Gong

Gong slowly came together in the late '60s when Australian guitarist Daevid Allen (ex-Soft Machine) began making music with his wife, singer Gilli Smyth, along with a shifting lineup of supporting musicians. Albums from this period include Magick Brother, Mystic Sister (1969) and the impromptu jam session Bananamoon (1971) featuring Robert Wyatt from the Soft Machine, Gary Wright from Spooky Tooth, and Maggie Bell…

Live album recorded during the first « Gong reunion » in May 28, 1977 in Hippodrome de Pantin (Paris), organised by Jacques Pasquier. The classic Gong line-up with founder Daevid Allen didn’t exist anymore at this date, but reconvened for this event, which also featured all bands formed by ex or current Gong members : Daevid Allen with Euterpe, Didier Malherbe’s Bloom, the « official » Gong led by Pierre Moerlen, Mike Howlett’s Strontium 90, Tim Blake’s Crystal Machine, Steve Hillage’s band etc…

Limited 12 CD + NTSC/Region 0 DVD box. Curated by Steve Hillage and released with the full involvement of original members, legendary psychedelic surrealists Gong are the subject of a box set with the release of Love From Planet Gong: The Virgin Years 1973-75. Released to coincide with Gong's 50th Anniversary, the set covers the band's classic years in a stunning package that includes: their seminal first four Virgin studio albums plus bonus tracks; previously unreleased, multi-tracked full gigs, the complete John Peel Sessions from 1973 and 1974; previously unreleased quad Pye and Westlake mixes of You re-formatted to 5.1 surround-sound, and artwork including rare and previously unseen work by the late Daevid Allen…

In 1970, the world got its first taste of the original pothead pixie, Daevid Allen's Gong, as Magick Brother was released in France on the BYG label. Allen's wife, Gilli Smyth, penned all the tunes on the album, and Allen's now-classic "Ph.P." drawing style graces the inside of the gatefold. Leaning a little toward the pop end of the spectrum, Magick Brother is a fairly light album, devoid of the blatant psychedelic/hippie qualities which shine through so brilliantly on the later Camembert Electrique…

Gong are – and were – a completely indefinable and free-thinking outfit. They are still touring and touching minds, even after the death of founder Daevid Allen but this trilogy of albums was the best music that they ever produced…

This is a classic, the epitome of the band's early Daevid Allen phase with Ph.P.'s (pothead pixies) in full, blazing glory. In its infancy, Gong was a unique prog rock band that branched out in all directions at once while most other prog bands chose simply one path or another. Camembert Electrique is a testament to that…

Recorded at the Melkweg club in Amsterdam in November 2006, the former Gong guitarist performs a collection of tracks from his 1970s solo albums. Steve is accompanied by Miquette Giraudy on synthesisers, and Gong regulars Mike Howlett (bass) and Chris Taylor (drums)…

As interesting and fun as the Daevid Allen period was, the name Gong became more meaningful in the context of the music as percussionist Pierre Moerlen assumed the role of bandleader. An emphasis on percussives of all sorts became clear on Gazeuse!, the band's first completely instrumental album, and the music became much jazzier, though never considered jazz. Expresso II finds Pierre Moerlen's Gong at their peak…

Daevid Allen was one of the founders of the British progressive rock band the Soft Machine in 1966. After recording just one album with the group, he became the founder/leader of Gong, which he left in 1973 to begin a solo career (though his first solo album, Banana Moon, was released in 1971 while he was still in the group). Allen explored his quirky, folky take on rock throughout the '70s and '80s on albums like 1976's Good Morning and 1983's Alien in New York…