Reviews (page 3 of 8)
Meh
For as much as Peter Gabriel is associated with 1980s MTV this dude could do no wrong in the 1970s.
Similar to my last Peter Gabriel album, this was a pretty uneven experience. It started out as a pretty solid rock album for three or four tracks. Then it kind of lost its way and delved into some weird prog-rock stuff, and a pretty bizarre jazz interlude, before finding its way back to more solid ground with a (better) prog rock song and a pretty standard rock track to finish. If I was marking the bookends, it'd be a 4, but the weird stuff in the middle was too offputting.
When does a spit benefit both sides? Right here. Peter Gabriel was able to do his thing and rightfully so with this album.
Lo escuché sin prestar demasiada atención pero estuvo bien
Upon seeing the album: Ooh, nice, a Peter Gabriel album I've never heard! First track: Ok, nice, we can work with this. Second track: Absolute classic. Everything else: um I can appreciate that this is the half of the solo career that made the amazing half possible. Security is one of my personal favorites, but this one didn't land for me.
Quite all over the place. Some real strong stuff (especially at the beginning and end) and a few songs that made my ears bleed. 6/10
Great listen. "Here Comes The Flood", amazing track.
The tuba sound in 'Excuse Me' makes me wonder if the title is an apology for an episode of bad flatulence. An messy, uneven album but a few good songs, particularly the closer 'Here Comes The Flood' and some interesting ideas allow it to scrape a low 3 stars.
No hate on Peter Gabrielle, but this is more typical 70s pop rock.
Good, I think I'd listen again for sure.
I like to play Solsbury Hill on my guitar
It’s genuinely wild how inconsistent and odd this album is. There’s almost nothing average on here, it’s either great or tedious and unlistenable. Kudos.
I like Peter Gabriel enough, he’s got some flair for sure and he brings that on his debut. Things do shift gears quite often on his first of… 4 self-titled albums? I personally enjoyed what he did on the last couple tracks over the remainder of the album. As a kid I absolutely loved Solsbury Hill, it’s a silly track and I still enjoy it. This is fine, don’t hate it don’t love it. Peter Gabriel is great I just can’t get on board with all his art. 3 stars
Not many songs can get me singing aloud while cycling to work in the dark, but Solisbury Hill got me going
One single I recognized and the rest was decent. Different than Genesis but still ok.
Eh just okay. Not a big PG fan
Today is actually the day it was released in 1977. I do believe he is a legendary songwriter. Genesis had Peter and Phil among others. Great group. Great album.
So British.
Jeg tror det generelle album ikke vækkede mig synderligt med musisk inspiration. Men så skete der noget, der skete noget i slutningen af samværet mellem mig og dette album, det blev ret fedt der. Dog må jeg henholde mig til min helhedsoplevelse.
I was extremely surprised by this, I don’t know why I haven’t seen more of this album. It’s an easy 4.5
All I want is Sledgehammer.
No dude, I don't need to hear this before I die.
my man peter
3.75 this is weird, I like it, thank you very much I don't think I'd ever heard Solsbury Hill before, like not in full, but it is so so so nostalgic to me it's insane. It's far from the type of music my parents would listen to, so I know I didn't hear it from them but I guess just commercials and movie trailers. Holy iconic song tho. The rest of the album was pretty good. Some ups and down, but an overall good listen.
6/10
Two years of this project has thrown up a handful of great discoveries and one of them has undoubtedly been the eccentric genius of Peter Gabriel. Picking up right where he left off from the wonderfully insane Lamb Lies Down on Broadway and his departure from Genesis, he's back creating rich, fascinating rhapsodies that are as likely to morph into a glorious earworm as they are to take a left turn to an unexpected key, chord progression or time signature. It's wonderful stuff and I was hooked by the end of the opener Moribund the Burgermeister. The glorious opening run continues with Solsbury Hill and Modern Love, but I also really enjoyed the epic closing trio of Waiting for the Big One, Down The Dolce Vita and Here Comes The Flood. It's not quite got the concept feel or coherence of 'Lamb...', and comes across more as an eclectic pick'n'mix of sounds and ideas, but there's enough here that I'll be coming back to pick out the bones of it on repeat listens for a while yet.
6.5/10
I dig Peter Gabriel and recognized a few tracks off this album. I enjoyed the listen, might spin it up again sometime but wasn't bowled over by anything on offer here.
This is clearly Gabriel's "I'm out of Genesis and I can do anything I want now" album, in which he plays with a wide variety of genres - "Moribund the Burgermeister" could easily have been a Genesis track, "Waiting for the Big One" is a straightforward slow-burn blues, and "Down the Dolce Vita" is an orchestral pop piece that could easily have been part of a '70s movie soundtrack. There's even a barbershop quartet segment with some polka-style tuba throwan in. Other than the omnipresent "Solsbury Hill" and the melancholy "Here Comes the Flood" (which is better in its later stripped-down recordings), none of these tracks have really become classics, but I can definitely hear the seeds being planted for what Gabriel's music would become.
I really appreciate Peter Gabriel's music. The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway is more mind blowing and So is more consistent and self-realized than this album. But I don't know that he ever recorded a more beautiful track than Solsbury Hill. It gets a bit theatrical at times. But his music never grows tiresome. There's never a hint of cynicism. He never sounds like he's trying to accomplish anything other than make great music. He also never sounds like he's tired, disinterested, or lackadaisical. And that commitment and consistency is profoundly rare; even among the entries on this list.
Haut mich nicht um. Der Sound ist aber gut.
*Solsbury Hill is a great song *The album is well done musically, but a little all over the place with the different genres
A lot of experimenting with a sound to distinguish from his time with Grrnsis. The only song from this album that had any melodic consistency was Solisbuty Hill. No wonder it was the only charted song.
He's my favorite artist so, yes, hard to not be biased here. But I have never been a fan of Gabriel-era Genesis and I love the movement on this album from prog to more straightforward (though still arty) rock. The first song, "Moribund the Burgermeister," sounds like something from an early Genesis album. But then it goes right into "Solsbury Hill," a gorgeous, melodic meditation on openness to change. There are all kinds of curveballs on this album, I had never realized how varied it is. Barbershop ("Excuse Me"), a song that begins with a Latin feel ("Humdrum"), all out blues ("Waiting for the Big One"). And then there's "Here Comes the Flood" as the closer. What a superb debut album from a musician who puts the "art" in "artist." (Sorry, I did say I am biased).
I never gave this one the full attention it deserves. What a bold artistic move to leave a successful band like Genesis and make this. I love how twisty and turny and all over the place it is, his melodies are often so weird and unexpected and it works perfectly for me. I didnt know Fripp was on this either, who from this project I'm realising is one of my favorite guitarists. Here Comes The Flood is one of the best songs Gabriel has ever done
This was a bit of a shambles. Songs were all over the place - it wasn't a cohesive album. Saying that, the songs were bad at all. Just a bit disjointed 3 ⭐️
Favorite Track: Solsbury Hill
The transition from Genesis to solo wasn’t complete until his third album. This is damn good but not amazing as music to come.
A bit of a mixed bag here, the track Solsbury Hill stands out in particular as a fantastic song, and there is an enjoyable run of tracks on the end, but a lot of experimentation leads to a record without much cohesion, and some really dull moments like Excuse Me Fav Track: Solsbury Hill Best Three Track Run: 7, 8, 9
Výborné. Ale má aj lepšie, takže uberam bod.
Pretty disappointed in this album overall. Amazing that Solsbury Hill emerged from this diverse tangle of mediocrity.
quite boring to be honest
Feels really well produced to me and I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. Catchy hooks, seems to be a bit all over the place and some of the sounds are kinda epic/movie sounding. Fun listen 4.5
p387. 1977. 3 stars. Schizophrenic mix of weird musical theatre and classic 70s Brit rock. When it's good, it's brilliant, but there are far too many oddities to deserve repeated listening.
HATED this what on earth
Very good album. This is a 3,5
Surprised by how much I liked this.
Solsbury hill!!!
Mixed bag. Leuke nummers, minder leuke nummers. Niet slecht. Ook zit in Modern Love een soort telefoontrilsignaal waardoor ik continu dacht dat m'n telefoon ging, vervelend.
Dit vond ik eigenlijk best wel vet. Misschien ook eerder 3.5 maar rond hem naar boven af. Beetje theatraal bombastisch in plekken maar best smaakvol.
Best uniek album, beetje rock opera vibes. Misschien is solsbury hill wel een van de minder interessante tracks hier 3,5
Beetje een messy album dit maar de productie is in ieder geval super.
Absolutely outstanding. No notes. My first step into peter gabriel and I'm gonna need time to re listen and digest this one.
Good
What a strange album. The songs are a bit all over the place, but on a second listen, there's more to commend than just "Solsbury Hill," which I've always loved. Is "Moribund the Burgermeister" the weirdest first song on this list?
Pretty good stuff, crazy that “Solsbury Hill” was done in very unconventional 7/4 time.
Sounds very ahead of its time-- more like 80s than late 70s.
A lil theratical and so werid for the album and cover being so non descript. Solsbury hill and modern love and slowburn are fine tho v english tho. Not me being like it reminds me a phil collins and him replacing him in genesis.
This is a nice/logical continuation from the Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. It's nice to hear Fripp and Levin here too. Solid solid album. Liked Songs Added: Solsbury Hill Here Comes The Flood
I discovered the song "Humdrum" which quickly became one of my favourites.
This was fine I don’t get the appeal of Peter Gabriel but whatever one song was decent but otherwise just uninteresting
a nearly perfect debut solo album. solsbury hill kinda the most perfect song ever
Hadn’t listened to in decade(s?). Good still way out there but good transition from Genesis is really interesting as he grew into the pop star.
One hit rest very very odd
Primeiro álbum solo de Gabriel já dá mostras do que seria a riqueza de sua carreira. Um disco com variações de temas, mas sem perder a unidade. Com momentos inspirados de rock, blues e canções com arranjos igualmente ricos. Ótimo disco.
3/5
This one felt all over the map. I would start to like it, then a new song would start and I would be put off. None of it was bad per se, but it just wasn't really for me.
Peter Gabriel made the leap here, leaving Genesis at a high point to go make his foray into solo music. Solsbury Hill is probably the most known from here, but CAR is filled with greatness in such a variety stylings. Gabriel keeps all his theatricality and plays with excellent musicians like Robert Fripp and Tony Levin.
Solsbury Hill, obviously, is the standout track. It feels fully realized in a way that not all of the other songs do. I think that maybe he was exploring his identity as a solo act and trying on different sounds? He whips through a bunch of them and demonstrates a command of each sound. But, in the end, Solsbury Hill just feels closest to his voice.
ok you know what. this is really good. it's very kitchen sinky and all over the place, he's basically slammed a million ideas at the wall and not all of them fully stick BUTTTTT there's some really really great music on here. oh and Solsbury Hill is an all-time banger obviously.
Gabriel’s first solo album is shows an artist still learning to stand on his own. I think his 80s work is some of the best of the decade and this is still good, but it feels a bit under baked. There are sudden tonal shifts within songs and listens more like a collection of unrelated songs than a planned album. All in all, it feels like a prototype of what Gabriel’s music would become. Favorite track is Solsbury Hill.
Some of the songs didn't feel true to the artists genre. The transition between Down the Dolce Vita to Here Comes the Flood felt nice and those are two I liked the most. I'd give this album a 3/5
Great solo debut.
This felt like an impressive album but not one I would listen to again.
Solsbury Hill is a great great song. A lot of the rest of it is going to take me a while to absorb, but I liked it. Will I love it someday? Maybe.
A good song, the rest was ok
An all time great. The voice, the songs, the execution. No skips
Solsbury Hill is on my short list of all-time favorite songs. The feelings it gives me are hard to put to words — confidence and empowerment and accomplishment to be sure. Perhaps the best way to articulate it is that it is the song that plays in my head when I cross finish lines, both literally and figuratively. On a recent vacation to Bath, my husband and I made sure to climb up Solsbury Hill and see the city light. We were bummed that we didn’t see an eagle, only cows. Maybe next time.
2 Stars (5/15)
some good songs, but veers too theatrical. a big eh. 2.5
Nicht so meins
Like his solo sound, though I don’t love it
It sounds like every song is on a different album, but has some fun songs. I’ll fight anyone who says Genesis was better with Peter Gabriel though.
Fairly underwhelming with some decent highlights. I've gotten three Peter Gabriel albums during this project and I feel like I've liked each one slightly worse. SO was 4 stars, Peter Gabriel 3 was 3 stars that should have been a 3.5, and this one is a 3 star that should be a 3 star.
boring
Wow! Incredible album, when it finished I played it again straight away which I think says everything. Phenomenal production, can't believe it's from 1977. Not sure what I was expecting but I was blown away, so cool
Peter Gabriel is certainly a very creative artist, but this album is just a bit too messy for me. It's all over the place, feeling more like a disjointed collection of singles from various bands than like an actual album. It's a mix of different styles that do not always blend well together – blues, soft rock, pop, art rock influences from Bowie, weird cabaret tunes that sound like Queen, and even a strange heroic-fantasy ancestor to "Eye of the Tiger" (Down the Dolce Vita). Some tracks feel bland and boring as only soft rock can be, others are more experimental – without being really mind-blowing – and a few are downright annoying (Excuse Me...). Its main redeeming quality is its weirdness, something that I can absolutely get behind. But the crazy moments are not really put to good use, and they're too far and few between to really become a thing. The end result fails to coalesce into a coherent record. I probably won't listen again as an album, but I could see myself giving another try to a couple of individual songs (mainly the last three tracks, which I found far superior to the rest). 4/10
I've listened a lost his 80's almbum So and liked it. But he lost me on this one.
This album goes up and down. Some tracks are excellent, others just don’t really work for me. Still, I like the overall vibe. It’s ambitious, a bit prog, and the guitars are well used. When they come in, they really build the tension and make the songs feel bigger. So yes, it’s uneven. But it’s still a very good album, and I’m clearly still into this kind of sound.
Five for The Seed alone
Really enjoyed this one. First track was an absolute banger. Solsbury Hill is a great song but at my old job it used to play on our in store radio so I heard it twice a day for nearly a decade. Tad over played for me lol. The only track I didn’t like was Waiting For The Big One, by the end of it I was kind of bored. Top Track - Slowburn, fantastic song
Rating: 5.5/10
“Solsbury Hill” is a fantastic song, but the album overall feels a bit less substantial than the ones I’ve reviewed so far.
Another complex, theatrical and diverse '70s album. Solsbury Hill I realised is a really good song. Worth a relisten
18/01/2026 I couldn't really get on with it as I find this album quite bland. Spotify listeners: 5.6 million
Not really my vibe. I enjoyed the tuba (I think) in Excuse Me, I feel like I don't hear that very often I definitely think the last few songs on the album saved it for me Favourite: Modern Loven and Here Comes the Flood
not bad. i liked 4/9
Proggy and genre-hopping, this is an album that never sits still. The first four songs alone take you through a range of sounds: prog rock, folk rock, stadium rock, and musical theater. "Modern Love" is a highlight, and "Solsbury Hill" is pretty if not very exciting. Tracks one and four come off as a bit goofy though. The middle of the album is the weakest, as it's made up of mostly slower and subdued songs. This culminates in "Waiting for the Big One," a plodding jazzy blues number that takes forever to both start and end. Luckily the next track, a funky jam, immediately improves things, and the album ends on a high note. The variety is sometimes enough to give you whiplash, but just as just as it varies in sound it varies in quality. There are some good highlights, but the weakness are too much to make up for them.
Not yet peak PG
wie phil collins auf crack, fands irgendwie richtig geil, keine ahnung ob 5 sterne justified sind
gute musik, somewhat enjoyable 3,5
I liked this album a lot. It's varied and eclectic musically in a way I quite enjoy. Obviously 'Solsbury Hill' is a standout, but there are plenty of other great tracks on this as well, like "Here Comes The Flood", "Modern Love" and "Slowburn", among others. All in all it's just a really good album. It's not quite a 5/5 for me, but it's close. 4.5/5, rounded down to 4.
A bit inconsistent but some absolute bangers, got better with each listen. 8 something
"Solsbury Hill" is a great song, but the rest of the album sounded like experimentation gone awry.
Moribund The Burgermeister is as weird as I wanted it to be, a swelling chorus giving way to strange synthesizer sounds. Solsbury Hill follows, and yes - it's overplayed, but there's details here worth examining. The powerful, campy Modern Love picks up somewhere near where the opener left off. Excuse Me is quirkier, and I can't decide if I like it, but then Humdrum is anything but and Slowburn is an over the top power ballad. It's more is more, and it works. I like all the remaining songs but especially Here Comes The Flood, all big drums and melodic keyboards. This is probably decidedly uncool now. I dig it though. What an album cover too.
There is some wild stuff on here. The album is all over the place, but in a sort of good way. Standout track is solsbury hill, and it's not even close
I will forever be grateful my dad never subjected me to Genesis (Peter Gabriel led) idk man this is just everything I find annoying in classic rock of this time. Peter Gabriel just doesn’t move the needle for me. Whether it’s his solo shit, or stuff with Genesis, it just feels mad generic and boring. Bowling Alley ass music.
Genesis is a band I don’t know about I thought they sang we built this city. Anyways Peter Gabriel is art rock which is cool he genre bends but it doesn’t feel far enough. I don’t think this necessarily showcases his potential. Slow burn has some real interesting instrumentals but what is any of this really. Feels really like a demo for a better album waiting for the big one really did feel like it led to down too Dolce Vita I like it it’s very prog but it is way too long too. There is a lot to work with here Gabriel is said to have left Genesis and created this it’s out there and unique and rarely dull it just feels unfinished. I am interested in him now and I will keep looking into his music because the theatrics won me and the genre merging is beautiful. Here comes the flood is the most realized of the bunch here the chorus is perfectly set up and the lyrics just hit. This is the best song and thankfully it builds on itself and actually pays itself off. I think Peter learned the importance of good drums here because man they are good. This saves the record from being a list of good ideas and growing pains to a career that can be shaped from this.
Lowk gas
Very prog-rock weird with ribbons of glam and seeds of his future self.
It was very much giving disney movie soundtrack or a musical. I think I would listen to it again. It was fun. Very storytelling:)
hmmmmm
Theatrical rock with some Randy Newman style piano tunes thrown in. Opens ok enough, then the hit, and it’s downhill from there. 7 minute piano blues song is a mood killer. Ends stronger, but too little too late. If this is what Peter was bringing to the table, maybe Genesis dodged a bullet. How can an album that has Solsbury Hill be so terrible otherwise? 1.5.
Not a terrible album, the first two songs are definitely the best. A lot of them run way longer than they should, and weirdly towards the end of the album the style changed wildly. There were some that gave me a Randy Newman Vibe and some that gave almost a fanfare vibe. None of them were terrible though. Solid 3 for me.
Very diverse in it's musical style and fun listen.
i liked it, it was pretty good. track 1 was my favorite because i really liked the different styles throughout the song. 6.5/10
I love how orchestral this is. It will for sure require a second listen through
Solsbury Hill is a pop classic. There are a few other songs on here I quite enjoyed ("Modern Love", "Down the Dolce Vita") but then there are "Excuse Me" and "Waiting for the Big One" which were just terrible.
very "solo album"
Some really interesting music but as an album it just doesn't gel.
Solsbury Hill will forever be one of the greatest musical pieces ever written. The lyrics, the tone, the rhythm, and the subject are all just exquisite. The rest of the album pales in comparison to this one song. Overall album excluding Solsbury Hill is an average 4/10. With Solsbury hill is much higher.
Really strong start; I loved the first two songs. That being said, the album showed its best cards immediately and the rest of the album, while not terrible, was rather bland, with some overly long and boring songs. Still alright though.
Excellent proggy late 70's rock, with a great variety of influences. Excuse Me is the only track that took a few too many liberties and sounded rather strange, with a bizarre application of blues rock and other genres that didn't quite blend. All other tracks were a treat and I enjoyed this escape into the sounds of Peter Gabriel.
Overall Rating - 3.56/5 (7.11/10). A bit all over the place, but still a good album.
I think this album is similar quality to his third one I got recently, in quality not in style. It’s not as varied as his third but it is still to an extent. This one is a bit more rocky and simpler but done well, It’s not as interesting but it has more catchy songs like Solsbury hill and modern love. That’s not to say this album didn’t have its weird moments, “excuse me” was certainly strange and “waiting for the big one” was an interesting change in genre and not a very welcome one to my ears. The first half was a lot stronger than the second half in my opinion as the second half had a lot more generic rock songs which weren’t great to be honest other than the last song which was more unique but I still wasn’t a fan. Favourites: the first 3 and Humdrum. Overall, 7/10.
I like his voice. And some of the songs were quite good.
Enjoyed
Musically, the first 2/3rds of the album reminds me of what you might hear in a quirky 80’s movie or sitcom. Then, out of nowhere “waiting for the big one” hits you with a great bluesy refrain from the 80’s power of love style of rock, would almost call it prog. Down the dolce vita and waiting for the flood also each go to contrasting places that make you wonder if Peter had a deal with the label where he was only able to fully send it for 30% of each record. Was going to give this album 2 stars until I heard the last 3 songs, glad I hung in there
A little Genesis-lite, a little blues and soul, a little of the great Gabriel to come…this album is all over the place and inconsistent but shows flashes of brilliance
This is sooooo good. I love Peter Gabriel! Gabriel era Genesis had some of the strongest runs in music ever, and his solo work is incredible. Listening to the first two songs you might think Gabriel is continuing his work with Genesis, pushing the envelope a bit but with a similar style. But that’s not Gabriel, starting with Modern Love he starts throwing you curveball by curveball. Reggae, ambient, hard rock and even Lou Reedesque vaudeville. Gabriel is gushing with musical ideas and takes you on a crazy trip. Incredible songs that keep you guessing and saying “wow that’s cool!”. Also great lead guitar work by my one of my all time favorite guitarists Robert Fripp. Pure five stars.
Has some amazing tracks, but I stopped listening at the last few tracks because it got so bad.
This list is too saturated with Peter Gabriel. He did some great stuff. But this first album is too much from too many directions to be a cohesive must listen.
I don’t usually listen to this genre, but I don’t mind it at all, especially the song “Modern Love”. Everything about this album evokes a sense of familiarity, though I can’t quite put my finger on it. I really enjoyed “excuse me” as well
I freaking loved this album. It had a little bit of everything I love. Peter Gabriel is awesome.
This is so sweet. I loved this. Moribund the Burgermeister is such an amazing song and you can totally see where Vampire Weekend homaged it. They straight up call out Peter Gabriel when they do it. I loved how it blended genres so seamlessly. One minute, you're kind of in this art rock Bowie-esque (almost David Byrne) style of song and the next you're playing with the boogie blues. Then it gets kind of prog / disco. Its all over the place and its wonderful. Its never abrupt or awkward. Its totally vibing throughout.
⚡🐒
Decent album that I have never heard before today. I am familiar with the hit song but none of the others. I felt like it's just sort of okay... Not a lot of sonic delight type stuff that I was expecting from his other works. It's not terrible but far from my favorite of his works.
Love solsbury hill and love the album cover - the rest of the album is very varied - more prog rock than not
Ok
Very good
Kudos to Peter G for chucking so many different styles into the mix for his debut solo album. I have to admit I did not really care for the majority of them. I enjoyed Solsbury Hill, Modern Love and Here Comes the Flood - everything else I could happily never hear again. Bonus point for Solsbury Hill and the local connection - a lovely place to go for a run.
Peter Gabriel (Car) There are of course vestiges of Genesis and The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, particularly on the opening and closing tracks, but whereas with Genesis there was a sense of po-faced prog rock ponderous pretension, Moribund the Burgermeister is winningly charming and Here Comes the Flood has a pleasing Grandeur. Solsbury Hill is rightly a classic, where the words and music work beautifully in tandem, evoking a sense of timelessness and a sense of place. Solsbury Hill is also just round the corner from me and Ben. Modern Love feels a little rote in comparison, but the chorus really lifts it. Humdrum returns to proginness, but has a nice delicate weight to it and works really well. Slowburn is a bit of banger too, with a great sense of urgency. And Down the Dolce Vita channels Survivor for a bit of funk rock that simultaneously seems to work and not work. Its stylistic diversity is fascinating, but it can feel a little scattershot and not everything works; the diversion into Randy Newman territory on Excuse Me isn’t my favourite, and while it might be a parody, it is a bit annoying. Waiting for the Big One’s solemn, staid blues-rock feels anachronistic amongst all the diversions into interesting places elsewhere on the album. But you can see why Gabriel and Eno would eventually converge, there is a similar spirit of curiosity and diversity, and some parts do feel like Here Come the Warm Jets, particularly Modern Love. So, a bit of wandering focus stops this from being a 5, and it doesn't feel as strong as subsequent albums, even with a song as great as Solsbury Hill, so it's a very good 4. 🚘🚘🚘🚘 Playlist submission: Solsbury Hill
Coming out of (masters of the extended rock opera) Genesis, containing this to 40-odd minutes is an achievement in itself. 'Moribund the Burgermeister' quickly gets into the theatrical chorus, showing Gabriel hasn't left the aesthetic of his former band far behind. It's a mini-prog rock masterpiece (which is probably the best way to listen to prog-rock i.e. not for too long). But this all being compressed works wonders - firstly it's eminently listenable, and secondly it feels like it's ram-packed with ever-moving twists and turns. An opening run par excellence; then a race around some different styles which never really work unless it touches back upon his prog-rock roots. The prog-rock touches are suitably grandiose but compact, and I found that excellent. Overall this doesn't hold a candle to the excellent Melt.
Enjoyed the variety, but only one really good song
At first I wasn't a big fan of this album, but from Slowburn on I was enjoying it. Definitely would listen to some of these songs again.
Day 142 Didn’t enjoy this anywhere near as much as So, seemed a bit all over the place to me. 5/10 Highlights Solsbury Hill Down the Dolce Vita
7.5/10 - I found myself really liking this album. It’s not entirely cohesive in sound, and there are a few bad/off/weird songs, but it was an interesting and unexpected album. Solsbury Hill is the obvious standout but elsewhere there are good songs too. I would be happy to receive this album on vinyl.
I liked it more than the other Peter Gabriel albums that were on this list, but it may have been carried by Solsbury Hill. Other than that, I probably won't come back to this. Strong 6/10
We like that album we want to give it 4 stars peter Gabriel is actually pretty legit. Solsbury hill. Other songs were good too.
I liked it though preferred my other PG listen (3), the first three songs were a strong start, the song after that was kind of hokey but I liked most the others
A couple of good tracks on here - Salisbury Hill and Here comes the flood stand out but I’ve never really seen the appeal of Peter Gabriel
Start war eher seltsam. Solsburry hill ist ziemlich gut. (Auch irgendwie bekannt) Excuse me kam sehr überraschend, aber ist irgendwie trotzdem catchy. Slowburn ist auch ganz gut. Waiting for the big one hat mich komplett überrascht. Alles in allem ein solides Album. Vorallem ziemlich abwechslungsreich.
It was decent, nothing stood out enough to me to listen again, but I didn't dislike it.
Interesting but odd
The coincidence of driving up to the bridge of the local creek here in North Queensland to see how hard she’s flowing after a monsoonal downpour, and coming back to the car where the next song that played was Here Comes The Flood. I love Solsbury Hill. The more I listen to the song the more I appreciate it, especially its unique use of 7/4 where the accent changes between the instrumental hook and the verse. It’d surely be in the top 20 individual songs I’ve heard through this project. The rest of the album was ok.
Full of Peter Gabriels whimsy. I can se why it's not for everyone but I kinda like it. Tracks vary wildly in style and theme, but the good ones are good. Standouts: Solsbury Hill Waiting for the big one Down the dolce vita
Scusi Gabriel Peter, au wenns paar losbari musig dezwüsche het leider ned so mis. Da bevorzugi de Gabriel Peter. 2 ave marias
Very good solo debut that is bogged down by its own ambition. The high points are wonderful, especially Solsbury Hill. However, the album is a little uneven and feels like a statement of see what Genesis was holding back?
This one is a bit of hodgepodge. We all know "Solsbury Hill" which is great but the rest of it is kind of forgettable. Gabriel went on to better things,
Not bad, Salisbury hill is the standout
Couple decent song for me but most were meh or even just strange.
Listened to this while pushing my crying one year old up the hill to our apartment in a trolley, all while getting my face smashed with snow-mixed rain. So perhaps not the best of circumstances. Sadly, Peter Gabriel didn't do much to make that situation better. Quite the opposite. Think this is at least the 3rd Peter Gabriel album we get on this list. Why!? And 0 Phil Collins albums? Mind boggling. Sure, 'Solsbury Hill' is alright. But the whole album sounds like Genesis and just feels pretentious and hard-to-get for the sake of it. Just nothing special about it in my opinion. In the end it wasn't complete disaster, but it definitely wasn't good. Think I'm mostly tired of having to sit through multiple mediocre albums from the same artist just because the author has bad imagination. Lex Elvis Costello.
Well, this album had Solsbury Hill, which is a great song, and then it didn’t really have that much more. Felt like a mix between boring rock opera, Randy Newman and questionable lyrics. I enjoyed the later Peter Gabriel albums a lot more, his style is more unique in those (Intruder is such a cool song). At least I got a laugh out of the lyrics from Modern Love which has hilariously bad: “” Hey, I'm feeling so dirty, you're looking so clean And all you can give is a spin in your washing machine “” “” I trusted my Venus was untouched in her shell But the pearls, the pearls in her oysters were tacky as hell “” Strong 2.
Let's throw *everything* at the wall, at see what sticks!
1. moribund -0 2. hill -1.5 3. love - 1 4. Excuse - 0 5. Drum - 0 6. Burn - 1 7. Big - 0 8. Dolce - 0 9. Flood - 1
Re-visit later 2
Good
Love this album.
It’s just not my thing. Don’t take it the wrong way.
Really enjoyed the set list. I liked hearing Cash talk with the audience.
Goofy song in the middle of some bangers
Did not enjoy this
I do like Peter Gabriel but I only a few tracks stood out on this album.
I don't get it. 2.
I hate that drum reverb was discovered recording this album. Personal enjoyment: 3/5 Relevance to this list: 4/5
When this album started I assumed it would be a 2, the beginning really threw me off. As the album went on it just grew on me more and more. By the end I was really enjoying it and wanted to listen again. Will be listening to this album again. Quite an experiment sound and drastic changes between the songs. I just have to say, what was up with the spooky Halloween voice at the beginning of the album?! Thank goodness that was short lived or the ranking would have stayed around a 2.
4.5/5
so ass bro
Exceptional.
On Peter Gabriel's first solo full length, he hasn't quite nailed down the songwriting; but he makes up for it by being consistently interesting. He plays with a wide variety of sounds and styles here, and it doesn't all work, but it does establish Peter Gabriel as being daring, ambitious and playful straight off the bat. I think this album even captures something almost whimsical that I see more in prog than in art-pop/rock. Although there are a lot of moments here that *do* work. Moribund The Burgermeister is a very enjoyable intro that flirts with avant garde synth-pop stuff. Solsbury Hill has a delightfully pastoral feel, and just great pop songwriting. Humdrum has a great intro that makes me think of Brian Eno. Down The Dolce Vita combines enormous symphonics with hard-driving funk in a way that *could've* been insufferable, but I think it really works. And I think Here Comes The Flood has a real beauty to it. But at the same time: Slowburn and Modern Love are kind of whatever to me, Waiting For The Big One is a slog, and Excuse Me is fucking obnoxious. That being said, I do think the full package here still deserves a tentative 3. Peter Gabriel (Car) is a portrait of an artist who was ambitious and daring out the gate, even with flaws. And I do really respect the decision to debut with something like this that doesn't give the public a *ton* of easy answers. I'd say it's worth a listen.
Peter Gabriel’s self-titled debut is another album that I bought after I originally learned about the 1001 Albums list. I picked it out because I loved “Solsbury Hill,” and I was a fan of Peter Gabriel’s So. I know that I listened to it from start to finish when I first bought it, but other than “Solsbury Hill,” there wasn’t much on this album that I wanted to come back and listen to. Now, over 15 years after buying this album, I’m excited to listen to it again to see if my opinion will change. I really like Peter Gabriel as an artist, so now that I’m better acquainted with his music, I’ll enjoy this album more. I’d say my opinion of this album has improved a bit since my first time listening to it. There’s one amazing song on here, and a handful of pretty good ones, but the rest of the songs are either too weird for my liking, or just don’t do anything else that the other songs already do, but better. You can definitely feel Peter Gabriel’s prog rock background on this album, and he does a fine job of blending elements of prog with pop music, creating some beautiful arrangements in the process. But the album as a whole feels uneven, as the pop elements tend to wane at inopportune moments. I think this album is certainly influential in terms of what it meant for pop music, but also in terms of exposing audiences to the fact that prog music isn’t always weird. Some notes on the individual song: There’s so much of Peter’s Genesis persona and sound on the “Moribund.” I think it’s pretty accessible for a prog sound, but the album doesn’t stay this ‘prog-forward’ forever. This song has that distinct Gabriel prog sound, but it sounds like its evolved since his Genesis days. It’s grandiose and has sudden shifts, but it’s packaged into a pop friendly four-minutes. It’s weird, but it has enough melodic moments that you can see how this guy went on to record “In Your Eyes” ten years later. “Solsbury Hill” is the gem of this album. That gentle melody is so beautiful, and then you get some woodwinds tossed in, along with Gabriel’s great vocals. The sound builds and evolves so wonderfully, that you really get a sense of Gabriel’s talents as an arranger. Here, he showcases how he can use those weird elements to make something truly unique and beautiful. I like the prog sounding keyboards of “Modern Love,” but it’s also got a good pop sound to it, with some really great vocals. It’s just a solid where sound of prog meets pop. There were some excellent guitar riffs too. “Excuse Me” is a prime example of why this album feels so disjointed. I’m not sure there was much purpose behind this song. It’s weird, and it feels out of place on an album that fused prog and pop. This song feels like it goes full-tilt into the theatrics and flash that Gabriel was known for with Genesis, but it also sounds like a Randy Newman number, and it just doesn’t fit here in my opinion. “Humdrum” took a bit to get going, but once it hit the halfway mark, it was really pretty beautiful. But I thought those nice arrangements ultimately got bogged down by how tedious the first half of the song was. “Slowburn” went firmly back to that prog inspired sound, but it didn’t do anything that other songs on this album haven’t already done. “Waiting For The Big One” leaned pretty far away from the pop sounds that had been used up to this point. It’s not bad a bad song, but it doesn’t really add anything to the album. It gets better as it goes along, but by the time it gets better, it’s a bit too late. “Down the Dolce Vita” was really good. I really liked the funky guitar playing, and the keyboards were really great as well. I liked how big and bold the sound was. I loved the epic sound of “Here Comes the Flood.” The ebb and flow to the intensity was great. Songs like this show how talented Peter Gabriel is when it comes to crafting some really beautiful songs. While this album isn’t something I’d be quick to listen to again, it’s still pretty good. The best moments on this album lift it up, but the worst parts of it are a bit tedious and unnecessary. I really hope no one stands outside my window playing “Excuse Me” on a boombox.
I've never hard this album, but it sounds exactly like what an idea-machine prog-guy would do for his first solo album. To wit: "Moribund the Burgermeister," which is among the most preposterous prog song titles of all time. This is a whole bunch of sounds and ideas crammed into 41 minutes. Unsurprisingly it's a mixed bag. "Solsbury Hill" is a total banger and rightfully considered a classic. I didn't expect the stomping disco rock of "Down the Dolce Vita," or to enjoy it like I did. "Excuse Me" sounds like the Beatles at their most annoying, and lengthy blues exercise of "Waiting for the Big One" is excessive. But the greatness of "Here Comes the Flood" makes up for it. 3.5 stars.
I'm very unversed in 1970s Peter Gabriel, and having heard The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway and this on this list, I f'ing surrender and say yeah this is exactly what I want and need in my life, even if I'm not sure that's true. I have a love-hate relationship with prog rock - on the one hand, I love dudes just rocking out on some complicated shit, on the other a lot of it is quite boring and stupid - but having Peter Gabriel's voice deliver it is the perfect gravy to make it all go down. My five star ratings for this and The Lamb are less confident evaluations and more placeholders for me to go back and pick up on all this.
5/10 Peter Gabriel very much feels like he’s finding his feet with this debut solo album. There are times when he seems to be wanting to dive into the Syd Barrett school of performative quirkiness, times where he wants to become a cultivator of the finest cheesy power-pop, and a variety of things in between. When it hits, there are some really solid tracks on here. Solsbury Hill and Down The Dolce Vita were highlights for me, but it also feels like a bit of a mixed bag of styles that doesn’t really come together as a unified artistic vision. The compositions are largely decent, but some of the transitions between sections felt a little underdeveloped, and he didn’t seem to fully commit to being one type of performer across individual songs, let alone the whole album. That could work with the right execution and careful transitioning from one thing to the other, but there does need to be some kind of central thread to tie everything together that wasn’t really apparent to my ear. There were also times where things got a bit stale, and once the expectation of audio oddities has been established, the lack of them can make the less varied tracks seem a bit limp by comparison. Is this an essential listen, I don’t think so, but if you’re into any of his later work, it’s a pretty interesting stepping stone from his Genesis days to those later records, and there are some solid moments to enjoy too. Moribund The Burgermeister - It’s a quirky blend of ideas that goes for a grandiosity that I don’t think it quite achieves. I think he’s perhaps pulling a little to hard on the performative weirdness thread in places and on the other hand it’s fairly run of the mill in others, so it doesn’t really feel completely satisfying in either direction. There are elements of it that I do quite like, but it doesn’t really feel like the weirdness carries enough to make it consistent throughout. Solsbury Hill - This is a well constructed pop-rock song. It’s not complex, despite being in a 7/4 time signature, but the riffs are nice and it’s melodically pleasing. The transition out of the chorus is nice with the couple of bars of 4/4 that throw an interesting rhythmic twist in. The song builds nicely in dynamic as it goes, and he does his best to add a bit of weirdness in with the backing vocal bits near the end, but they don’t really detract from it and work with the build up of parts. It’s a really solid song. Modern Love - This isn’t bad either. It’s another decent pop number with some nice pacing and dynamic changes in there. It’s reasonably hooky and the instrumentation is pretty well constructed. It’s not necessarily my kind of thing, and it’s not the most exciting of songs, but It’s pretty good at doing what it’s trying to do. Excuse Me - This is quite the tonal shift. It’s another attempt to be quirky, and it does achieve that goal to a certain extent. It’s a fairly straightforward composition in some ways, but there are actually some quite nice rhythmic choices here and there that keep things interesting. Production wise, it feels a bit too slick and somehow lightweight at the same time, but it did grow on me as it went. Humdrum - There are some ideas in here that I quite like, but it doesn’t quite come together in a completely satisfying way for me. There are quite a lot of changes across the track that could work with slightly more gradual transitions, but things just jar a little too much for me. And then when it gets to the more full sound towards the end it starts to lose me. Slowburn - This another one that has its moments for me, but doesn’t feel completely coherent all the way through. There are moments when the flow of the composition works really well and everything comes together in a tonally and rhythmically satisfying way, but it just wanders off the beaten track a little too much and loses momentum from time to time. He feels a bit lost between wanting to make something a bit weird and something epic, and fails to really hit either mark. Waiting For The Big One - The jazzy style of this is great, and there’s an almost Tom Waits-esque lilt to his vocal delivery that I like. There’s a lot of dynamic range in here. The musicianship is great, particularly the piano playing, which is lush. He throws in some odder moments, but they all work tonally with the rest of the track and it all flows together really nicely. It perhaps drags on a little too much, but the guitar and piano work during the solo section is really worth sticking around for. It’s a really satisfying listen and possibly my favourite on the album so far. Down The Dolce Vita - This has got decent pace and drive to it. It blends the more theatrical orchestral parts and the heavier rock sections quite nicely and I quite enjoy the transitions and blend between those two sides of the track. It does lull a little here and there, but when it gets going, it’s good, and I really like some of the rhythmic choices. Here Comes The Flood - Ah, some power-pop to end the album. It’s a bit too cheesetastic for my tastes. The softness of the verses and the grandiosity of the choruses work really nicely together, but it’s all a bit too on the nose for me. The playing and production are exactly right for this kind of song, but It’s just not for me. Bring back a bit of your weirdness, Peter, all is forgiven.
I'm starting to enjoy Peter Gabriel more as I listen to him more. I'm able to appreciate what he does and his choices of lyrics. Unfortunately this album Still doesn't capture my interest. It goes a lot of directions and has some strong points but overall is not the one that I would come back to.
Favorite tracks: Solsbury Hill, Slowburn This album was all over the place, I wasn't surprised to find out that it was Peter Gabriel's first solo album. There's definitely some good stuff going on here but there's so much variety that I think you'd be hard pressed to find someone who likes the album in its entirety.
Last song is nice
There is value here. I see its importance. late 70s/80s rock blended with an intense orchestra? Interesting, but not for me. Too much.
Nice to find that weird doesn't have to mean unlistenable, unlike most of the experimental albums on this list
9/10 Favorites: Modern Love Here Comes The Flood
I admit I am a big fan of Peter Gabriel. This is a great debut, the songs are a little disjointed genre-wise but I myself listen to a wide variety of music and enjoy it so it’s fun to have such a mix on one album. I don’t think it’s his best, but it is very good. “Solsbury Hill” is the hit but I found “Modern Love”, “Waiting For The Big One” and “Here Comes The Flood” to be my favorites.
Peter Gabriel is always an artist where I like what they’re doing but never love it. 3.5/5
Messy, trying to find his sound and clearly at his best on Solisbury hill. When he leans into 'world music' and art pop, he is better. The rest is fine but not particualrly memorable or inventive. It is musically well made but does not really cohere, and the prog elements are really annoying to my ears
Neobičan album, ali sviđa mi se, pogotovo ovi bluesy dijelovi. Nije mi baš svaka stvar jebena, ali all in all, ugodno iznenađenje moram priznati. 3/5, 6.5/10
Not massive on Peter Gabriel, but this isn't a bad debut album from his solo venture. "Solsbury Hill" is obviously a great hit, but the rest overall are mediocre. Wanted to give a 4, but it's not quite enough for that.
Such a bold first solo album statement... Even though mainstream Gabriel is wonderful, this is something more fantastic and uniquely superb.
Solsbury Hill: The Album The experimentation shouldn't be looked down upon, but I also shouldn't have to listen to it again! Here Comes The Flood pulls this up to a 2.5. Wish there was enough sauce left here to rate a 3.
Wow that was unexpectedly epic on the second half starting with "Waiting for the Big One". Really liked all that grandiose-ness and of course Solisbury Hill, this one will have to be a re-listen for me, which is surprising considering I think I've listened to all of Peter Gabriel's back catalog in the past. Edit: listened again and this is way too uneven / "quirky" to be a 4.
2.5
I reckon this is a pretty good album. As other people have noted, it's a little all over the place. You can hear hints of what's coming and Salisbury Hill stands out by a mile.
Decent
Blind album, know the hit and the artist. Pleasantly surprised to find a song i like much more than Solsbury, but i did not like this album as much as 3 but was still good.
The "rock" angle of the whole thing feels pretty middle of the road now and though there are some pleasant melodies throughout there's nothing I'd return for or that makes me want to investigate further. Feels a bit like some Randy Newman/Toy Story stuff sometimes which again is not unpleasant but doesn't make for passionate listening.
I haven’t seen anyone mention what a fantastic album cover this is. It’s so great. The album is pretty fantastic too. There’s so much going on. Here Comes The Flood is my favorite track.
Absolutely love this album. I love his first 5 albums so much!
I enjoyed the weird experimental tunes that reminded me a tad of the Who but also this album has some straight up epic songs like “Here Comes the Flood.” I didn’t expect this album to resonate so much with me.
I love this list. I was only familiar with Gabriel from the big singles that had the iconic videos. This album.is a masterpiece and has to be considered one of the great albums of the 70s. Great album!
Solsbury Hill was good, but the rest was somewhat forgettable
An unfamiliar genre to me. The start was pretty weak but the last couple of songs were complete and utter bangers. Really like it and might revisit it later in the future. Added to my favorite albums in apple music.
Pleasant but not memorable
Nice variety of sounds and styles, but the utter lack of levity and the constant gravitas really holds it back from being accessible on a more emotional level.
Peter’s assortment of songs that all sound different but still like Peter Gabriel. 7/10
3.5, this was a lot quirkier and fun than I was expecting it to be!
For the most part, it's quite good but it does veer off track for a moment but it manages to pull me back onto course. I do think there's better Gabriel albums than this and there's better Gabriel led Genesis albums than this but still worth a listen.
Probably a 3.5. Has the sound of what I’d consider the 80s on an album from the 70s - synth and echoing vocals. There’s probably too much experimentation which results in an uneven album (some songs sound like parodies of Alice Cooper or Randy Newman) but Solsbury Hill and Here Comes The Flood are five-star tracks.
just shy of perfect!
Other than the two standout tracks "Solsbury Hill" and "Here Come the Flood" this album lacks cohesion and contains quite a bit of dreck. Because of the masterpiece Solsbury Hill I am giving this album one more point that it probably deserves...
Solsbury Hill goes hard
Weird stuff. Stray thought but this list makes you think about the way songs are taken out of the context of their albums and become hits - Solsbury Hills on its own is a very pleasant song that I’m sure I’ve heard tons of times and didn’t know who it was by, and elicits a very specific tone, but this album is so much more than that! So much wilder and weirder! It’s cool
i like this guy
This album was super weird. I think if you told me it was a compilation and not one artist I'd probably believe you, lots of varying styles and harsh transitions between songs. Super weird that Solsbury Hill is on this record. Truly reminded me of almost like an artsier/poppier Tom Waits record.
I've always heard people rave about Peter Gabriel. Favorite artist, videos, or live performances. This was the first full album I've listened to of his and was impressed. Had a lot more unique sounds. This might not get referenced much, but I got big time Lenny Kravitz vibes from Peter Gabriel's singing style. I think Lenny must have been a fan of the music and styled his singing after Peter. I still don't know what was Genesis/Phil Collins/Peter Gabriel from some of the old days, but this was a good, not great album.
Not my thing at all
Having never heard a Peter Gabriel album before, I can honestly say this wasn’t quite what I was expecting. Solsbury Hill is a classic and I thought the album would be a bit more like this on the whole. Whilst it was an interesting listen, it was quite theatrical and eccentric, at times he seemed to be channelling Randy Newman. Excuse Me was a very quirky, barbershop styled song and at times I can’t quite work out if I like it or not. I grew up in an era when Peter Gabriel represented groundbreaking videos on MTV with hits like Sledgehammer and Digging in the Dirt, which I quite liked so again this threw my expectations. Overall I’m unlikely to come rushing back here but there’s something quite interesting about it that I can understand that people will absolutely love. I’m glad I listened, its place on the list makes sense to me.
You could just tell that this guy was in a creative rough patch when he made this album. He left Genesis and tried to make his own sound, which happened to be 9 different sounds thrown together on a record in the hopes that one of them would stick. For crying out loud, he made a damn Vaudeville tune. It's still early Peter Gabriel, so nearly every song is still great, especially that Vaudeville tune.
Pretty fantastic album. There's so much variety on this record - you can definitely see that Gabriel provided the artistic vision for much of Genesis' more outlandish tendencies. It's also hard to fathom that this came out in 1977. So many eighties albums tried to sound just like this (for better or worse). Based on influence and enjoyment, I think this has to be five stars. 5.0/5.0: Iconic
very enjoyable listen with a lot of variety. im excited to hear more of his solo work.
4/5
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this as I only really had knowledge of his popular stuff. It was definitely more prog than I expected (and possibly hoped for) and this was a bit of an obstacle to my enjoyment of the songs underneath. As I am wont to do, though, I am giving an extra star purely for writing a great pop song (Solsbury Hill) in 7/4 time. Because who does that.
I really like a lot of Gabriel’s work but listening to this album suggests that he may be a much better singles artist than making really good deep cuts. Found the second half to drag a little although picked up again with the last track.
My second Peter Gabriel album, but much earlier chronologically than So?. It was good but was kind of all over the place in tone/style. I feel like he was still honing in on the sound he was searching for. Overall- decent album
Solsbury Hill is one of those songs I can remember the time and place when I heard it for the first time. Nothing earth shattering about that except I became a Gabriel fan right then and there. Great catalog. Great showman.
Obviously a complete mess stylistically. So, as an album I'm not sure it succeeds in the basics. Some of the songs are pretty decent - look at the reviews and Solsbury Hill stands out. And it's a decent tune which saves this from 2 stars. And I quite like some of the other bits. But I'd not want to listen to this as an album again because it seems like a selection of demos playing with very different ideas. And I don't think that really works. This is so close to 2 stars.
Gabriel leaves Genesis but not his oddness. A mix of pop-prog-rock makes it a bit of a hodge podge of ideas but with the backing band he's got here, the quality is always pretty high. The rockier songs fare better than the ballads to be honest. Best Tracks: Solsbury Hill; Modern Love; Slowburn
This might be my favorite PG album. I've seen complaints that it's all over the place but I like the variety.
Bleh
Pretty meh on this one. Fine, but unremarkable. 2.5/5
this was good but i honestly didn’t love it. i liked So much more from him. not sure exactly why
Peter Gabriel é um ilustre virtuoso quando o assunto é a construção de melodias interessantes e infectantes. Eu gosto do trabalho dele com o Genesis, mas ainda não me aprofundei na sua carreira solo, conheço apenas o So. Acho interessante ver esse lado tão experimental e esquisito dele nesse disco, comparado com suas sensibilidades mais pop do seu futuro trabalho. Toda canção aqui é interessante, com diversos elementos que imploram por sua atenção, como sintetizadores vibrantes, orquestração cinemática e ornamentos inusitados. Sinceramente, é um disco que eu queria gostar mais. É um pouco estranho dizer isso, mas é aquela velha história do santo não bater. Quando se isola os elementos estruturais dessas faixas existe aqui muita coisa que me agrada, mas o resultado final não me prende inteiramente, por motivo ou outro. Às vezes pode ser algo tão simples quanto meu estado mental no atual momento. Quem sabe… Quem sabe seus outros álbuns solo aqui da lista causarão maior impacto em mim. Mas por ora, tenho aqui uma obra que eu gostei, apreciei cada momento de sua duração, mas não me marcou profundamente. 3.5/5
This album is all over the place. While there were a few bright spots on the album, the best song of all for me was Solsbury Hill.
1 banger
Also referred to as “car,” this album is careening all over the road! Prog, blues, disco! Throw in a bit of everything. So far my response has been to find it, boring, annoying, interesting and moving, though it’s more of the former than the latter. I think I mainly found it irritating. I kept looking to see how long it was before it would end, which is not a good sign. And I just don’t really like Pete Gabriel’s voice. I quite enjoyed the blues number third from the end but, I dunno. Overall, not for me. But I appreciate the attempt to do something (even many things!) a bit different.
Arty as was intended…
The most 80s sounding album I’ve ever heard, only to then realize it was released in ‘78.
Just okay. Salisbury Hill is a classic and masterpiece, but the rest almost feel like he's trying too hard to find himself.
Hmmm, a bit disappointing. Grand, but nothing special
More than halfway through the project and now all of a sudden, a saturation of Peter Gabriel. Two albums in as many weeks, not that I’m complaining. I think this is a five star album, but I still think that his 1980 “Melt“ album is a better feature. This album has all of the hallmarks, including a bizarre opening track, expansive sounds, and some overall really excellent music.
Solsbury Hill is great, rest not my favorite
I’m confused. Am I listening to Wii Sports, a Star Wars-inspired orchestral rock band, sappy singer-songwriter content or a David Bowie imitation? I appreciate the creativity but it doesn’t land for me.
I wasn't that interested
Very proggy with some epic moments. It's clear why Solsbury Hill became the track to stand the test of time. It's just undeniable. Really enjoyed Modern Love. I bet it is/was a highlight live. Probably one I won't listen to again but appreciated the deep dive into Gabriel's inaugural foray into the solitary unknown. And what a brilliant album cover.
It feels like he's fumbling a little bit. 3/5
You can hear the shadows of what made his later career so great. As others said, it’s a bit of a messy combo of songs with “Solsbury Hill” and “After the flood standing out”. He’s trying to be Bowie but doesn’t quite pull it off. But interesting to hear as part of his evolution
Awful, how is this on the list, maybe was cool in 70s but only 1 good song
Det tog lång tid att inse storheten o tidiga Gabriel, men detta är ett spännande album
This was not grabbing me man. I’ll say the production is solid in thought, when everything is put together it just doesn’t speak to me, I think it sounds clunky and jarring to listen to. I like Solsbury Hill…
Mid
A little weird, fun, funky, trancy(?)
Cuanto más lo escucho, más me gusta. Es teatral y me da la sensación que juega con varios estilos musicales. A medida que el álbum avanza lo disfruto y me interesa más. 4.5 o 5.
Terrible opener in my opinion but progressively improves in creativity and flow.
Solid album but nothing to write home about. Other than a few standouts it’s just really not that memorable, especially when compared to other art rock classics from the same year like ‘Low’ or ‘Animals.’ Do you need to hear this before you die? Not really. Favs: Moribund The Burgermeister- Didn’t expect to be rocking this hard. Gets weird too which I like. Solsbury Hill- Timeless classic and the albums only ‘must-hear’. The “grab your things I’ve come to take you home” line hits me in the feels every time. Slowburn- Nothing special about this song I just like it. Here Comes The Flood- Pink Floyd-esque arena rock. Ends the album on a strong note. Least Favs: Excuse Me- Oompa Loompa-ass song. Waiting For The Big One- Not interesting enough to warrant being seven minutes.
I always thought this album came out in the '80's. Most of this album didn't land with me, but I hear the influence in his later albums and other artists so I respect that.
287/1089 - This was incredible. I'm surprised by how good Solsbury Hill sounds given that it's in an odd time signature (I don't like most music outside of 3/4 and 4/4 for somewhat illogical reasons) and I think it's because the tempo is moderate and the groupings change based on the verse and chorus making it feel fresh. Love the classical music sounding bits throughout the album. I think my ordering of the Peter Gabriel 1001 albums is So>Car>Melt. Excited to check out more Peter Gabriel and Genesis.
3 out of 5. I enjoyed So more but this is still a good time.
Solisbury Hill is an all timer and the rest was theatrical and eclectic and pretty solid. Not sure I'd put it on, but I appreciate his first solo effort.
- Agree with people that this is really all over the place. It’s definitely a mixed bag. - That said, I liked the majority of the songs, primarily on the first half of the album, and of course that includes Solsbury Hill. - I thought the experimentation was interesting and, for the most part, added to the interest of the songs there. For example, I thought it worked in the first song because the simple verses had that interesting effect in the background before it went all orchestral and hair band, so you expected it to veer into being experimental. And, I liked the kind of organ feel on the Humdrum, but I didn’t like when it went into the wind section. So, sometimes the experimentation worked, and sometimes it distracted. - Despite liking the majority of the songs, I hated some other ones: Excuse Me (so hokey), Waiting for the Big One and Down the Dolce Vita (and of course those two had to go on forever), I’m looking at you. They were just so extra… holy musical masturbation.
Det va veldig variert, men på en kjedelig måte, og æ hadde ikke forventa at det skulle høres sånn ut, og strengt tatt skulle æ vel også ønske at det ikke hørtes sånn ut, så jaja.
Not my taste
Solisbury Hill is great. The rest is pretty forgettable. I don't think PG complete forgot his prog background for this one. 2/5
Salisbury Hill is such an amazing song
Great album, but going to knock it a bit for Waiting for the big one - a bit boring and went on too long.
It was quite interesting listening and reminded me of my childhood, when I had only my father or grandpa’s cassettes to listen to The Beatles or other 60-70s music bands.
Some good stuff but I worldly go out of my way to listen
Not my favorite PG--but I had forgotten how jazzy it is! Also, Solsbury is an all-time banger.
Peter Gabriel is one of the great discoveries I've made thanks to this site. It's a pleasure to hear from him once again. 5 stars.
Alot of these tracks start with some amazing keys/synth work and then it just falls away as fast as it began. Thats a bummer. Solsbury hill is a classic but thats the only recognizable track here for me. Down the dolce vita has some good getup going on but its really the only other track that left any impression. The rest of it went in one ear and out the other. Fine enough record but on the less memorable side for sure.
Fun and eclectic album with excellent production. 4/ 5
One good song
This firts Gabriel's album is full of hymns of incredible beauty. My favs are Here comes the flood and Solsbury Hill.
I preferred Peter Gabriel's solo work over his tenure with Genesis, and this was a good start.
Knocking on three stars but no one answered. Each song overstays its welcome but has moments I really like. He’s no Bowie or Phil Collins.
Liked it. Perfect review
What a cool album! I knew Solsbury Hill, of course, but the rest is awesome too. I wish music nowadays had the same sense of inventiveness.
it was instrumentally interesting at times but then the rest was aahhhh
Enjoyable but a bit much at times. Probably won’t come back but will enjoy Solsbury Hill when I hear it. 3.5
I like his album "So" but out side of Solesbury Hill this one didn't do much for me
Like everything he ever did it’s not bad, just ranges from a little weird to outright bizarre.
meh, 2 stars
I really don't even know what to say. He sounds like Phil Collins but the album was so far out there.
Solsbury Hill is one of my favorite songs, but overall, this album is 3.5 stars good. He got better.
Peter Gabrielle is so bleh to me. But so are most British art school weenies
Strange listen. 3-4 songs were absolute gems. Walking down by the lake in the fall weather was super fun listening to this album. Very prog and somewhat jarring at times. Salisbury Hill is a treat of a song. 3/5 stars.
Solsbury Hill is the standout here. Everything else is just okay. 3/5
Solsbury Hill is an all-time banger, nothing else on the album comes close. There are a lot of different genres here and I find that interesting, even though some of them are pretty weird. This is right on the edge of a 3 and 4, I guess I can give it a slight bump. Low 4.
a bit all over the place, yet sounds amazing. the first 2 tracks weren’t my thing, but the others…. were great
Never trust an album named after the artist. 3.
In depth review of Peter Gabriel’s *Car* (1977) ------------------------------------------------ **Overview** Released in February 1977, *Car* is the first of four eponymous albums that Gabriel insists should be read like “issues of a magazine.” Recorded in Toronto with Bob Ezrin (Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd, Kiss) at the helm, it is the sound of a 26-year-old deliberately dismantling his Genesis mythology while still too unsure of his solo voice to fully trust it. The result is a kaleidoscopic, often bombastic set that lurches from vaudeville blues to symphonic art-rock, held together by Gabriel’s already unmistakable baritone and a new-found gift for concise, emotional melody. --- ### 1. Lyrics – “Stories, puns and the first cracks in the mask” Gabriel’s Genesis lyrics were baroque fantasy novellas; on *Car* he keeps the surrealism but adds diary-level candour. - **Solsbury Hill** – A 7/4 folk song that doubles as the most graceful break-up letter in prog history. The imagery (“I walked right out of the machinery”) is personal yet universal, turning Gabriel’s exit from Genesis into an everyman epiphany about risk and self-determination . - **Here Comes the Flood** – A post-apocalyptic flood wipes away technology and ego, leaving only shared consciousness. Gabriel later complained Ezrin’s orchestral tsunami “over-egged” the song, but the lyric’s central plea – “Don’t be afraid to cry at what you see” – survives any amount of strings . - **Moribund the Burgermeister** – Cartoon-Gothic tale of a medieval mayor confronting St. Vitus’ Dance. The character voices and plague imagery are pure Genesis fan-service, strategically placed as track 1 to reassure migrants from the mothership . - **Humdrum** – A wry, self-deprecating look at domesticity (“I’ve been far too long in your arms”). It’s the first time Gabriel writes about ordinary adult fear rather than mythic escapism. - **Excuse Me** – A barbershop-quartet send-up of stalker-love, complete with tuba and falsetto “doo-wops”. Some hear misogyny; others hear Monty Python. Either way, it’s the album’s most polarising lyric. - **Modern Love / Slowburn / Waiting for the Big One** – A triptych of relationship anxiety cast as hard-rock swagger, slow-burn erotica and bluesy stand-up comedy. The one-liners (“Modern love can be a strain”) are deliberately banal, almost proto-PC Music in their anti-poetry . **Verdict**: The writing is split between the fantastical past and the uncertain present; when the two collide (*Here Comes the Flood*) Gabriel produces his first truly timeless solo lyric. --- ### 2. Music – “Prog heart, pop lungs, blues knees” Gabriel’s stated brief to Ezrin was “make it sound nothing like Genesis.” The solution was to graft his complex instincts onto American rock muscle. - **Odd meters made organic** – *Solsbury Hill*’s 7/4 feels like walking downhill; the beat is clipped yet breezy, proving Gabriel had absorbed McCartney’s lesson that sophistication works only when it swings. - **Orchestral maximalism** – Ezrin hires the London Symphony for the last two tracks. *Down the Dolce Vita* shifts from Copland-style fanfare to disco-rock in 6/8, a transition so audacious it either thrillingly collapses or collapses thrillingly depending on your tolerance for theatrical excess . - **Guitar foil** – Ezrin brings two Lou Reed alumni: Steve Hunter (icy, melodic leads on *Slowburn*) and Dick Wagner (heroic solo on *Here Comes the Flood*). Their blues-rock vocabulary drags Gabriel away from Hackett’s pastoral arpeggios toward something more urban and abrasive. - **Keys & synthetics** – Larry Fast’s polymoog and mellotron add alien sheen to *Moribund…*, while Roy Bittan’s piano gives *Humdrum* a laconic, almost Springsteen-like intimacy. - **Vocal performance** – Gabriel already manipulates his voice as an instrument: the Burgermeister’s guttural growl, the falsetto croon on *Excuse Me*, the gospel exhortation at the climax of *Flood*. It’s a master-class in character acting without masks or fox heads. --- ### 3. Production – “Cathedral bombast vs. intimate confession” Bob Ezrin’s trademark is widescreen drama; Gabriel’s is claustrophobic intimacy. The tension defines *Car*. - **Layered density** – Up to 80 tracks of orchestra, choir, guitars and synths were bounced down to 24-track tape. The result is a wall of sound that can obscure nuance (Gabriel’s lifelong complaint about *Flood*) . - **Dry close-miked vocals** – Gabriel’s voice is almost always front-and-centre, double-tracked but not bathed in reverb, a choice that keeps the lyrics legible even when the arrangement balloons. - **Spatial trickery** – Eno-style tape loops flutter under *Moribund…*; reverse-reverb piano swells announce the tidal wave in *Flood*. These psychedelic touches soften Ezrin’s otherwise brick-like mix. - **Dynamic range** – The album was cut hot for 1977 vinyl; recent 2015 half-speed remaster retrieves transient detail and reveals how carefully Ezrin carved frequency space for the orchestra. --- ### 4. Themes – “Escape, apocalypse and the terror of normality” Running beneath the stylistic whiplash are three linked anxieties: 1. **Autonomy vs. belonging** – *Solsbury Hill* celebrates walking away; *Waiting for the Big One* dreads being left behind. 2. **Cosmic cleansing** – Water obliterates ego in *Here Comes the Flood*; plague erases social order in *Moribund…* 3. **Performance of masculinity** – From the chest-beating rocker of *Modern Love* to the self-mocking sap of *Excuse Me*, Gabriel interrogates male archetypes he once played in Genesis costumes. --- ### 5. Influence & Legacy - **Short-term** – *Solsbury Hill* becomes Gabriel’s first solo hit, charting higher than any Genesis single in the UK and providing the template for 80s adult-alternative (see: Crowded House, Talk Talk). - **Long-term** – The album’s genre-blend and world-music flirtations (check the modal flute line on *Solsbury*) foreshadow Gabriel’s Real World aesthetic. - **Covers** – *Solsbury* is reinterpreted by artists as varied as Erasure, Neil Finn and Justin Timberlake (live). *Here Comes the Flood* becomes a piano-vocal set-piece for every Gabriel tour; stripped versions appear on Robert Fripp’s *Exposure* and Kate Bush’s 1979 TV special, cementing its reputation as the “author’s preferred” reading. - **Critical ranking** – Often rated the “weakest” of the first four PG albums, yet tracks from it still anchor Gabriel’s live shows 45 years on – a testament to the durability of its peaks. --- ### Pros & Cons at a Glance | Pros | Cons | |------|------| | Contains two unimpeachable classics (*Solsbury Hill*, *Here Comes the Flood*) that justify the price of admission alone. | Inconsistent tone: lurching from barbershop parody to symphonic apocalypse can feel like channel-surfing. | | Gabriel’s voice never sounded more elastic; the character-work hints at the theatricality he’ll perfect on later tours. | Ezrin’s maximalism occasionally swallows nuance – Gabriel himself disowns the over-produced *Flood*. | | Lyrics begin the shift from prog-fantasy to personal-political, mapping the psychic cost of leaving a successful band. | Side-two rockers (*Modern Love*, *Slowburn*) are competent but generic; the riffs could be any mid-70s AOR act. | | Strong supporting cast (Fripp, Fast, Levin, Hunter) seeds the band that will define Gabriel’s 80-90s sound. | *Excuse Me* is either charmingly eccentric or unforgivably twee – no middle ground. | | Historical importance: proves that art-rock frontmen can survive and even thrive outside their mother-ships, paving the way for Collins, Hogarth, Wilson et al. | Not the ideal entry point for newcomers – *Melt* or *So* offer a more coherent portrait of Gabriel’s solo identity. | --- ### Bottom Line *Car* is the sound of an artist blowing up his old band’s blueprint and rifling through the rubble for new parts. The album’s schizophrenia – part confession, part vaudeville, part cathedral – is exactly what makes it fascinating. Its missteps are audible, but so is the exhilaration of freedom. Without this messy rebirth there is no *Biko*, no *Sledgehammer*, no *Secret World*. *Car* is not Peter Gabriel’s greatest solo record; it is the necessary first chapter that makes all the others possible.
Solid solo debut. Solsbury Hill is an all time PG tune. 3.5
Mostly unimpressed with Pete Gabriel. Just alright 80's rock sounds, but I was entertained by the song about being left alone