Track Listing

1. Radio Gnome Invisible
2. Flying Teapot
3. Pot Head Pixies
4. Octave Doctors And The Crystal Machine
5. Zero The Hero And The Witch's Spell
6. Witch's Song / I Am Your Pussy

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2910 in Music
• Released on: 2005-02-28
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .15 pounds

CD Description
1973's FLYING TEAPOT is a GONG milestone. It's the first installment in their legendary "Radio Gnome Trilogy" and a transitional point between the underground psychedelia of CAMEMBERT ELECTRIQUE and the artier, more ethereal sound they later developed. TEAPOT is more visceral, less cerebral than its successors, and the catchy ensemble riffs of CAMEMBERT arestill present. The arrival of virtuoso guitarist Steve Hillage and synth wizard Tim Blake represented a great leap forward, though. Blake concentrated exclusively on ambient electronic effects and soundscapes a la early Hawkind, leaving harmonic development to the other band members. Hillage's fleet-fingered jazz-rock solos and arsenal of effects upped the musicianship a notch and reinforced the spacy jazz elements already in place.
Whether you're able to follow the willfully confusing storyline or not, the elaborate mythological world created by Daevid Allen is loads of fun when wrapped around music as inspired as this psychedelic art-jazz-space rock amalgam. The key players are a group of gnomes from another planet who arrive in a flying teapot (stoner imagery plays heavily in hippie Allen's vision) to save the world (or something). Actually, some surprisingly intellectual/philosophical messages were contained in the trilogy, leavened heartily by the irrepressible Allen's healthy sense of humor.

Customer Reviews

Please please PLEASE sort out this mess
Don't buy "Flying Teapot". Avoid it. Don't touch it with a barge pole. I mean this. STEER CLEAR OF THIS ALBUM.

Right, now you're upset. But let me explain. I'm a huge Gong fan. I adore "Flying Teapot". It's always been one of my favourite albums. I've loved it since the early 1980s when I first bought the vinyl. It's rarely far from my stereo. But the CD is a DISASTER. I'm not talking about the old licensing issue, the two separate covers. The covers are different, but ALL the CD versions of "Flying Teapot" use exactly the same master tape. And ALL of them are terrible beyond belief -- and beyond redemption.

The problem is entirely with the title track, 12 minutes of pure bliss. At least in the original vinyl version. A soft, trippy, jazzy drift, laid back, humorous, warm and sweet as heaven. Delicious, and Gong's signature tune. But at some point in the 1980s, Daevid Allen (as far as I can tell) decided to remix the track, perhaps to try to jump on the rave bandwagon. It wasn't just a remix, though -- possibly he re-recorded parts of the track too. The new version of "Flying Teapot" was a characterless, charmless, spiritless piece of pretend dance music lacking energy or warmth or psychedelic flavour. It sounded horrible -- and nothing AT ALL like the original track.

Unfortunately, EVERY release of the album on CD has used the 1980s version of the track. Every one. That includes all released versions of the "Flying Teapot" album, including the early trilogy box, and all appearances of the track on EVERY compilation. Don't even bother looking among Russian or Far Eastern versions of the album -- they're all the same. There is no indication on any release that this is the case, and most new fans probably aren't even aware they're not getting the real thing.

So if you've never heard the album, how do you know you're not listening to the remix? Answer 1: if you're listening to the track on CD, it's the remix. Answer 2: listen to the track immediately following the "have a cup of tea" refrain. If you don't hear a loud surge of glissando, you're hearing the remix. The ONLY way to hear the beautiful, fabulous original "Flying Teapot" is to find it on vinyl. And beware of vinyl reissues, some of which may have used the CD masters.

This is not a "slightly different flavour" problem. The track is COMPLETELY different in the remixed version. Gong's would-be curators, GAS, seem not to care about the problem, and since the album is mired in contractural problems, there is unlikely to be a resolution soon.

All is not lost. The rest of the CD is uncontaminated, so if you can source a vinyl version of the title track, you can just strip it into a CDR. But do NOT play the CD version of the album and expect it to sound anything like the original, fabulous release. It's not -- and what you're hearing is effectively just a 1980s cover version. How shameful that a track of such glorious, trippy power is reduced to this. And how terrible that most would-be Gong fans don't even know they're being fooled.

The Monty Python of rock music
I can't say whether this is the best album Gong ever made because I haven't heard the majority of them, but in my opinion this is one of the less-heralded full-on classics of the 1970s. It has that characteristic feature of all classic albums, a soundworld of its own, one which is removed from any other album. Its sequel, "Angel's Egg", is regarded by some as a better album and I'd agree that it's very good but it has a feel that's a little closer to mainstream rock. "Flying Teapot" is more anarchic in nature and that is an important part of its appeal.

From the buzzing, burbling voices that surface at the beginning you sense that you've entered a realm that has its own culture. Indeed, if you can uncover it, this album is full of Daevid Allen's philosophy. The rules are that there are no rules to tie us down but there is a strategy, a vision that enables Planet Gong to steer its own wobbly course. The great thing about "Flying Teapot" is therefore that it is experimental but accessible, unique yet endearing. There is so much good humour and cheer in the proceedings that you can't help thinking that this is how Madness might have sounded had they been hippies, though they would have needed rather more musical talent. This isn't prog, it's a happy riot.

The first half of the album is not as free in form as the second half but the false endings are characteristically teasing. The breathy female intonations of the final track are wonderfully outrageous for their era. I don't imagine that there was much chance of it being given regular airplay on the BBC in those days.

It's tempting to make the obvious pun that the album would not be everybody's cup of tea, but why? It's fun.

Great Album, very poor remix
Not much to say. This insult to prog is best avoided. Wait until someone has the sense to re-issue it in its original form, and you will discover what an excellent album it really is. In the meantime seek out an old LP. My crackly old copy is still light years ahead of the CD. Sorry pixies!