG
opened the show but “I wish they hadn’t”.
The worst review appeared in the Boston Globe which liked nothing
about the band, heaping its most scorn on John Weathers whom it called
“consistently terrible”. Tull played a
second show here on Nov. 2 but Wild Turkey was in support. Giant had left that morning for St.
Petersburg.
Boston - harsh review and Gary with
Tull’s Martin Barre Nov. 1, 1972
Nov. 2 John
Peel’s Top Gear program on BBC rebroadcast Giant’s Aug. 8 session, along
with sessions by Glencoe, Nazareth and the JSD Band.
Nov. 3 St.
Petersburg, Florida Bayfront
Center
opened
for Jethro Tull. This concert sold out
two weeks in advance, with an attendance of around 8,000, even though
advertising was limited. On the night of
the show, a number of fans remained outside without tickets and caused a fair
share of trouble, resulting in a broken front door and 16 arrests. This led the manager of the Bayfront to
speculate on whether he would continue to book rock shows.
St.
Petersburg review Nov. 3, 1972
Nov. 4 Miami,
Florida Miami
Beach Convention Hall
UNCONFIRMED. This concert totally sold out a
week prior to showtime. GG was
advertised to again open for Jethro Tull.
However, a review of the show in the Miami Herald raises some
doubt. The reviewer admitted he did not
actually watch the support act, but wrote that it was the Tampa-based heavy
band White Witch. Since no other reviews
have yet been located, the possibility of GG backing out at the last minute
cannot be ruled out.
Miami press notice Nov. 4, 1972
Nov. 5 Jacksonville,
Florida Jacksonville
Coliseum
opened
for Jethro Tull. A fan definitely
recalls hearing Working All Day but, though it's possible, it's not
confirmed. No live recordings have ever
surfaced of this song which was also rumored to have been played at the Aug. 25
Nashville gig. At this Jacksonville
show, Giant was fortunate enough to be called back for an encore.
Nov. 6 Savannah,
Georgia Civic Center
Arena
opened
for Jethro Tull
Nov. 7 Fort Wayne,
Indiana Allen County
Memorial Coliseum
opened
for Jethro Tull before 8,500 fans
Fort
Wayne - curiously understated review
Nov. 7, 1972
Nov. 8 Detroit,
Michigan Cobo Hall
Interestingly,
this was the third time the group played at Cobo Hall since they first came to
America in August, all as openers for different bands. This time, in front of 12,000 fans, they
opened for Jethro Tull, who were so popular at the time that the gig sold out
in three hours, under near riot conditions.
Tull played Cobo Hall again on Nov. 9, but Giant had already left town
for
Nov. 11 Chicago,
Illinois Chicago
Stadium
opened
for Jethro Tull at a massive venue that was, at the time, America’s largest
indoor arena. The gig was sold out with
a good 20,000 fans present. According to
a fan seated behind the stage, a small fire broke out at one point behind the
drummer but it was, presumably, not serious.
He also remembers Ray running around the stage shirtless. One unconfirmed report has the band playing Knots
at this show from the still unreleased OCTOPUS album. Tull also played at this venue on Nov. 10,
but GG definitely only opened on Nov. 11, Wild Turkey filling the support slot
the previous night. The band always
enjoyed Chicago's rich musical traditions and Ray once remarked that the city
was filled with "progressive, forward-thinking people". Derek once commented that Gentle Giant was
always well-received by Chicago audiences.
Nov. 12 Baltimore,
Maryland Civic Center
opened
for Jethro Tull. The show was sold out
with an attendance of over 12,000. An
additional 20 people outside were arrested trying to break into the building.
Nov. 13 New York, New
York Madison Square
Garden
opened
for Jethro Tull. Phil and Derek both
fondly recall this gig, the only time the band ever performed in this
prestigious New York City venue. A tape
exists of Giant’s set. Apparently, they
were well received, as Ian Anderson joked during the Tull set that he wished
his band sounded as good. The nearly
20,000 seat venue was not only sold out, but was actually oversold, one
newspaper report putting the total attendance at 23,000. This prompted Tull to schedule another Garden
performance on Dec. 8. At least one area
newspaper advertised GG as opening at this second date, as well, but that is
false, the job going to Roxy Music.
New York - sold out Madison Square
Garden show Nov. 13, 1972
Nov. 14 Some of the footage filmed in June in Jesolo, as described above, was broadcast by the Italian
RAI TV Network on the Permette Questo Ballo? program.
This show was broadcast in two episodes a week apart with Giant
appearing on the first one on Nov. 14.
It’s believed that shown on this program was the promotional “music
video” of the band miming to the studio version of Peel the Paint. Permette Questo Ballo? dealt with music popular at the time in
Italy’s dance halls. Many of the acts
featured were geared towards older audiences, but these performers were
balanced with the inclusion of some newer rock groups more popular among
younger viewers. Besides Giant, other
rock bands featured over the two episodes included Colosseum, Le Orme, Formula
Three and a group from Spain called the Pop Tops.
“Permette Questo Ballo?” Italian TV broadcast Nov. 14, 1972
In
November of 1972, Giant returned to the U.K. to join a tour with the British
blues band, the Groundhogs, with whom they had already worked many times. They did not appear on every date of the tour
but when they did, they played first before Stray and then the headliners. On additional dates not listed below, the
Groundhogs were supported by Badger.
Representatives of the bands involved insisted in the press that tickets
for this tour would always cost between 50p and 90p at the most, claiming it to
be “surely the best value for money concert tour to have hit the road this
year”. The program sold at the gigs
included a page on Gentle Giant but, oddly, it also included a picture of the
band taken while Malcolm Mortimore was still with them. It's possible that Alucard was less
commonly included in the set during this UK tour but, with very little recorded
evidence in existence, it's hard to say for certain. It is again not known if songs from the new OCTOPUS
album were ever included in the setlist, although one newspaper account from a
week prior to the tour claimed that was the band’s intention.
Ad for UK tour with
Groundhogs Late 1972
Nov. 17 Birmingham,
England Town Hall
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs. The show
was sold out. Some sections of seating
were behind the stage, so the band frequently turned around to face fans
sitting there.
Nov. 18 Edinburgh,
Scotland Empire Theatre
Although
this gig was advertised as being at the Empire Theatre, one fan claims it was
really at the Edinburgh Odeon. Although
Stray was scheduled to be part of the bill, some sources claim Stray played in
Canterbury, England on this evening.
Nov. 19 Dundee,
Scotland Caird Hall
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs
Nov. 20 Glasgow,
Scotland Green's
Playhouse
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs. A tape
exists of GG’s set.
Nov. 23 Oxford,
England New
Theatre
UNCONFIRMED. The Groundhogs did play this concert,
but Giant’s participation is not at all clear.
Several sources indicate GG and Stray opened, but several others show
Badger in support. Definitive evidence
one way or the other has not been found.
Oxford - ad for unconfirmed
appearance with the Groundhogs Nov.
23, 1972
Nov. 25 Hitchin,
England Hitchin
College
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. For
this college show, GG was scheduled to headline, preceded by Medicine Head and
Mike Absalom. However, Giant canceled
their appearance, instead spending the evening in London. This greatly frustrated officials at the
college who claim to have been not informed of this until the show was set to
begin and, even then, in a rather patronizing manner by the band’s agent. The audience, expecting to see Gentle Giant,
was also frustrated when told they would not perform, but was overjoyed to find
out that Absalom, a favorite at this college, would now play a double set.
Ad
for canceled Hitchin show Nov. 25,
1972
Nov. 26 Newcastle,
England City Hall
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs. GG’s set
ran a bit long, causing a time crunch for the rest of the evening. Apparently, quite a few Groundhogs fans were
upset by this.
Newcastle
ad Nov. 26, 1972
Nov. 30 Hanley,
England Victoria
Hall
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs
Hanley ad Nov. 30, 1972
Dec. 1 The OCTOPUS album had its
official release in England in the first week of December, possibly on Dec.
1. There are indications, however, that
it may have actually hit the shops as early as Nov. 16 or thereabouts. Interestingly, it was first released in Italy
in mid October and was already high in the Italian
charts by mid November.
Dec. 1 Manchester,
England Free Trade Hall
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. The
band was supposed to open for Stray and the Groundhogs again but, due to
someone having a case of laryngitis, they canceled their appearance. The other two bands played extra-long sets to
make up the time.
Dec. 3 Bristol,
England Colston
Hall
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. Again,
the band was scheduled to open for Stray and the Groundhogs but, this time,
several of the members were ill with stomach problems. Instead, an acoustic guitar/harmonica player
substituted for them. Kerry's
girlfriend, Leslie, also attended this show, not knowing the band was not going
to perform.
Bristol ad - GG did not appear Dec. 3, 1972
Dec. 5 Bradford,
England St. George's
Hall
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs
Dec. 8 Bournemouth,
England Winter Gardens
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs
Dec. 8 Giant’s records, including the
newly-released THREE FRIENDS, were selling surprisingly well in Texas,
so on this date, they were one of the acts whose music was featured on a
locally produced Houston, Texas television program called Sensatiation. It was a short-lived series, only lasting six
episodes, and this was the fifth broadcast.
It appeared at midnight on KVRL-TV and was simulcast on Houston’s
KLOL-FM Radio, as well as also being aired on TV and radio in Lubbock,
Texas. The show did not feature any live
music or film of the band, but instead showcased the album version of Working
All Day, accompanied by a psychedelic light show timed to coordinate well
with the music. Obviously, the radio
simulcast was just music, but featuring Giant’s music on TV and radio in this
way helped cement the band’s growing name recognition in the important city of
Houston. Other acts included in this
half hour program were Shawn Phillips, Uriah Heep, Simon and Garfunkle, and Jade Warrior.
Houston - TV listing and opening
titles for “Sensatiation” broadcast Dec. 8, 2972
Dec. 9 Leeds,
England Leeds
University
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. At
least one ad mentioned Giant appearing at this gig opening for the Groundhogs,
but most press notices did not. The student
newspaper at Leeds University clearly stated Badger was to be the only support
act.
Dec. 10 Paignton,
England Festival Hall
Giant’s
inclusion in this show was not mentioned in all advertising, but they
definitely did open for Stray and the Groundhogs. A tape exists of Giant's set. GG was very well received at this gig but
Stray, quite popular in England at the time, got quite a poor reception with
one local newspaper review describing their performance as “dismal”. Their set was shortened by some sort of on-stage
argument centered around the drummer and his kit. There were also rumors of some sort of
upsetting phone call beforehand, as well as possible amplifier trouble. This same review also claimed Giant, who did
not do an encore, was the only band on the bill who should have. Paignton is a smaller English town and is a
bit off the beaten path for big name concert tours. Because of this, representatives of Deep
Purple’s management attended this gig to see if it would be worthwhile to
schedule a gig of their own the following year in the adjoining, equally small
town of Torquay. It appears that they
did not.
Paignton
poster Dec. 10, 1972
Dec. 11 Wolverhampton,
England Civic Hall
UNCONFIRMED. This date has caused a bit of
confusion. Most Groundhogs advertising
and press notices at the time did not mention this gig, but it did appear in
one of Giant’s. If the Groundhogs did
indeed appear, it would be reasonable to assume that GG opened for them,
although Stray’s involvement would be sheer speculation. Complicating the issue further, BBC records
indicate Giant recorded a studio session for them in London on this same
date. They could have theoretically
fulfilled both commitments, but what actually transpired is not yet
settled.
Dec. 11 The band did their sixth BBC studio
session on this date, the last one to include Phil. It was recorded at
Dec. 12 Hull,
England City
Hall
Giant
was scheduled to open for Stray and the Groundhogs, although one disputed
account has Badger being a last-minute substitute for Stray. There was also talk, at one point, that this
gig may have been canceled completely, but three separate fans have confirmed
the show went on as planned. The exact
attendance is unknown, but the hall is said to have been mostly full.
Hull ads Dec. 12, 1972
Dec. 14 The
group's sixth BBC session was broadcast on Top Gear, hosted by John
Peel, along with sessions by Babe Ruth, Holy Mackeral
and Ten Years After.
Dec. 14 Chatham,
England Central Hall
Once
again, advertising paints an unclear picture of this show. The Groundhogs may have been originally
scheduled to play this show by themselves, or possibly with Badger in
support. However, it seems fairly
certain now that Giant did end up opening the show. Badger did not perform and Stray’s
involvement is unknown.
Dec. 15 Sheffield,
England City Hall
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs
Sheffield ad Dec. 15, 1972
Dec. 16 Liverpool,
England Liverpool
Stadium
opened
for Stray and the Groundhogs. Although
all advertising found so far includes the correct date of Dec. 16, a poster has
recently surfaced which indicates this gig was at one time planned for Dec. 23.
Liverpool ad Dec. 16, 1972
Dec. 22 London,
England Rainbow
Theatre
Giant
opened for the Groundhogs at this 2,500-seat theatre, but the remainder of the
bill is uncertain, due to conflicting advertisements. Separate ads for this show differed as to
whether Stray was scheduled to perform, while one ad mentioned an act called
Mister Crisp preceding Giant. A
published Groundhogs source indicated this actually referred to
singer/guitarist Rod Crisp, although no one at the show has yet to surface who
actually recalls seeing him perform. In
fact, two separate fans at the show remember no one else on the bill at all
other than Giant. Both still retain
their written notes from the concert and neither mention Stray or Crisp, nor
did a review in a London college newspaper.
The Rainbow advertised this concert as a "Christmas Special"
and, indeed, the character of “Father Christmas” made an appearance to kick off
the festivities. The show may have been
originally scheduled for Dec. 20, although tickets did have the correct Dec. 22
date.
Ad
and review for London Rainbow Theatre
Dec. 22, 1972
In the second half of December, Giant reserved studio
time to record their fifth album, only four months after recording OCTOPUS. The exact schedule was for them to be
recording between Dec. 18, 1972 and Jan. 3, 1973. Although an article in Melody Maker
hints that some small amount of recording may have indeed taken place, it seems
that no serious recording was done.
Instead, at the tail end of December 1972, Giant embarked on a tour of
Italy with the band Area as support..
This end of year tour was originally announced in a couple printed
sources as beginning on Dec. 28.
However, the Italian magazines Ciao 2001, Musica e Dischi and Super Sound all reported a start date
of Dec. 29. Curiously, the Super
Sound ad mistakenly listed the first two December dates as being planned
for November. Italy was a country they
had wanted to play in for a long time.
They may have managed a few gigs there over the summer but, as explained
earlier, documentation of this is lacking.
Then there were hints of appearing in September and, of course, there
was the canceled tour in October described above, so they must have been
relieved when a scheduled tour finally looked set to go ahead without a
hitch. Unfortunately, a giant hitch was
about to appear, as this would be Phil's last tour with the band.
Italian tour ad with
incorrect month for first two dates
late 1972 - early 1973
TYPICAL SETLIST (Dec. 1972 - Jan. 1973)
Prologue
Alucard
Funny Ways
Nothing at All
The Advent of Panurge - This song, which
included a recorder quartet in the middle, was known to be added to the set,
making this the only tour on which Phil’s participation in live OCTOPUS
material can be verified.
Plain Truth
Mister Class and Quality?/Peel the Paint - This combination of two songs from THREE FRIENDS was the
band’s first attempt to connect songs into mini-medleys. On future tours, this became a common
occurrence.
Dec. 29 Pordenone,
Italy Salone della Fiera
Area
was the opening band. This date has been
confirmed by the show’s promotor, a gentleman responsible for bringing many
name acts to Pordenone. On this night,
the hall was full with between 2,000 and 2,500 fans.
Dec. 30 Bologna,
Italy Palazzo dello Sport
Area
was the opening band. Several fan
recollections and an extant poster serve to confirm this gig. Additionally, a tape of Giant’s set exists.
Bologna poster Dec. 30, 1972
Dec. 31 The
band had a couple days off before continuing the tour. They ended up celebrating New Year’s Eve in
Milan with the Italian band PFM.
1973
Jan. 2 Genova, Italy Teatro Alcione
There
was an afternoon and an evening set. A
tape exists of one of these sets, though it’s not known which set was
recorded. Area was the opening band.
Genova
poster Jan. 2, 1973
Jan. 3 Rome, Italy Palazzo dello Sport
A
rumor has it that a tape may exist of this concert, but it is probably
false. Area was the opening band. Attendance figures are unclear, as L’Unita gave a number of 10,000 while L’Avanti reported only 6,000. It’s believed that GG was interviewed on the
Italian radio program Per
Voi Giovani earlier in
the day. During the interview, members
of the band revealed that during their February 1972 Italian tour with Jethro
Tull, the Tull camp sometimes lowered the volume during Giant’s opening set in
a supposed attempt to stop them from stealing the show. The two bands generally got along very well
and GG has always acknowledged the help Tull gave them in 1972, so this was a
rare display of professional jealousy. Per
Voi Giovani is one of the radio programs most responsible for championing
British progressive rock in Italy.
Rome Jan. 3, 1973
Jan. 4 Milan,
Italy Palalido
Area
was the opening band and during their set, segments of the audience continually
interrupted quiet moments by yelling out the name of Demetrio
Stratos, their lead singer. According to
a local newspaper review, GG’s sold-out performance was musically a great
success before a paid attendance of about 5,000, and was met with
“thunderous applause”. However, things
were not at all well outside the venue once Giant’s set began. Up to 1,000 more determined fans battled
with police in an attempt to gain admittance to the concert for free. This type of anti-capitalist civil unrest at
Italian rock concerts became quite common as the 1970’s progressed and this
evening’s melee was a particularly bad example.
John’s recollection is that this was also the gig at which Phil
announced he was leaving, although a roadie thinks it may have been back in
Portsmouth several days later, when the tour ended. Whenever it happened, it was very upsetting
to the rest of the band and led to quite an emotional argument. Derek and Ray actually considered disbanding
the group but were talked out of it.
Jan. 5 Vicenza,
Italy Palazzo
dello Sport
Area
was the opening band. A recording of
this gig, the last known
audio record of the six-man Gentle Giant lineup, has been included in the UNBURIED
TREASURE boxset. A
fan at the show recalls Giant being enthusiastically received, despite Phil
having a small bit of trouble with his trumpet part on The Advent of Panurge. Sadly, neither of the two known recordings
from Phil’s last Italian tour include the encore of Mister Class and
Quality?/Peel the Paint. A gentleman
named Luigi Vianini was also in the audience with his
camera and took some excellent photos, two of which appear here.
Vicenza Jan. 5, 1973
Jan. 6 Cavallermaggiore, Italy Le Cupole
Area
was the opening band. Several minutes of
silent color 8mm film of this concert have recently been unearthed.
Cavallermaggiore
ad Jan. 6, 1973
Jan. 8 Varese,
Italy Palazzo
dello Sport
Area
was the opening band. Melody Maker
originally announced this Italian tour was expected to run through Jan.
15. However, the itinerary eventually
changed and Varese does appear to be Phil Shulman’s last appearance with the
band.
Jan. 17 Frankfurt,
Germany Jahrhunderthalle
GIANT DID NOT PLAY. A
poster exists which advertised GG's scheduled inclusion in this Frankfurt rock
festival entitled "The Sound of Britain in Concert". Others on the bill at this sold-out show
included Steeleye Span, Amazing Blondel and Alexis Korner. However, GG did not appear and was replaced
by Genesis, a band not originally scheduled.
It was said at the time that a member of Giant was ill but, since Phil
Shulman left the band after the Italian tour, that most likely explained
Giant’s cancelation. Unfortunately, GG
missed out on some good publicity as the event was broadcast on German radio as
part of the networks’ “British Week”, as well as possibly on TV.
Frankfurt poster - canceled festival
gig Jan. 17, 1973
Feb.
? OCTOPUS was released in
America, the second for Columbia Records.
The exact date is difficult to ascertain but it may have been either
Feb. 19 or Feb. 26. Once again, Columbia
decided against using the record cover artwork used elsewhere, a painting by
famed artist Roger Dean. Instead, they
used a totally different painting of an octopus in a jar.
Go on
to Part Three
Return
home to Gentle Giant
Tour History