Van der Graaf Generator

[dave jenkins]

Wow! https://www.amazon.com/Live-Rockpalast-2005-Leverkusen/dp/B07CNYTQ5B/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527884648&sr=8-1&keywords=van+der+graaf+generator+rockpalast

Ordered!

Discs in da house! As the wife will be away this evening, this is definitely going on the Jenkins Home Entertainment Console at a very loud setting.

[stanton]

My recollection is that these are from sound checks prior to the shows. It may well be that these have been widely bootlegged.

No, I asked in a Yahoo VDGG Message group.
Of course the 4th Track is from a soundcheck, but that is not a song, but instead, well: "Gibberish"  13:37 (recorded Amsterdam soundcheck, 23 July 2005)

The other 3 are from 3 different concerts and are "professional recording although from other venues and possibly mixed by someone else (PH not HB??) But excellent sound"

Means that at least 3 more concerts of that tour were recorded, and only Theme One and La Rossa are not released officially. So far.

Btw I don't like much of the last VdGG album.


And I go to a Hammill solo concert this July. He plays in a small town in a church. Maybe I take the chance and become religious ...
 

[stanton]

Discs in da house! As the wife will be away this evening, this is definitely going on the Jenkins Home Entertainment Console at a very loud setting.

If you want her to stay away forever VdGG played loud might help ...

[dave jenkins]

Btw I don't like much of the last VdGG album.

Why so?

[dave jenkins]

Came across this recently and got a copy. I like it. https://www.amazon.com/Another-Day-DAVID-JACKSON-CROSS/dp/B079851VNN/

[dave jenkins]

Hammill live box "Not Yet Not Now" dispatched! Waiting patiently . . . .

[stanton]

There's more stuff coming which could cost  a lot of money:

https://www.cherryred.co.uk/product/van-der-graaf-generator-the-aerosol-grey-machine-50th-anniversary-edition-2cd-gatefold-180-gram-lp-7-inch-single-limited-edition-deluxe-boxset/

Hmm, a LP and a Single which I do not need, but I like to have the rest ...

... and the complete K stuff:

https://burningshed.com/store/madfish/peter-hammill-with-the-k-group_the-k-box_boxset?filter_tag=peter%20hammill&filter_category_id=263

A few unreleased tracks amongst stuff I already own.

[dave jenkins]

There's more stuff coming which could cost  a lot of money:

https://www.cherryred.co.uk/product/van-der-graaf-generator-the-aerosol-grey-machine-50th-anniversary-edition-2cd-gatefold-180-gram-lp-7-inch-single-limited-edition-deluxe-boxset/

Hmm, a LP and a Single which I do not need, but I like to have the rest ...

45 quid! Uh, I'll think about it . . .

[stanton]

Total Graaf: https://www.discogs.com/de/Van-Der-Graaf-Generator-The-Charisma-Years-1970-1978/release/19216366

Big, bigger biggest 20 disc box (17 CDs, 2 audio Blu Rays, 1 video Blu Ray) with all 8 charisma albums (from 1970 to 1978) very well remastered, and all the known bonus material also. The 4 albums of which the multi tracks still exist, were also remixed by Steven Tayler for stereo and for 5.1. sound. The video Blu contains (nearly) all existing footage which was aired on TV in the 70s.

And a complete concert from Paris 1976, which was recorded for French radio, was discovered. And one more BBC session from 1970 was also so far unreleased, at least officially.

Everything on it? Well, most, but still a few things are missing ...

[dave jenkins]

Hey, thanks! Very tempting. The set itself isn't so much, but the added shipping is a killer.

UPDATE: I just found out that amazon US has this with free shipping. Ordered!

[stanton]

I bought mine for 129 Euros, that's really cheap for such a big deluxe set. Only the German Amazon will not ship it before the 24th, like in the other EU countries, while the Brits and the Americans can already enjoy it.

Some of the still missing things are:

1. The second version of the single version of Refugees (released on CD once on the I Prophesy Disaster compilation)

2. The Shel Talmy mix of The Least We Can Do (once released accidentally on LP)

3. Theme 1 / The Dambuster's March which is the 4th and last track of the BBC In Concert from 1971, and has recently surfaced in good audio quality.

4. The songs from Time Vaults, at least the better sounding ones of them would have been a nice addition

[dave jenkins]

Here's a review on the amazon page. One bloke's opinion and all that:

Reviewed in the United States on September 11, 2021
A friend of mine recently acquired this set and I had the fortune or misfortune of hearing the first five studio albums. All sound different but different is not better when the original first UK editions sound far superior! Some things are much too high in the mix now such as percussion for example. The power and punch of the original music is replaced by an insane clarity which saps the life out of the music. The dynamics are replaced with a flat sound. Admittedly I only listened to 5 CDs but since they didn't get those 5 right I have no desire to hear the rest. I was going to order this set next week but now it's removed from my want list. To add insult to injury the packaging is dreadful with no individual CD cases meaning both the CD slots and the CD themselves are subject to wear and tear. Order at your own risk.

This doesn't put me off the set, which is cheap enough to take a chance on. Also, I don't know what to make of "an insane clarity"; is that supposed to be bad?

My set won't arrive for 10 days. I don't know how I'm going to be able to sleep nights waiting.

[dave jenkins]

My set won't arrive for 10 days. I don't know how I'm going to be able to sleep nights waiting.

The set shipped! Maybe it will arrive early.

[stanton]

Well,  I have read only positive things about the set, very positive actually. Even from those who think that the 2005 Remasters were "horribly bad". Apart from the Remastering also the remixes are mostly praised.


Jim Christopulos, co-author of Van der Graaf Generator - The Book seems to like it:

"My own thoughts so far? I still have to pinch myself that this exists. It?s such a big beast and there is so much love and respect poured into this set. It?s just nice to see. In a recent interview I did with Peter, I mentioned how so many bands of that era have sort of fallen by the wayside but VdGG?s stock continues to rise. They are truly respected and revered by fans, critics, and historians, and that respect just seems to grow and intensify. And I think that the attention, thought, and love that went into this project is indicative of the band?s importance ? kudos to Universal for greenlighting this (I mean, wow? Virgin / Universal? that ain?t no little indie that?s throwing down for this). But real kudos to guys like Stephen W Tayler (whose remixes are garnering universal acclaim from fans and media reviewers alike, with many expressing utter amazement), Phillip Smee (who is responsible for putting together the absolutely wonderful hardcover coffee table book, with assistance from Rupert Lloyd and a few others [namely me, Herman P, and Phil S? but, errrr, I?m not giving kudos to myself ? that would be weird]), and Ben Weisman w/remastering. Probably missing a few. But most of all, kudos to Mark Powell who sort of brain child-ed (not a word, folks) this whole thing. Without him, this most likely wouldn?t exist ? he put it all together, hunted down the rare vids, the BBC sessions, got everyone involved, and basically oversaw the whole thing. All of VdGG fandom owes him a big thanks.

Quick thoughts on the box itself. Still haven?t had time to get into the actual albums, except I did start with The Least the other night and it sounds *amazing*. On all the CD releases so far, ?Darkness? (a top 5 VdGG track for me) has never sounded as good as the vinyl, it?s just been muddy and not really happening. I could tell within the first few minutes that this remastering was a welcome revelation. Everything is crisp, clear, and opened up. Refugees and White Hammer also sounded so much better than previous CDs. I plan on listening to the stereo remixes this weekend and I just know (from about 50 things I?ve read online) that SWT?s work is going to be wonderful.

What little time I?ve had to devote to the box has so far been with the BBC stuff, the live Paris ?76 concert, and the video. The BBC stuff ? YES!!! FINALLY, the Sept ?71 BBC In Concert perf of Man Erg, W, and Killer in fantastic quality. This gig has been around but it?s never had primo sound (far from it) and here it finally is. It just rocks, the band?s on fire and Mark was able to ? after all this time ? locate a great sounding version. And there?s a *very* cool BBC ?70 interview with a young Peter Hammill before the band launch into a truncated ? but gloriously off the rails ? version of ?Killer.? Wonderful stuff. The Paris ?76 concert is a holy grail for me personally. After decades of listening to 70s VdGG gigs that were recorded onto a portable tape recorder from the audience, 10th generation (and even loving those), here is a full concert professionally recorded for radio of the classic four-piece in all their glory during the World Record tour. I?ve actually listened to it about four times when I should have been exploring the rest of the set. Sorry? after all these years, to finally have a really good recording of a 70s VdGG gig ? it?s just tough for me to not reach for that every time. And the video? it?s the best the ?70 Beat Club footage has ever looked. It?s the full screen (every other version cuts off a good chunk of the picture) and without the graphics, so you don?t have to see the band lineup obscuring Hammill?s face as he?s singing. The ?75 Godbluff footage is the clearest I?ve seen, fantastic stuff. I never noticed that you could actually *see* the theater audience in certain shots from the stage, and that one of the road crew is wearing a Godbluff tee. You can see all that now. And, the big (to me) coup is the Wondering vid which had previously only been available on YouTube in unwatchable (seriously) 122nd generation quality. This should never have been released by Universal prior to the box being released because it would have blown peoples? minds the first time they saw it as part of the box. But hey ho. And, also very cool, is the Austrian ?78 interview/perf by VdG at their last gig. This had been available in the past on old bootleg vhs tapes, but again with muddy unitnelligble sound and a 10th generation video dub. Here, it?s in pristine condition; I?d never seen it like this before and it?s fantastic.
So, a BIG 10 out of 10 from me so far and I feel like I?ve still only scratched the surface. Carry on then! "

[dave jenkins]

Thanks, I'm really looking forward to the set, which should arrive some time next week. Now, how can I get the wife out of the house for about 300 hours?