Totally out of the Woods: The BBC Sessions

Artist: Gentle Giant
Label: Hux Records
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Format: Live
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 2

UPC: 682970000183
EAN: 0682970000183
ASIN: B00004HYP0

Release Date: 2000-03-04

Totally out of the Woods: The BBC Sessions

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Tracks:

City Hermit
Isn't It Quiet And Cold?
DJ's Presentation
The Advent Of Panurge
Way Of Life
The Runaway

Tracks:

Knots
The Boys In The Band
Organ Bridge
The Advent Of Panurge
Way Of Life
Proclamation
Experience
Aspirations
Cogs In Cogs
Free Hand - Live Arrangement Demo
Just The Same
Free Hand
On Reflection

Similar Items:

Gg at the Gg: BBC Sight & Sound in Concert
Live in Santa Monica 1975
The Power and the Glory
Free Hand
In a Glass House

Album Description

All the BBC sessions originally recorded for 'Sounds of the Seventies' with the exception of 'Free Hand' (Live Arrangement Demo). Featuring over 20 minutes of previously unreleasedmaterial and has a running time of over 80 minutes. Also features an 8 page booklet including liner notes from Gary Green, rare band photos and full recording details. 2000 release. Slimline double jewel case.

Album Details

Long Awaited Release for this Double CD Set of BBC Sessions, Originally Recorded for Radio 1's 'Sounds of the 70's. Features Almost 20 Minutes of Previously Unreleased Recordings, Including a Live Demo of 'Free Hand'.

Customer Reviews:

not to be repetitive but..........2006-02-25

I purchased this CD on the strength of the live performances on Playing the Fool. Compared to Fool, the playing sounds flat and uninspired (except for some pretty cool recorder duets) though it's so technically well rehearsed that it's still amazing to think that it's live material. Additionally, there is some overlap in titles between discs one and two, and the versions add little to each other. I was greatly disappointed.
A mediocre set, and I would recommend picking up Playing the Fool before buying this one. Keep in mind, however, that a mediocre disc by these guys is still better than 95% of the music out there from this period. It's not that it's a bad CD, it's just that there are better versions of the material available.

Slightly different than the original studio versions.......2006-01-05

MOST OF THE PERFORMANCES ON THIS CD ARE TOO MUCH LIKE THE ORIGINAL STUDIO VERSIONS TO MAKE THIS SET OF MUCH VALUE.

This is a re-issue of Out of the Woods. Out of the Woods was a single CD that was 56 minutes long. With Totally Out of the Woods, a bonus CD that is 27 minutes long has been added. So this new CD set has 83 minutes of music.

This music was recorded live in the BBC studios. The sound quality is excellent on most of the tracks. It sounds as good as Gentle Giant's studio albums. In many cases, it is clearer than some the Gentle Giant CD releases. There is absolutely no audience noise, so it is difficult to tell that this is from a live broadcast. On a couple of songs on the first CD there are a few pops, as if the source material was an LP. That may be possible as radio shows were recorded on to vinyl for distribution to radio stations. However, these were broadcast quality recordings.

The problem is that there is not much different between the songs on this CD and the original studio versions. There is an extra 40 second keyboard solo on one song and a 30 second accoustic guitar solo on another. Every once in a while, they throw in a little ditty. But, these flourishes are actually not very good and detract from the songs. Especially annoying is when they throw in Yankee Doodle everytime they do a recorder solo (it is featured twice on this set).

There may be one or two tracks that are done differently enough to make them interesting, and one or two might even be slightly better than the studio version, like Aspirations. Plus, there is the song City Hermit that is on any of the original Gentle Giant albums. But, I don't think any of this makes this CD worth getting.

I WOULD RECOMMEND GETTING PLAYING THE FOOL, AND THEN THE KING BISCUIT LIVE DISC. Be careful buying other live Gentle Giant albums, even on Amazon. They may look like legitimate releases, but they have horrible sound quality.

BBC radio which is owned and controlled by the British government and paid for by a radio tax, required that a certain amount of broadcasting time had to be devoted to original material. So, there were many BBC radio shows featuring live, in the studio broadcasts. On many of these programs, groups would come and just replay their studio albums to promote them. On other programs, groups would jam. The sound quality on most of the early programs, in the sixties, was horrible. Starting in the seventies, most of the time the sound quality was fantastic.

Gentle Giant at their best.......2003-12-08

I agree with the reviewer below. Other than a couple of the really early - and rare - tracks from 1970 on CD 1, and the home demo on CD 2, the sound quality and playing on the rest of this set - from 1973, 1974 and 1975, are superb. In addition to most of their studio work, I have Playing the Fool and the KBFH live CD, and these live sets are better. The BBC studio captured Gentle Giant in a perfect setting, playing with stunning precision. In fact it's hard to believe that recordings that sound this good were made back in 73-75, much less live in the studio. My personal favorite track is "Aspirations" which is IMHO better than the studio version on "The Power and the Glory". The drums towards the end are in my living room. Free Hand is also the best version I have heard.
I am always upgrading my sound system, and this recording is one that I use as a refererence for sound quality.

Live and at the top.......2002-12-07

Awesome live performances rescued from the BBC vaults, this double CD shows that Gentle Giant were fantastic musicians.
The sound quality is so good that with the right system you can feel that the band is all around you - the different parts get easy to follow, a unique feature that is not surpassed by the studio albums. Far from!
To me, this ranks even higher than the great Playing the Fool, and among the best in my rather complete GG collection.

a rip-off.......2000-07-17

This product is only for the Gentle Giant completist. The source for significant portions of the program is vinyl - somewhat noisy vinyl. This fact is stated nowhere on the cover, but it is very obvious once you begin to listen to the disc.

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