Back From The Dead...
Originally posted July 6, 2016
Gong - Wingful Of Eyes (1986)
Studio recordings @320
1. Heavy Tune
2. Cat In Clark's Shoes
3. Night Illusion
4. Golden Dilemma
5. Wingful Of Eyes
6. Three Blind Mice
7. Expresso
8. Soli
9. Shadows Of
10. Mandrake
11. Bambooji
This is Pierre Moerlen's Gong. 'A Wingful...' seems to be a decent compilation of mid-'70's Daevid Allen-less Gong. This is a compilation disc of the years 1975 - 1978 when Gong were playing jazz fusion. The tunes come from Shamal (4 cuts), Gazeuse! (3 cuts), and Expresso II (4 cuts). If I were to burn a CD from those albums I would have picked the same tunes, however, I would have placed them in chronological order - they are not this way on this disc. What made Gong's style of fusion stand out for me was the use of vibes, which is not the norm. It added a color and timbre to the music that made it sound open, warm and unique. Of course the stellar musicians including Allan Holdsworth on the latter two releases didn't hurt either. There seems to be a division between Daevid Allen's Gong and this lineup of Gong. Personally I liked both, and I wouldn't recommend this to those who don't like fusion, but for those who do, and don't want to buy all three releases, this is an excellent compilation.
Shamal Musicians
Mike Howlett – bass guitar, vocals
Didier Malherbe – tenor sax, soprano sax, flute, bansuri, gongs
Mireille Bauer – marimba, glockenspiel, xylophone, percussion, gongs
Pierre Moerlen – drums, vibraphone, tubular bells
Patrice Lemoine – organ, piano, synthesizer
With guests
Steve Hillage – acoustic guitar, electric guitar ("Bambooji" & "Wingful of Eyes")
Miquette Giraudy – vocals ("Bambooji")
Jorge Pinchevsky – violin
Sandy Colley – vocals ("Shamal")
Gazeuse Musicians
Pierre Moerlen – drums, vibraphone, marimba, timpani, glockenspiel
Didier Malherbe – tenor sax, flute
Allan Holdsworth – guitars, violin, pedal steel
Mireille Bauer – vibraphone, marimba, glockenspiel, toms
Benoît Moerlen – vibraphone
Francis Moze – bass, gong, piano
Mino Cinelu – percussion
Expresso II Musicians
Pierre Moerlen - drums, glockenspiel, xylophone, tubular bells, tympani, vibraphone
Hansford Rowe - bass, rhythm guitar (2, possibly also at the end of track 3)
Mireille Bauer - marimba, vibraphone
Benoît Moerlen - glockenspiel, vibes, xylophone, tubular bells, claves
François Causse - congas
With guests
Allan Holdsworth - guitar
Mick Taylor - lead guitar
Darryl Way - violin
Bon Lozaga - guitar
