Erk Gah
| "Erk Gah" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Henry Cow | |
| from the album The 40th Anniversary Henry Cow Box Set | |
| Released | September 2008 January 2009 |
| Recorded | August 1976, Switzerland May 1977, Sweden March 1978, Germany |
| Genre | Avant-rock |
| Length |
18:28 (Switzerland) 16:46 (Sweden) 13:04 (Germany) |
| Label | Recommended |
| Songwriter(s) | Tim Hodgkinson |
| Producer(s) | Henry Cow |
| "Hold to the Zero Burn, Imagine" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Tim Hodgkinson | |
| from the album Each in Our Own Thoughts | |
| Released | 1994 |
| Recorded | 1993 |
| Genre | Avant-rock |
| Length | 16:43 |
| Label | Woof Records |
| Songwriter(s) | Tim Hodgkinson |
| Producer(s) | Tim Hodgkinson |
"Erk Gah" (later known as "Hold to the Zero Burn, Imagine") is an extended song written by Tim Hodgkinson in 1976 for the English avant-rock group Henry Cow. "Erk Gah" was performed live by the band between 1976 and 1978, but was never recorded in the studio. Three live performances of "Erk Gah" were later released in volumes 6, 8 and 10 of The 40th Anniversary Henry Cow Box Set in January 2009; Volume 6 () was released in advance of the box set in September 2008. In 1993, 15 years after Henry Cow split up, Hodgkinson recorded the composition under the title "Hold to the Zero Burn, Imagine" and released it on his second solo album, Each in Our Own Thoughts (1994).
"Erk Gah" was the second of two "epic" compositions Hodgkinson wrote for Henry Cow, the first being "Living in the Heart of the Beast" (1974).
Hodgkinson wrote the words and music for "Erk Gah" in mid 1976. It was a 17-minute, "12-tone, atonal" extended song that he described as "dry, astringent, angular, with no compromise to rock music". Known for his "complicated" compositions for Henry Cow ("Amygdala" from Legend, "Living in the Heart of the Beast" from In Praise of Learning), "Erk Gah" was initially a challenge for the group to learn, but by the end of 1976 they had performed it live several times with their singer Dagmar Krause negotiating the lyrics.
In December 1976 Hodgkinson requested that "Erk Gah" be withdrawn from the band's repertoire until he had rewritten the lyrics. The group, however, felt it should remain on their set list until it was rewritten, and they continued to perform it. In July 1977 the group, already having made anti-capitalist statements in their music, wanted to make an anti-fascist statement and suggested that "Erk Gah"'s new lyrics should reflect this stance. In January 1978, as Henry Cow prepared to depart for Switzerland to make their next album, with "Erk Gah" on the list of pieces to record, Hodgkinson presented his revised lyrics of the song to the group. They rejected them, and asked Chris Cutler, the band's drummer and part-time lyricist to write new lyrics for the piece. But Cutler was unable to do so in the short space of time left before the recording sessions were due to begin, and the band decided to shelve recording the song until new lyrics were written.
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