Many albums are touted as being derivative of one band, but few deserve it more than this Epidermis album, a clone of Gentle Giant if there ever was one. There’s a feeling the musicians weened themselves on Gentle Giant directly rather than GG's influences and thus a lot of swing and eclecticism seems absent. All the same, the album is not without merit. The instrumental sections are quite accomplished throughout with the same kind of counterpoint as the vocals. A focus on this aspect rises the level overall.
Ownership: CD: 2021 Garden of Delights. Jewel case. Comprehensive liner notes, lyrics, and many photos. The sound is excellent and I enjoyed a +1 listen on this revisit. There's also four bonus tracks, three of which are from 1975. Interesting to note that Epidermis were more funky and radio friendly at this point. For most bands, they would be far more prog in 1975, and then catch the disco bug in 1977. I find all these tracks wonderful, and borderline jazz funk. The last track 'Feelings' is from 1977, and is an introspective prog number.
Former ownership: CD: 1992 Music is Intelligence. Jewel case. One bonus track. It's 'Feelings' but the 1975 version. Best guess is GoD couldn't obtain the rights to it, especially given the harsh words towards the owner of the MII label in the liner notes (from the band supposedly).
Former ownership: LP: 198? Kerston. Gatefold. I've long believed there are two LP pressings of this album, since I got mine brand new in 1989 (similar to Island's Pictures). My version never felt like a 70s album for one thing. However Discogs maintains only one pressing without mention of another one. Follow up: Friend and fellow collector Spyros has corroborated my suspicion. In addition to that, Alan Freeman has corroborated a similar finding in his notes on Discogs. This was my introduction to the album.
1989 (first listen); 1996; 2/19/07; 2/9/20 (review / new entry); 8/5/22 (update)
They are indeed two pressings. There is one I got from 1989, which is not the orginal as the gf cover has a different texture and looks more end 80s/early 9os glossy and not laminated as the original one. Could be a pirate? However it sounds very close to the 1977 release.
ReplyDeleteThanks Spyros for confirming this! I always figured it was legit, certainly seemed more authentic than the usual pirate - especially in those days. 1989 then - yes. Even better then that I sold it 25 years ago. I'd add this version to Discogs but likely the Freeman's will shoot me down for some reason or another, so it's not worth the aggravation. Thanks again for the info!
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