Gentle Giant: In a Glass House (1973) 
Reviewer: Ben Miler | See all reviews by Ben Miler
Section: Reviews | Category: Music | Area: UK | Topic: Music
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Gentle Giant is often a highly regarded band in the prog rock community. The rock critics (of the Robert Chistgau, Dave Marsh, and Lester Bangs variety), for the most part, hardly ever said anything good of these guys. And yet the band didn't have the same "overblown pretentiousness" (critics opinion, not mine) that was often leveled at their better known contemporaries like Yes or ELP. Perhaps Gentle Giant's music was too uncompromising to please the rock critics, because their music was often very complex and requires several listens to sink in. By the time In a Glass House, came out, neither their UK label (Vertigo) or their US label (Columbia) wanted to release it. They ended up getting it released on a small British label called WWA (where Black Sabbath was breifly on, as well as the Groundhogs).
The album never received a US release (that was the reason why their following albums, starting with The Power and the Glory were released in the US on Capitol), making this one of their most overlooked albums. Also the the eldest Shulman brother, Philip had left at that point, given he was about 10 years older than the rest of the band, and probably felt old. So the Gentle Giant lineup at this point would be the same from here to their 1980 breakup (Ray Shulman, Derek Shulman, Kerry Minnear, Gary Green, John Weathers).
Now on to the music of In a Glass House, despite the record company bullshit they were facing with, I really think this is one of their best albums. A bit more rocking than their previous albums, making this an easy pick even for the Gentle Giant newcomer. The album starts off with "The Runaway", with the sound of shattering glass, before the music kicks in. Here you get many of their tradmark quirkiness, while keeping the music going forward. "An Inmates Lullaby" is a more laidback piece, with Kerry Minnear handling the vocals. Lots of xylophones here. A lot of the quirky passages here harken back to Acquiring the Taste.
"Way of Light" starts off in a rocking, aggressive manner, before they go for that medieval sound (complete with recorders) that they're often known for. "Experience" and the title track continue in the same greatness. The latter has a passage that oddly reminds me of Yes. "A Reunion" is a nice, gentle acoustic piece, with Kerry Minnear singing, complete with violins, making it sound like a string quartet. A very English sounding piece here. Great album. If you like Three Friends, Octopus and Free Hand, you're sure to enjoy this.
More Info
- Derek Shulman: vocals, alto and soprano sax and recorder
- Gary Green: guitars, mandolin, percussion and alto recorder
- Kerry Minnear: all keyboards, tune percussion, recorder, vocals
- Ray Shulman: bass guitar, violin, acoustic guitar, percussion, backing vocals
- John Weathers: drums, percussion
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Visitor Comments about Gentle Giant: In a Glass House (1973)
Posted by calyx1 on 2004-09-19 22:46:35
My Score:
Comment: regarding Ralph''s commentary; sorry but Phil was not their drummer. he sang and played saxes, trumpet and numerous other instruments. Martin Smith (R.I.P.) was their first drummer and Malcolm Mortimore their second. after only a brief time in the band (shortly after the recording of ''Three Friends''), Malcolm was knocked out of commission for a while due to a motorcycle accident and was replaced by John Weathers (who first appeared on the fourth album, ''Octopus'' - the last album to feature Phil Shulman). ''In A Glass House'' is the fifth album and the first to feature the five-piece line-up that would carry them through until their demise in 1980.
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Posted by Ralph on 2004-08-06 23:18:54
My Score: 
Comment: Fantastic album by GG, one of their best. One note, Philip Shulman was considered by the rest of GG to be a little too "fiddley" as a drummer (too jazzy perhaps or busy). Personally I preferred Phil''s playing, it was more like King Crimson or PFM style. GG said that when John P Weathers joined the band it gave them more of a rock sound that they were looking for, which is definetly apparent on In A Glass House. The albums that followed, Power and the Glory and especially Free Hand, were masterpieces, though perhaps less "experimental" than their earlier works.
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