*** Part Three ***

Gentle Giant Tour History

*** Part Three ***

*** Going On After Phil ***

(early 1973 - mid 1974)

(new or modified information added since the last update is in red)

Immediately after the Italian tour of early 1973, Phil Shulman left Gentle Giant, due to some serious personal differences. He was also considerably older than the others. The group decided to continue as a five-piece outfit. Their first tour as a five-piece was also their second North American tour. It is believed to have run between March and May of 1973, although there are indications that it may have been originally planned to have started as early as Feb. 9. If so, Phil's departure may have been responsible for the delay.

Shortly before leaving the band, Phil stated in the press that they had had some offers from promoters to do some headlining in America. However, the band was unsure of their footing there, so they decided to play it safe and continued to play mostly support for a while longer. On many of the dates on this tour, GG opened for Edgar Winter, Humble Pie, or the J. Geils Band. However, they appeared with other bands, as well, in some cities. Confirmation is unfortunately lacking for many of these dates in both America and Canada. Some information comes from schedules published in Melody Maker and Billboard, but these two magazines were not in complete agreement. It would be reasonable to assume that dates were changed and shuffled around somewhat after the band made up their original schedule. Most of the dates after the Canadian leg of the tour come from a printed schedule in Gary Green's possession but there seem to have been some changes made to that schedule and, again, some of the dates are unconfirmed. Hard information is still definitely lacking on some of Gentle Giant's activities in the spring of 1973.

TYPICAL SETLIST (Spring - Mid 1973)

Prologue

Alucard - may have been played more often earlier in the tour

Funny Ways

Knots

The Advent of Panurge - the recorder quartet began to include a rendition of Yankee Doodle, an addition which was commonplace during many future tours

Nothing at All

Plain Truth - this may have only appeared in the band's longer headlining gigs and more often later in the tour

Mister Class and Quality?/Peel the Paint - this attempt at a THREE FRIENDS mini-medley may also have only appeared in the band's longer gigs and may have only showed up earlier in the tour. still, this foreshadowed their later habit of combining songs, often from the same album, into medleys

Even though they had to rearrange their songs for one less member, their shows were still musically satisfying and generally well-accepted. Besides Knots and The Advent of Panurge, it seems no other OCTOPUS songs were played.

Mar. 4 Winchester, England King Alfred's College – College Theatre before departing for North America, the group played this one UK college gig in a venue seating 200-300 people. they rehearsed for several hours in the theatre on the afternoon of the gig in order to work out the bugs in their new five-piece stage show. this was intended more or less as a tune-up gig before the start of their actual tour. the band did not even use their normal lighting personnel, instead hiring a student at the college to handle the lights. according to this person, the only lighting demand made was that no flashing lights at all were to be used. he also claims that all the lights went well, except for one small glitch at the beginning. the band entered the stage in darkness and the lights were supposed to snap on at the opening downbeat. unfortunately, the lights came on early, spoiling the effect. the gig was on a Sunday and could have been in late February, but it was probably on Mar. 4. the tickets, which went on sale the day before, were quite cheap, but there are conflicting reports as to whether the show sold out. Giant are said to have been pleased with the results of the show, as were the record company representatives in the audience. two separate tapes of this concert once existed, but both are now believed lost

Mar. 8 Hershey, Pennsylvania Hershey Park

Mar. 9 Nashville, Tennessee

Mar. 10 Louisville, Kentucky Convention Center opened for Edgar Winter

Mar. 11 Cleveland, Ohio Music Hall opened for Focus, followed by Marc Almond in the headliner slot

??? Youngstown, Ohio State Theater a fan clearly recalls GG opening for Focus at this Youngstown venue, but is not clear on a date. Giant also played some dates with Focus in late 1974, so that is another possible time frame. actually, there are said to have been four acts on the bill this evening, beginning with a male dancer, then a gospel group and finally Giant and headliners Focus. at various times in the 1970’s, this hall was known as the State Theater, the Tomorrow Club and the Agora, depending on the year. it’s not certain of its name at the time of this concert, though it was supposedly the first rock concert held in this older facility

??? Salem, Virginia Salem-Roanoke Valley Civic Center there is a totally unsubstantiated fan report that Giant played a date at this venue with Jo Jo Gunne at some point in the mid 1970's. since these two bands were booked to appear together at least two other times during this particular tour, as listed immediately below, this could possibly be the tour when this show also took place, if it did at all

??? Roanoke, Virginia Roanoke Civic Center in addition to above listed show in Salem, one fan seems to recall a date in Roanoke around 1973 or 1974 when Giant opened for southern rockers the Marshall Tucker Band. the cities of Roanoke and Salem are fairly close to each other and each boasts its own Civic Center. important rock concerts were often held at both facilities. however, no hard evidence of either show has yet surfaced

Mar. 13 Wilmington, North Carolina University of North Carolina opened for Jo Jo Gunne

Mar. 14 Chattanooga, Tennessee Memorial Auditorium

Mar. 15 Morgantown, West Virginia West Virginia University the band was scheduled to open this gig, in the university's gymnasium, probably for Jo Jo Gunne, after the audience had arrived, it was announced that the headliner would not appear, and that Giant had agreed to extend their performance and play alone. the majority of the crowd left, but those who stayed witnessed an unusually long Giant set. although not confirmed, a fan at the show is sure they played all the songs from OCTOPUS during the course of the evening and specifically recalls the band doing a fine job on River

Mar. 16 New York, New York Felt Forum opened for the Mahavishnu Orchestra. as fans of the headliners, the members of Giant were very much looking forward to this gig, but were disappointed in Mahavishnu's performance. Ray, who was jumping around a lot and even rolling on the stage, supposedly split his pants during Giant's set. a partial tape exists of Giant’s performance, while a complete tape recorded by a different person in the crowd is now missing. originally, Giant was booked on this date to play a gig with Grin, Foghat and Edgar Winter in the gym at West Chester University in West Chester, Pennsylvania. however, they cancelled out of that show and ended up playing at the Felt Forum, instead. a touch of class was brought into the festivities as a row of white carnations lined the front row of the orchestra seats. singer/songwriter James Taylor was in the crowd and, since it was Mahavishnu violinist Jerry Goodman’s birthday, Taylor brought birthday cake on stage during the headliners’ set

Mar. 17 Passaic, New Jersey Capitol Theater opened for Edgar Winter

Mar. 18 Allentown, Pennsylvania Allentown Fairgrounds - Agricultural Hall at this show, which may have been added at the last minute, GG shared the bill with Foghat, both opening for Edgar Winter. Forrest Green is also believed to have been on the bill. for much of the year, concerts at these Fairgrounds are held outdoors in the grandstand but, being scheduled at the tail end of winter, this one was held at the indoor Agricultural Hall facility. an existing tape shows that portions of the crowd were quite rambunctious throughout the evening. at one point, many fans were unable to see and were yelling loudly, prompting Derek to ask, from the stage, for a return to order

Mar. 19 Niagara Falls, New York Niagara University - Student Center Giant played second, after Foghat and before Focus. the Student Center may actually have been a gymnasium. Giant’s appearance at this gig was as a last minute replacement for another band who cancelled

They again were afforded headlining status in Canada, with their appearances there once again extremely well-received. In fact, Giant continued to be a major draw in Canada throughout their career. The promoter deserving the credit for initially breaking the band there was Alain Simard, who booked the original 1972-1973 GG concerts in eastern Canada, mainly in cities all over Quebec Province.

There has been very much confusion as to the exact dates and venues of the Canadian shows. Melody Maker mentioned there were nine concerts scheduled for Canada, but a schedule printed in Billboard only listed six. Personal recollections from fans in attendance at the shows at times differ from the information in either of these sources. However, the dates listed below, particularly those in Quebec Province, seem to be fairly reliable.

Mar. 21 Ottawa, Ontario High School of Commerce - Auditorium a Quebec area prog act named Necessite was the opening act

Mar. 22 Quebec City, Quebec Palais Montcalm tapes exist of what are believed to be both of the scheduled Quebec City shows, though one of them is often mistakenly attributed to Montreal. a humorous moment happened on one of the tapes when, towards the beginning of Knots, Kerry's keyboard broke down, forcing one of the band members to whistle the missing part. however, it is not clear which tape is which, so it's unknown which night this happened. also, neither tape is complete, although GG headlined the shows. Necessite was the opening act both nights. John has said that, when first taking the stage at this show, he had no idea the group was as popular as it was in Quebec City. upon hearing the applause, he turned around to see if the crowd was clapping for someone behind him

Mar. 23 Quebec City, Quebec Palais Montcalm as stated above, a partial tape of this gig exists and Necessite opened the show

Mar. 24 Montreal, Quebec Centre Sportif de l'Universite de Montreal Necessite was again the opening act, this time in front of a full house. there has been considerable speculation and debate concerning fan memories of this particular gig. several fans in attendance swear that a real-life giant was used to introduce GG at this show, with more attendees coming forth to support this claim all the time. these eyewitnesses say he appeared on stage in medieval clothing, a dove resting on his finger. other fans adamantly deny such an odd thing ever happened. for their part, members of GG have repeatedly denied that a giant ever appeared on stage with them as a regular part of their act. it is, of course, possible that something happened at this particular gig that the band members were not aware of or have since forgotten. the opening band, Necessite, was known to use a live dove during their set, so arrangements could have been made to utilize this dove during a makeshift introduction for Giant. however, it's equally possible that nothing at all out of the ordinary took place in Montreal or anywhere on this tour. a review of this show in the Montreal Herald mentioned nothing unusual. this same review did, however, give GG a scathing review, calling their music “pure trash” and offering up the high quality of the sound system as the only positive aspect of the performance. a complete tape exists of Giant's set on this night, the only known complete tape from the band's Canadian headlining gigs from March 1973. during his vibraphone solo in Funny Ways, Kerry quotes a bit of the folk song, Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho. another partial tape of this same show also exists, recorded by someone else in the audience. this second tape is often mistakenly attributed to Sherbrooke from the next night

Mar. 25 Sherbrooke, Quebec Centre Culturel - Grande Salle Necessite was once again the opening act

Mar. 29 Toronto, Ontario Massey Hall opened for Wishbone Ash on this, the opening day of Wishbone Ash's North American tour. GG was preceded by Vinegar Joe. of the three bands, Giant was the only one to receive a favorable write-up in a Toronto Star review bearing the headline "Patience of Audience Tested at Rock Show." this same review stated that about 1600 fans attended this four hour show, though another report puts the number closer to 3000. Toronto was another city that Ray thought had a very open, adventurous musical heritage

Mar. 30 Toronto, Ontario Billboard listed the band as being scheduled for a gig in Detroit at the Masonic Auditorium on this date. however, since they ended up in Detroit on Apr. 11, this seems improbable. besides, one fan recalls the band actually playing another Toronto show, supposedly a general admission show at a local university, on the night after the Massey Hall concert. this second Toronto show has not been corroborated, though

Mar. 31 Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo Lutheran University posters and newspaper ads show that two shows were planned originally on this date, starting at 7:00 and 10:00 P.M. however, although not confirmed, it seems that only one performance may have taken place. it was held in the University's gym which had a proper stage set up on one end and could hold around 1200. Giant opened for Wishbone Ash and was preceded by Vinegar Joe. Billboard stated the band was scheduled to play in Buffalo, New York on this night, but they actually did play in Waterloo. in fact, Giant received a standing ovation from the crowd, rare indeed for an opening act. the audience seemed particularly enthralled by Ray’s violin solo, during which he plucked quite hard on his strings, no doubt a bit of planned theatrics. in fact, one report had him actually breaking all four strings, one at a time, although this seems very unlikely and is disputed by another fan report. although Giant did well this evening, Wishbone Ash had to endure equipment difficulties at the beginning of their set. to top it off, after the show, the crowd had to drive home in freezing rain

??? Buffalo, New York Century Theater sources indicate the band did play in Buffalo somewhere around this time period. these sources also recall no one else being on the bill. they did play in nearby Niagara Falls on Mar. 19, but there were others on the bill, so this may be a totally different show

Apr. 3 Fort Wayne, Indiana Lantern another gig which may have been added at the last minute. a tape exists of this show at which Fort Wayne’s very own prog band, Ethos Ardour, was the opening act. during Plain Truth, the power went out four separate times. at first, the band was not thrown too badly by this with John managing to keep an exciting beat and Derek even singing some of the instrumental parts. however, after the fourth time, the band began to leave the stage in frustration, only to be coerced back by their manager. about 1100 people were estimated to be in attendance

Apr. 6 Knoxville, Tennessee Civic Coliseum scheduled to follow Foghat and precede Humble Pie, though a fan at the gig doesn't recall Giant actually appearing

Apr. 7 Salem, Virginia Salem-Roanoke Valley Civic Center opened for Foghat and headliners Humble Pie. Giant was not advertised as appearing on this night, nor was their name on the tickets, so some in the audience loudly voiced their disappointment at having an unexpected band delay the appearance of the other bands

Apr. 8 Hampton, Virginia Hampton Roads Coliseum followed Foghat and preceded Humble Pie. the audience drawn to this show for the other two boogie/hard rock acts was understandably perplexed when Giant started their set. however, they reportedly came around and, by the end, they were quite appreciative. there had been a rumor that Uriah Heep was also on the bill, but this was not the case

??? Johnstown, Pennsylvania Cambria County War Memorial a couple different sources recall GG opening for Humble Pie at this Johnstown venue. spring 1973 may be the best possible time frame. like in the above listings, Foghat was supposed to play before Humble Pie but, this time, they bowed out and did not appear. Giant was again either an unadvertised first act on the bill, or was a last minute substitute. either way, many in the crowd were not aware Giant was on the bill and, expecting Foghat, were slow to accept them. however, the recorder quartet in The Advent of Panurge is said to have brought the audience around. the War Memorial was basically a minor league hockey facility seating about 5000, though there’s no information on the size of the crowd this night

??? Mt. Pleasant, Michigan Central Michigan University - Finch Fieldhouse it’s been confirmed by two fans at the show and by a University official that GG opened for the J. Geils Band here in 1973, but the exact date of this concert has not yet been determined. this is a possible time frame, as they did play in nearby Detroit on April 11. much of the crowd ignored Giant’s set, but some of them came around by the end. Finch Fieldhouse was an old basketball facility

Apr. 11 Detroit, Michigan it is unclear which other bands were on the bill this evening. there have been fan reports that GG opened here for Mountain and the J. Geils Band which, if true, would make this lineup identical to that of the Detroit gig of Nov. 4, 1974. it’s possible some fans simply have the dates confused in their memories. this concert may have been at the Masonic Auditorium

Apr. 13 Chicago, Illinois Kinetic Playground GG played in support of Procol Harum this time. GG supposedly put on a problem-free show, but Procol's set was bogged down by a myriad of technical problems. one person in attendance seems to recall Giant playing a new song that they introduced as "not being on an album yet." he says they then played Proclamation. this cannot be verified, but that song is not believed to have been played regularly on stage for another nineteen months. Ray later recalled this concert with great fondness

Apr. 14 Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati Gardens it had been rumored that the band played in Houston, Texas on this night, but they actually played in Cincinnati, where they opened for Edgar Winter and, in the headliner slot, Humble Pie

Apr. 15 Baltimore, Maryland Civic Center GG played a 30-minute set opening for the Edgar Winter Band and headliners Humble Pie

Apr. 18 Warren, Ohio Packard Music Hall this is the first known date of a mini-tour that Giant did in the Midwest playing support for King Crimson. Gary's schedule lists a show in Cleveland, Ohio on this date but it may simply refer to this gig. the group had, after all, just performed in Cleveland on March 11. the band's airline itinerary saw them flying into Cleveland on Apr. 16, but staying in Warren until Apr. 18, and then staying right in Cleveland until Apr. 19

Apr. 20 San Francisco, California Winterland first of two consecutive nights at the Winterland. Giant played second on the bill, after Colin Blunstone and before Commander Cody and The Lost Planet Airmen and headliners Sha-Na-Na

Apr. 21 San Francisco, California Winterland second consecutive night in San Francisco. the order was again Colin Blunstone, Gentle Giant, Commander Cody and the Lost Planet Airmen and headliners Sha-Na-Na. Gary's schedule lists the band as playing San Francisco on Apr. 19 but this may have been changed. to add to the confusion, there is a report that Giant was actually replaced on the bill by Steeleye Span on this evening

Apr. 22 Kansas City, Missouri Cowtown Ballroom another night opening for King Crimson, with jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd actually taking the stage first. it’s been hypothesized that Lloyd’s guitar player may have been having problems on this night. acoording to an audience report, this guitarist, after a solo, “sat on his amp, put his head in his hands and cried like a baby.” the Cowtown Ballroom was a small, intimate venue which only held about 800 people. there were no seats, just an old hardwood floor from when the place was previously a roller skating rink. still, the hall had excellent acoustics. as was the case at the Mar. 15 Morgantown show, a fan in attendance at this show clearly remembers the band playing River. however, no recorded evidence that this song was ever performed live has turned up and, for his part, John Weathers has claimed that the band never did play it live. at this gig, John and Gary watched a little of Crimson’s set but were not all that impressed, thinking it a bit pretentious at times. on the other hand, the members of GG felt their music had won over the crowd and commented, several years later, about this successful gig at the Cowtown and the fond memories associated with it. Giant’s original plans at the beginning of the year had April 22 being the last date of their North American tour, though that obviously changed

Apr. 23 Witchita, Kansas Henry Levitt Arena opened for King Crimson. an ad in Billboard listed the venue as the Century II Arena, but most sources say the show was held at the Henry Levitt Arena

Apr. 24 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma State Fairgrounds - International Building again opened for King Crimson. an early Billboard ad listed a show planned on this date at the Red Dog Inn in Lawrence, Kansas, but it was apparently changed eventually to Oklahoma City. the gig was definitely not sold out

Apr. 25 Salt Lake City, Utah Terrace Ballroom

Apr. 26 Seattle, Washington

Apr. 27 Portland, Oregon Paramount Theatre opened for Sha-Na-Na. supposedly, portions of the crowd were pretty receptive towards Giant, while others were quite rude, yelling out for Sha-Na-Na during some of the songs. being an opening act, GG played no encore on this night, ending with Plain Truth, after which many in attendance did give them a standing ovation. one person at the show has said that many Giant fans left before Sha-Na-Na even took the stage, but another recalls the theatre remaining quite full during the headliners’ set. some evidence indicates this show may have actually been on Apr. 26, meaning the Seattle show would not have taken place as scheduled

Apr. 28 Long Beach, California previously, it was thought GG played in either Ontario, California or Long Beach, California on this night, but it seems likely that there ended up being no gig at all. a show in Long Beach was advertised at the time, but Gary claims it did not take place. the rumor about Ontario stems from a misreading of the plane schedule which had them actually flying into the city of Ontario on Apr. 28 before checking into their hotel in San Bernardino, where they did perform the next night. all three cities are very near each other

Apr. 29 San Bernardino, California Swing Auditorium the group headlined this show

May 1 Dallas, Texas Majestic Theater Steeleye Span was the opening act. John was apparently not feeling well on this night but is said to have played well, nonetheless. it is believed only 32 people were in attendance at this old style movie theater

May 2 Springfield, Missouri

May 3 Little Rock, Arkansas Barton Coliseum opened for Ten Years After. Patto was also on the bill. it's not known if GG ever played Little Rock again after this, as they were reportedly not terribly popular there

May 4 Austin, Texas Armadillo World Headquarters Steeleye Span opened

May 6 Houston, Texas Santa Rosa Theater

??? St. Louis, Missouri Terrace Ballroom they opened for the J. Geils Band. although these two bands were vastly different in style, a press report had the audience loving both

May 21 Nashville, Tennessee Municipal Auditorium it’s likely that Giant again teamed up with old friends Jethro Tull for this concert. a band called Mom's Apple Pie appeared first on the bill, with Giant purportedly playing second. there have long been rumors circulating about Gentle Giant playing some American and European dates with Jethro Tull in 1973, while that band was on its PASSION PLAY tour but, for the most part, there has been no hard evidence to back up these rumors. however, a couple fans at this particular concert clearly remember the evening's lineup and one even has a ticket stub. although the stub does not specifically list Giant by name, the fan added the opening acts by hand immediately after the concert, so his evidence at least appears legitimate. if the band did indeed stay in North America this late into May, it’s reasonable to assume there were other gigs, as well, including possibly more with Tull

Mid 1973 was a difficult time for Gentle Giant as they struggled to make their first album without Phil Shulman. His creative contribution to the earlier albums was immense but the band's musical style did continue to evolve even after his leaving. John Weathers began to contribute more of what would become his trademark straight ahead drumming style. This made for a more concise, solid sound.

June ? West Berlin, Germany Waldbuhne Giant participated in this, the first of West Germany’s 1973 "Summer Rock Festivals". this one was a traveling national rock show that also included, among others, the Strawbs, Family, Ekseption, Beck-Bogart-Appice, and Uriah Heep, possibly in the headlining slot. as for the rest of the bill, early flyers promoting the festival featured a slightly different lineup of bands, implying the exact bill may not have been finalized until the last minute. only this West Berlin engagement and the following one in Frankfurt are confirmed, though there may have been more. the portion in West Berlin was on June 9 and June 10, although it's not known which day Giant performed

June ? Frankfurt, West Germany Radstadion another stop on Germany's first "Summer Rock Festival" with the same final lineup as at the West Berlin show. the festival stopped in Frankfurt on June 10 and June 11, overlapping the West Berlin show. again, it's not known on which night GG was scheduled to play. regardless, one recent report indicates the band may have cancelled their appearance

July ? Frankfurt, West Germany Radstadion this was West Germany's second 1973 "Summer Rock Festival". Giant again participated, along with a number of other bands, including Black Sabbath, the Faces, Sly and the Family Stone, Rory Gallagher and Canned Heat. like the June festival, this was probably a traveling roadshow. more than likely, Giant and the other bands played in other West German cities, as well, although only this Frankfurt date has been confirmed so far. the show stopped in Frankfurt on the weekend of July 21 and 22, but it is not known on which date Giant played. originally, this festival was erroneously thought to have taken place in 1974. the US Armed Forces, with a heavy presence in West Germany at the time, is said to have been very unhappy with all the rock festivals held in that country, as they believed they drew too many soldiers away from their regular duties

July ? After the aborted attempt at recording during the previous December and January, IN A GLASS HOUSE, Gentle Giant's fifth album, was finally recorded at Advision Studios in London. Before leaving the group, Phil had stated that initial talks centered around making this album either a live release, or some sort of a concept album. As it turned out, though, it was neither. Derek claimed that very little music had actually been written beforehand, forcing the band to come up with their ideas quickly while in the studio. The album was recorded during a time of stress for the band, being the first one not to include the elder Shulman. The band had mixed feelings concerning the music on the album but, on an emotional level, they have very poor memories of the recording sessions.

Aug. 28 At London's Langham Studio 1, the band did their seventh BBC studio session, broadcast on Sept. 28. The songs recorded were Way of Life, The Advent of Panurge and The Runaway. This was GG's third BBC session in a row to include The Advent of Panurge, which would appear again in the next one, as well, as part of Excerpts from Octopus. This entire session appears on TOTALLY OUT OF THE WOODS, but not on the earlier OUT OF THE WOODS album.

By the fall of 1973, the band's live shows began to take on a more visual aspect with the use of projection screens placed behind the stage. At first, one screen was used but that evolved, by later tours, into the use of multiple screens. The group's popularity had been steadily rising for a while and they now found themselves headliners for many of their concerts in Europe. Before swinging through Europe, they were also able to headline a UK tour, supported by Wild Turkey, but their English concerts were not always as well received as the band would have liked.

One visual idea they had planned on using at this time was a film of John Weathers, in Gentle Giant costume, walking slowly through a village seemingly made of doll houses, this miniature village located in Southsea, England. The film, shot by Ray Shulman with the help of a roadie, was intended to be projected onto smoke from a smoke machine, but the idea failed and was never used.

TYPICAL SETLIST (Fall 1973)

The Runaway - the "breaking glass" tape loop at the beginning of this song, played amidst flashing strobe lights, served as an intro to the shows

Way of Life

Funny Ways

Excerpts from Octopus - this new arrangement was to become their most famous medley. it combined portions of Knots and The Advent of Panurge and also included the recorder quartet, a Kerry Minnear organ bridge and an acoustic guitar duet. this duet, played by Gary and Ray, contained a theme taken from the song The Boys in the Band

Nothing at All - the percussion section began to include several toy glockenspiels on which were played a variation of the folk song Shortnin' Bread. these were played by John, Gary and Kerry

Plain Truth

In a Glass House - this title song to the new album took over the encore slot and provided a vehicle for an extended Gary Green guitar solo. at the end, the "breaking glass" tape loop returned as an outro, gradually fading out

By now, the only songs remaining in their live set from the early days were Funny Ways, Nothing at All and Plain Truth. Gentle Giant was definitely gaining a reputation as a band not afraid to rearrange its own music in unusual, creative ways and to show off its ensemble skills when in a live setting. Yet, at the same time, the last three songs of the set were more loosely structured and gave breathing room for individual members to act as soloists.

Sep. ? IN A GLASS HOUSE was released in England, either on Sep 14 or Sep. 21. However, it was not originally released in America.

Sep. 17 Plymouth, England Guildhall Wild Turkey opened the show, with singer/guitarist Rod Crisp also on the bill. a tape exists of this first night of the tour, which includes the band’s very first performance of Excerpts from Octopus. during this medley, Kerry included a three and a half minute keyboard solo just before the band segued into The Advent of Panurge. the solo contained snippets and variations based on the songs Raconteur, Troubadour and Acquiring the Taste, and even a small bit of A Cry for Everyone was thrown in. this keyboard solo was apparently dropped right away, as it appears on no other known GG recording. however, much of this keyboard material was later infused into the medley’s acoustic guitar duet beginning in late 1975. the recording of this keyboard solo has been included on the 2004 SCRAPING THE BARREL box set, where it was titled Keyboard Concerto

Sep. 19 Doncaster, England Top Rank Wild Turkey opened the show

Sep. 22 Manchester, England Stoneground Wild Turkey opened the show. Giant played this hall a number of times in their career and a fan at one of those concerts remembers a loud, annoying hum coming from the PA throughout the entire concert. it’s not known yet at which Manchester gig this happened. this hum is not evident on a tape that exists of this particular show

Sep. 23 Oxford, England New Theatre Wild Turkey opened the show and was reported to be well received. Rod Crisp appeared on this bill, as well. a review in Melody Maker stated the audience had some trouble warming up to material from the new album

Sep. 24 Chatham, England Central Hall Wild Turkey opened the show. at one point during this show, Derek threw his tambourine into the air, as he often did. however, on this night, it’s been reported that it hit Kerry on the way down. to his credit, Kerry continued to play

Sep. 26 Southampton, England Top Rank Suite Wild Turkey opened the show

Sep. 28 Birmingham, England Town Hall Wild Turkey opened the show, with Rod Crisp also sharing the stage. after the show, John Weathers noticed smoke in the balcony and the fire department was summoned. the press the next day credited him with saving the building

Sep. 28 Giant's seventh BBC session from Aug. 28 was broadcast on Sounds of the Seventies, hosted by Pete Drummond.

Sep. 29 Glasgow, Scotland City Hall Wild Turkey opened the show

Sep. 30 Edinburgh, Scotland Caley Cinema electrical limitations at the venue made it necessary for GG to forgo use of their own lighting effects, relying instead only on the house lights already in place. a fan who attended this show claims the band played for two hours, but this would be unusual and is not likely. the fan also claims the setlist included Think of Me With Kindness, a song not generally thought to be performed live. this is unconfirmed. Rod Crisp and Wild Turkey opened the show

Oct. 2 Leicester, England Polytechnic Wild Turkey opened the show

Oct. 3 Bristol, England Top Rank Wild Turkey opened the show

Oct. 4 Llanelli, Wales Glen Ballroom Wild Turkey opened the show. this gig was not on the band's original schedule, which called for them to be in Neath, Wales on this night and Aylesbury, England on Oct. 5. both performances were pushed back one night

Oct. 5 Neath, Wales Gwyn Hall originally scheduled for Oct. 4 but changed to make room for the Llaney concert. Wild Turkey opened the show

Oct. 6 Aylesbury, England Friar's Club originally scheduled for Oct. 5 but changed to make room for the re-scheduled Neath gig. Wild Turkey opened the show

??? Sheffield, England it is rumored that a ticket stub exists from a 1973 Sheffield GG concert, but this is not at all confirmed

The band next embarked on a European tour which brought them to Italy, Switzerland, West Germany and Belgium. The scheduled dates in Italy, as found below, were published in the Italian music magazine Ciao 2001 but, after leaving Italy, details are sketchy as to exact dates, cities and venues of the remaining concerts. There are also indications that there was at least some switching around of dates from the way they appeared in the band’s original itinerary.

Oct. 9 Catania, Italy Teatro Ambasciatori Italian progressive band Acqua Fragile opened the show on this and all the Italian dates of this tour

Oct. 10 Palermo, Italy Teatro Biondo Acqua Fragile opened the show. there had been some evidence that the band actually played in Frankfurt, West Germany on this date, but the Palermo show has since been confirmed. in a 1975 interview, Derek boasted about the fact that Giant had once been able to play a date in Sicily, probably this one, implying it to be a rare occurrence

Oct. 12 Bari, Italy Teatro Petruzzelli Acqua Fragile opened the show

Oct. 13 Rome, Italy Palazzo dello Sport Acqua Fragile opened the show. a tape of this concert once existed, but its whereabouts is now unclear

Oct. 15 Reggio Emilia, Italy Palazzo dello Sport Acqua Fragile opened the show

Oct. 16 Ancona, Italy Teatro Metropolitan Acqua Fragile opened the show

Oct. 17 Treviso, Italy Teatro Garabaldi a tape exists of this show. during the guitar solo to In a Glass House, Gary threw in a brief theme from Peel the Paint. Acqua Fragile opened

Oct. 19 Torino, Italy Palazzo dello Sport Acqua Fragile opened. a soundboard recording of this show has been officially released on the band's SCRAPING THE BARREL box set. a roadie at the show remembers this recording as being made in January 1974, but there is no evidence that GG played in Italy at that time

Oct. 20 Genova, Italy Teatro Alcione two shows were played on this date, in the afternoon and evening, both of them sold out. yet another tape exists, possibly of the afternoon show, this one showing that Gary again played the Peel the Paint theme during his guitar solo. Acqua Fragile opened both shows

Oct. 21 Travagliato, Italy Supertivoli a tape exists of this show, as well. the sound at the venue was said to be poor. Acqua Fragile opened

Oct. ? Genova, Italy Teatro Alcione after selling out their two Genova shows on October 20, it appears the band agreed to play one more night there. this third Genova show appears to have been some unusual, special performance with a report of as few as 20 or 30 people in the audience. while introducing the band, an announcer described the show as being some sort of family style performance, although the exact meaning of that is unclear. it is not certain on which night this occurred, but the best information so far indicates Oct. 22 to be the most likely date. therefore, for this to be true, there would have had to have been some cancellations or shuffling in the following few scheduled Italian or Swiss dates, but exactly what transpired is unknown. it’s believed that there was no support act on this evening

Oct. 22 Novara, Italy Pallazzo dello Sport Acqua Fragile was originally scheduled to open for GG on this date in Novara. however, Oct. 22 also seems to be the most likely date for the third Genova concert listed above. for this to be true, this Novara date would have had to have been cancelled or rescheduled somehow

Oct. 23 Switzerland city and venue are unknown

Oct. 24 Switzerland city and venue are again unknown

Oct. 25 West Germany this was the first scheduled West German date of GG’s European tour, this swing through West Germany set to conclude on Oct. 31. the exact city on this night is unknown, as well, although it could have been Dortmund or Heidelberg, as mentioned below

Oct. 26 West Berlin, Germany Deutschland Halle folk guitarist Leo Kottke went first, then Giant, both opening for Procol Harum

Oct. 27 Hamburg, West Germany Congress Centrum Procol Harum headlined this show also. a local Hamburg musician named Vince Weber played first, followed by Leo Kottke. Giant was third to play, right before the headliners.