Customer Reviews

The Secret Life of Peter Gabriel

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Chris Welch's book "The Secret Life Of Peter Gabriel" is a well written book about a legend in the music bussiness that goes by the name of Peter Gabriel. This book only helped to confirm what i had already known about Mr. Gabriel; that being that he is the best Singer/Songwriter in the modern day world. I have been a huge PG fan for some years now and this book pretty much gave a step by step analysis of Gabriels life. What i didnt know about Gabriel was what intrigued me most about this literary work. Gabriel deserves to win a life time achievement award for the things hes done in his life time, not only being a hero to his die hard music fans, but for always trying to help those in need and always trying to make people happy. His mind is a asset to the world and we should all be thankfull for the genious that he has produced and bestowed in everyone and everything around him.. The book was extremely well written from a first hand approach in many instances. Well worth Reading...

If you are a serious fan, as am I, then you will want this book, because you will want everything you can get your hands on about The Master, the greatest vocalist/lyricist/composer of our time. Please ignore the first review above, which was obviously written by someone who only knows about Peter's hits. Peter is a serious musician and unequaled in his passion for creating serious music as well as being involved in myriad other projects. His latest album, UP, is a masterpiece! And his concerts are a religious experience! OK, I will quit gushing and review the book. Actually it is NOT well-written. The author is clearly not a writer, as it just does not flow very well. However, it is still worth having, because of the content. I have been a fan for 25 years and I learned quite a few little nuggets of info that I hadn't known b4, and these made it worth the price of the book.

1-7-06 update: Most of the 'tasty gems' of info can be found in Spencer Bright's PG biography, a much better read.

The greatest thing about Welch's book is the in-depth discussions, often with quotes from PG himself, about the meaning and motives behind a majority of the Genesis songs, 1969-75, and a many of his own compositions through the late '90's. Like many Genesis fans, I profoundly loved the music and the lyrics, but I often wondered what songs like "Return of the Giant Hogweed", "The Battle of Epping Forest", "Intruder" and "San Jacinto" were really about. This book covers these and many more, including PG's creative use of words and sounds to create moods--not necessarily to tell specific stories. Also visited are connections between Genesis and Yes, ELP, and other progressive rock bands in their formative years. His personal life is also covered in detail thankfully absent of any petty gossip and/or character assassination. Reading this book brought me back to my teenage years--the 1970's--and left me feeling happy to have been a part of rock's most artistic and creative era. I also found the book easy to read and quite professionally written. The only thing missing was a Notes section (i.e., the author's list of resources).

So you think Peter is dead? well don't just expect to see a CD released every year under his name. He is a serious musician, composer and human rights front man. So if you think he didn't do anything in the past six years well just take a look to his Real World catalogue. He also works and compose for others. Please before talking about him check his background. He help developing groups from all around the world. PETER IS THE BEST. Still growing up...

No. "The man is dead, the man is dead. ..." What's he done the last 6 years?