This has been a long time coming! .The remastering of this and "You" has been on the cards for over a year and half as far as I can remember. But due to continual delays, the last being a wish to release these in time for Gong's latest planned tour which did not transpire, it is now at last we can enjoy the 2nd and 3rd part of the Radio Gnome Invisible Trilogy in fully remastered and expanded form. The first part, "Flying Teapot" is caught up in licensing red-tape and is only available in a poor version on a mid-price label which I won't mention here. I will mention that also planned as part of this set of releases was an expanded version of the excellent "Live Etc" album, possibly as a 3 CD box set, but no sign of that at the moment. So, was the wait worth it. Yes indeed. The whole project involves the team of Mark Powell, Pascal Byrne and Phil Smee who have earned themselves a well deserved reputation for meticulously remastering and packaging classic rock albums. They do not disappoint here. The sound is crisp, clear and full and this album has never sounded better. The actual music stands the test of time very well. Though it is all about pot-head pixies, Octave Doctors and the such, all very whimsical, engaging and fun, but it's a testament to Daevid Allen's imagination that his lyrical and musical ideas still sound so fresh and innovative today. It helps that he is surrounded by musicians of the calibre of Didier Malherbe, Pierre Moerlon and Steve Hillage. But Allen himself was such a musical innovator, his glissando guitar sound which he developed is still one of the most magical sounds to emanate from an electric guitar.
The four extra tracks included are single and early versions of album tracks but is noteworthy for including the excellent "Ooby-Scooby Doomsday or the D-Day DJ's Got the D.D.T. Blues", which was originally featured on the "Live Etc." album, but rightly should be featured here.
The booklet has plenty of photos from the period and notes by Gong Appreciation Society head honcho Jonny Greene. But fans will be pleased to see the inclusion of "The Blue Book" which was included with the original vinyl edition of "Angels Egg". This tome outlines in detail the characters and events of the Radio Gnome trilogy is hence a must have for all PHP aficionado's.
This is without doubt the definitive version of this recording. Mark Powell and his team have done a splendid job in restoring this album, a cornerstone from Virgin Records heyday. Credit to EMI for actually taking the trouble ensuring that it was worth bothering to have it re-released in the first place. It's also worth noting that Mark Powell will be overseeing the remastering of Steve Hillage's back catalogue soon, after he has dealt with that of Van Der Graaf Generator. So, lots to look forward to in the coming year.
