Search - Gentle Giant :: Out of the Fire

Well worth it if you are a fan of The Missing Piece lp

S M | 09/08/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"SOUND QUALITY: If a 10/10 could be assigned to GG's 'live - playing the fool' and 'king biscuit flower hour; then 8.5/10 could be assigned to these two cds with cd1 getting a 9.5/10 and cd2 getting a 7.5/10.Considering that the material came from 20 to 25 year old television shows, it is remarkable that it sounds as good as it does. Cudos to the engineering of this recording.Also - there are bootleg videos of these two performances and the sound is pitiful as compared to this cd (then again the cd is not dubbed from a dub from a dub ...)PERFORMANCE: Of the pre Missing Piece material; there is nothing that is disguishable, good or bad, as compared from the afore-mentioned live lps. In fact, material not performed on such live lps - 'Nothing At All' and 'Playing The Game' have and energetic spark to them, as compared to the studio recordings.With regards to the Missing Piece material; there are good and bad points. The performances of 'Betcha Thought We Couldn't Do It', 'For Nobody' and 'Mountain Time' have the energetic spark to them and could be considered superior to the studio recordings while 'I'm Turning Around' and 'Memories of Old Days' are performed in a lacklustre inferior manner as compared to the studio recordings.LENGTH: cd1 is appoximately 35 minutes and cd2 is appoximately 60 minutes.BUYING ADVICE: Since I enjoy The Missing Piece lp for its own sake as a great progressive pop recording full of Gentle Giantisms; I found this cd to be a delight and was worth the comparitively expensive price for it.However, someone who is not a fan of the Missing Piece may be advised to look elsewhere because I figure there is only about 55 minutes of "classic GG" material on both cds, which may not justify the price."

While CD 1 is dissapointing, CD 2 is very good!

placidothecat | MD United States | 01/16/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"While I agree with an earlier review as to the poor sound quality, less than stellar performance, and skimpy timing (only 35 minutes) on CD 1 (a 1973 BBC show), it should be noted that CD 2, (from a 1978, "Missing Piece" era, BBC show) has quite good sound quality, an energetic, tight performance, and is nice and long (about 60 minutes). Even though most fans considered the band past their prime by 1978, this is a worthwhile addition to your Gentle Giant live collection and offers the opportunity to hear some of the (perhaps underrated) "Missing Piece" material played live alongside earlier classics.So, 4 stars for CD2, 2 for CD1 = 3 stars overall."

Buy it if you really enjoy GG's "The Missing Piece" cd

Robert | Canada | 03/23/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Even though the price of this cd is expensive, compared to other cds, I still got my money's worth because "The Missing Piece" by Gentle Giant is one of my best liked recordings.To me the "The Missing Piece" is a progressive new wave or progressive metal recording sans the distortion, that contains all the Gentle Giant elements that made them unique among progressive rock bands.Sadly, in later recordings, "Giant for a Day" and "Civillian" GG was not able to incorporate their unique element, thus making TMP a single recording achievement in Gentle Giant's career That said, fans of Gentle Giant who dislike "The Missing Piece" and latter GG recordings would much prefer other live recordings featuring only their earlier material, such as "Playing the Fool", "King Biscuit Flower Hour" and "(Totally)Out of Woods" cdsFans who like "the Missing Piece and latter recordings, would also enjoy the "The Last Steps" cd which comes off their "Civilian" tourTo me this cd was a chance to hear live recordings of TMP and earlier matieral without having to listen to the latter material. Since the material comes from 2 TV shows over 20 years old, it is remarkable the both cds sound as well as they do.Personally I do not detect any real disernable difference when comparing this recording's sound and performance of GG's pre TMP material to the other pre TMP live cds mentionedSince I am required to give it a star rating, my enjoyment of Gentle Giant's "The Missing piece" and all their previous work makes this cd a 4 star rating and, if 10 stars were given, it would rate 8/10Note. for those who like the contents of the 2nd cd which features tunes from TMP, I suggest you try "Freehand" and "Octopus" from GG which contain the energy of TMP but not the pop/metal edge in the TMP"