REFLECTIONS
When Gentle Giant called it a day in 1980, its musicians had no idea that more than 40 years later, their glorious music would continue to inspire and influence new generations of progressive artists. Core members Kerry Minnear and the Shulman brothers, Derek and Ray, reflect on one of their finest moments and biggest commercial successes, 1975’s Free Hand, and discuss its recent reissue.
Words: Gary Mackenzie
In at the deep end? Underwater shoot for FreeHand, at Eastney Marines Barracks pool in 1975.
ALL PHOTOS: GENTLE GIA NT PRESS
It’s a strange prospect to promote an album 46 years after it was recorded. “I don’t think any of us were thinking back then that any of this would happen now with us in our 70s… it is a bit odd, really,” says Gentle Giant’s Kerry Minnear (keyboards, mallet percussion, vocals and a multitude of other instruments) in his soft, Dorset burr.
Derek Shulman (lead vocals, main lyricist, woodwind) adds: “Honestly, I’m enjoying talking about it, because when the band finished… it could have been grief, but I just didn’t want to go back and revisit [Gentle Giant]. But now it’s a pleasure. There was no expectation that this was going to be preserved.”
“That’s very true,” says Minnear. “I think the multitracks only survived because Gary [Green – guitar and vocals] stepped in and then dumped them on me when he moved to the USA. They’d been up in my loft for years, until interest started to bubble and they’ve served us really well.”
FreeHand,remixed by Steven Wilson.
In many ways, the creation of Free Hand in the spring of ’75 was an artistic venting at the relief the band felt having finally escaped from a troubled professional relationship with the WWA record label and from equally disheartening management obligations. They were primed and ready. “We were at a pretty good high, we’d established the band and were doing comparatively good business in Europe and North America. I think we were quite mature as a band and recording Free Hand proved a happy experience,” says Derek.