Gong (band)
Gong are a psychedelic rock band that incorporates elements of jazz and space rock into their musical style.[3] The group was formed in Paris in 1967 by Australian musician Daevid Allen and English vocalist Gilli Smyth. Band members have included Didier Malherbe, Pip Pyle, Steve Hillage, Mike Howlett, Tim Blake, Pierre Moerlen, Bill Laswell and Theo Travis. Others who have played on stage with Gong include Don Cherry,[4] Chris Cutler, Bill Bruford, Brian Davison, Dave Stewart and Tatsuya Yoshida.
This article is about the progressive rock band. For the experimental folk band, see The Gongs. For Chinese experimental rock band, see Gong Gong Gong.
Gong
Paris, France
- 1967–1968
- 1969–1976
- 1977
- 1990
- 1992–2001
- 2003–2006
- 2007–present
- Mother Gong
- Pierre Moerlen's Gong
- Planet Gong
- New York Gong
- Gongmaison
- Strontium 90
Fabio Golfetti
Dave Sturt
Ian East
Kavus Torabi
Cheb Nettles
Gong's 1970 debut album, Magick Brother, featured a psychedelic pop sound.[5] By the following year, the second album, Camembert Electrique, featured the more psychedelic rock/space rock sound with which they would be most associated.[1] Between 1973 and 1974, Gong released their best-known work, the allegorical Radio Gnome Invisible trilogy, describing the adventures of Zero the Hero, the Good Witch Yoni and the Pot Head Pixies from the Planet Gong.
In 1975, Allen and Smyth left the band, which continued without them, releasing a series of jazz rock albums under the leadership of drummer Pierre Moerlen. This incarnation soon became known as Pierre Moerlen's Gong. Meanwhile, Smyth formed Mother Gong while Allen initiated a series of spin-off groups, including Planet Gong, New York Gong and Gongmaison, before returning to lead Gong once again in 1990 until his death in 2015. With Allen's encouragement, the band decided to continue, releasing the album Rejoice! I'm Dead! in September 2016[6] and The Universe Also Collapses in 2019.
Music and lyrics[edit]
Style and influences[edit]
Gong's music fuses many influences into a distinctive style which has been variously described by critics and journalists as experimental rock,[37] jazz fusion,[38] jazz rock,[39][40] progressive rock,[38][41][42][43][44][45] psychedelic rock[38][45][46] and space rock.[47][48] Gong has also been associated with the Canterbury scene of progressive rock bands.[41]
Rolling Stone described Gong's music as combining "psychedelic English whimsy, German kosmische space jams and Gallic libertine fusion."[49]
Daevid Allen's guitar playing was influenced by Syd Barrett.[50]