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Van Der Graaf Generator / After The Flood: At The BBC 1968-1977

aftertheflood
Later this month Universal Music will release a two-CD set of English prog rock band Van der Graaf Generator‘s BBC radio sessions.

Spanning almost a ten year period the music within starts with a ‘Top Gear’ session from 1968 and moves through the 1970s with the second CD almost entirely made up of post 1975 John Peel sessions. Full track listing below.

After The Flood: At The BBC 1968-1977 is due for release on 23 March 2015



Track listing

Disc: 1
1. People You Were Going To (Top Gear Session / 1968)
2. Afterwards (Top Gear Session / 1968)
3. Necromancer (Top Gear Session / 1968)
4. Darkness (Top Gear Session / 1970)
5. After The Flood (Top Gear Session / 1970)
6. Manerg (Sounds Of The 70s Session / 1971)
7. Theme One (Sounds Of The 70s Session / 1971)
8. Vision (Sounds Of The 70s Session / 1971)
9. Darkness (Sounds Of The 70s Session / 1971)
10. Manerg (John Peel Concert, Bbc Radio 1/1971)
11 W (John Peel Concert, Bbc Radio 1/1971)
12. Killer (John Peel Concert, Bbc Radio 1/1971)

Disc: 2
1. Refugees (John Peel Session / 1971)
2. Scorched Earth (John Peel Session / 1975)
3. Sleepwalkers (John Peel Session / 1975)
4. Still Life (John Peel Session / 1976)
5. La Rossa (John Peel Session / 1976)
6. When She Comes (John Peel Session / 1976)
7. Masks (John Peel Session / 1976)
8. Cat’s Eye / Yellow Fever (John Peel Session / 1977)
9. The Sphinx In The Face (John Peel Session / 1977)
10. Fragments Of) A Plague Of Lighthouse Keepers / Sleepwalkers (John Peel Session / 1977)

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Toby

Does anybody have any idea of this release will be appearing on itunes? As soon as I was aware of its existence I scrambled to itunes hoping to find it available to pre-order, but nothing – and now have to wait with baited breath and crossed fingers until the 27th when I’m hoping it will miraculously appear for downloading. Any information would be very gratefully received.

Mike

This compilation could have been much better if off air tapes could have been used like on the Bolan and other BBC sets. I have the whole of the BBC 1970 in concert show in great quality. I also have Theme One/The Dambuster’s March from the 1971 In Concert in acceptable AM quality. A great bootleg I bought on Amazon recently had the rest of the BBC 71 show in excellent quality as well as Killer from Top Gear 1970-10-12. An Epidemic Of Father Christmases from Peel Session 1971-12-14 is also around in reasonable quality. A nice collection but it could have been much better.

Grubert

Mike where you got these material in better quality?

The missing stuff (except the Symonds on Sunday session) is in my collection only in a quality not suitable for an official release.

I don’t have the Killer version from Top Gear 70 either. but there is a bootleg in Amazon which has it. Otherwise this bootleg has only material which will now appear on the After the Flood set.

Grubert

Mike, just in case, you return to this site one day,
do you really have the BBC 1970 in concert show in great quality?

I never came across a version better than the ususal distorted one I have.

And if you have indeed a better one, where did you find it?

Mig

Should have been called “Almost Lost” (a quote from “Lighthouse Keepers”). Sums up BBC’s attitude to its archives and the band’s state of mind.

Actually, being a 2CD, one CD should have been called “Almost Lost” and the other “Truly Lost” (quote from “Lost”). Just a suggestion…

feline1

yes, the majority of these tracks were either available on that VdGG ‘Maida Vale’ CD that came out in the 1990s, or on the ‘Box’ that came out in the early noughties, or as bonus tracks on the remastered VdGG albums on the late noughties CDs…. but this new set includes half a dozen that weren’t, so I’ll be buying it anyway :)

Mig

Ah, then it’s a must-buy. Apologizes Peter, I was too lazy to trawl through “The Box”, “Maida Vale” and the remasters to figure this out for myself…and anyway, it’s obviously great to have it all in one place.

Now I’m REALLY looking forward to this one.

peter

@ Mig:
i believe the only officially unreleased tracks are Theme One and Vision from Sounds Of The 70s Session / 1971, the whole John Peel Concert Bbc Radio 1/1971 and A Plague Of Lighthouse Keepers/Sleepwalkers from John Peel Session / 1977.
That’s it.
Anyway, John Peel Concert Bbc Radio 1/1971 is wonderful, Killer in particular is regarded as the ultimate version.

Mig

Wow! Terrible title, terrible cover — not at all the image I associate with VdGG. But looks great.

Can anyone tell me what on here has NOT previously been available?

peter

We’re getting closer, but sadly this set is still incomplete.
Missing:
– Octopus from Top Gear 1968-11-18
– Reawakening and Afterwards from Symonds On Sunday 1969-08-26
– Killer, Whatever Would Robert Have Said? and Squid One/Squid Two/Octopus from BBC In Concert 1970-08-02
– Lost and Killer from Top Gear 1970-10-12
– Lemmings and An Epidemic Of Father Christmases from Peel Session 1971-12-14

Also missing are the audio portions of the songs filmed for the TV appareances.

Grubert

Also missing is Theme One which ends with The Dambuster’s March, the last track from the 71 In Concert.

The still missing tracks are all those which are also on bootlegs only available in bad quality.
The Symonds On Sunday isn’t available in any form, at least I think so.
The new release most likely means that all the missing tracks are not part of the BBC archive, that there are no tapes left of them.

peter

Yes Grubert, i tend to agree with you.
What’s on this new forthcoming set is probably all that’s in the BBC archives.
Theme One > The Dambuster’s March (the last track from the 71 In Concert) is also missing, you’re right. And that’s no surprise, since only the 3 songs featured here (Man-Erg, W and Killer) have been previously included on a BBC transcription disc (Pick Of The Pops for your DJ #362).

Ian

All the tracks are there at the BBC: it just needs someone with some money & time to dig them out . . . . . .