The Silent Corner and the Empty Stage

The Silent Corner and The Empty Stage
Studio album by Peter Hammill
Released 8 February 1974
Recorded April, September and October 1973
Genre Progressive rock
Length 49:15
Label Charisma Records
Producer Peter Hammill
Peter Hammill chronology
Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night
(1973)		 The Silent Corner and The Empty Stage
(1974)		 In Camera
(1974)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Julian Cope's Unsung(timeless)[2]

The Silent Corner and the Empty Stage is the third album by British singer-songwriter Peter Hammill. It was released on Charisma Records in 1974, during a hiatus in the activities of Hammill's progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. However, like many of Hammill's albums of this period, all the members of Van der Graaf Generator perform on the recording, blurring the distinction between solo and group work.

The cover was designed by Bettina Hohls, ex-member of the psychedelic German rock band Ash Ra Tempel. Bettina Hohls had also contributed to the cover of Hammill's earlier album Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night.

The lengthy "A Louse is not a Home" tells about the nature of identity. It was originally written for Van der Graaf Generator's album following Pawn Hearts, an album that because of the band's split never came to be.[3] It features all of Van der Graaf Generator's ex-members. "The Lie (Bernini's Saint Theresa)" partly alludes to the Ecstasy of St Theresa by Bernini. "Red Shift" features Spirit guitarist Randy California on lead guitar. Hammill has often performed the song "Modern" in concert.

Track listing

  1. "Modern" – 7:28
  2. "Wilhelmina" – 5:17
  3. "The Lie (Bernini's Saint Theresa)" – 5:40
  4. "Forsaken Gardens" – 6:15
  5. "Red Shift" – 8.11
  6. "Rubicon" – 4:11
  7. "A Louse is Not a Home" – 12:13

The following bonus tracks were included on the 2006 CD reissue:

  1. "The Lie" (Live at the All Souls Unitarian Church, Kansas City, on 16 February 1978) – 6:31
  2. "Rubicon" (BBC session, February 1974) – 5:02
  3. "Red Shift" (BBC session, February 1974) – 5:51

Personnel

Technical

Notes

  1. ↑ Allmusic review
  2. ↑ Julian Copes Unsung review
  3. ↑ Christopulos, J., and Smart, P.: "Van der Graaf Generator – The Book", page 174. Phil and Jim publishers, 2005.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.