Civilian is the eleventh and final studio album by the British band Gentle Giant, released in 1980.[3][5] It was recorded at Sound City Studios in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles with former Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick. Consisting mostly of short rock songs, it is closer to a traditional rock sound than the progressive style for which the band is best known. The album also marked a return to Columbia Records in the U.S. and Canada after an eight-year hiatus; the band's last album released with Columbia had been 1972's Octopus.
| Civilian | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 3 March 1980[1] | |||
| Recorded | August–November 1979 | |||
| Studio | Sound City, Van Nuys | |||
| Genre | Hard rock | |||
| Length | 32:41 | |||
| Label | Chrysalis (UK) Columbia (US) | |||
| Producer | Gentle Giant | |||
| Gentle Giant chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Civilian | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [3] |
| MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | [4] |
The album peaked at No. 203 on the Billboard 200.[6] Soon after the album's release, Gentle Giant played a final tour and then split up.
A previously unreleased track, "Heroes No More", has been included on some CD reissues of the album. Another track from the same period, "You Haven't a Chance", appeared on the compilation album Under Construction 17 years later.
Critical reception
editReviewing the 2006 Gentle Giant reissues, The Village Voice deemed Civilian "bland" and a bomb "that destroyed the band."[7]
Track listing
editAll lead vocals by Derek Shulman, except "Shadows on the Street", sung by Kerry Minnear.[citation needed]
All tracks are written by Kerry Minnear, Derek Shulman and Ray Shulman except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Convenience (Clean and Easy)" | Derek Shulman, Gary Green | 3:13 |
| 2. | "All Through the Night" | 4:20 | |
| 3. | "Shadows on the Street" | 3:18 | |
| 4. | "Number One" | 4:38 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Underground" | 3:47 |
| 2. | "I Am a Camera" | 3:32 |
| 3. | "Inside Out" | 5:51 |
| 4. | "It's Not Imagination" "That's... All... There... Is...." ([nb 1]) | 4:03 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 9. | "Heroes No More" ([nb 2]) | 4:38 |
Personnel
edit- Gentle Giant
- Derek Shulman – lead vocals on all tracks except track 3
- Gary Green – electric guitars on all tracks except track 3
- Kerry Minnear – synthesizers (tracks 1–7, 9), electric piano (tracks 1, 3–9), Hammond organ (tracks 2, 3, 9), Clavinet (track 7), piano (track 3), lead vocals on track 3
- Ray Shulman – bass, acoustic guitar (tracks 5, 6), backing vocals
- John Weathers – drums, tambourine (tracks 4–6, 8, 9), varispeed cymbals (track 1), percussion (track 7), backing vocals[8]
Charts
edit| Chart (1980) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[9] | 91 |
Notes
edit- ^ This sentence was created from music that appeared in four different songs on the album. The words were extracted from the songs and then spliced together. Some CD and vinyl releases are missing this ending.
- ^ Available on later CD re-release from One Way, plus listed as Heroes on the 1994 Terrapin Trucking UK re-issue using audio from a cassette.
References
edit- ^ "Gentle Giant Tour History".
- ^ Little, Patrick (2011). "Civilian – Gentle Giant | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
- ^ a b Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 3. MUZE. p. 719.
- ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. pp. 478–479.
- ^ The Rough Guide to Rock (2nd ed.). Rough Guides Ltd. 1999. p. 407.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2010). Top Pop Albums (7th ed.). Record Research Inc. p. 307.
- ^ Walters, Barry (11 January 2006). "GENTLE GIANT". The Village Voice. 51 (2): C82.
- ^ Gentle Giant's website (www.blazemonger.com/GG/)
- ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0149b". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
External links
edit- Gentle Giant – Civilian at Discogs (list of releases)