Godbluff
| Godbluff | ||||
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| Studio album by Van der Graaf Generator | ||||
| Released | October 1975 | |||
| Recorded | 9–29 June 1975 | |||
| Studio | Rockfield Studios, Monmouthshire | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Length | 37:29 | |||
| Label | UK Charisma Records USA Mercury Records |
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| Producer | Van der Graaf Generator | |||
| Van der Graaf Generator chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |
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Godbluff is the fifth album released by English progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. It was the first disc after the band reformed in 1975 and was recorded after a European tour.
As the first self-produced album by the band, it featured a tighter, more pared-down sound than the band's earlier recordings with producer John Anthony. Hammill said "we did not want to make 'Son of Pawn Hearts' with a big long side two and lots of studio experiments". Van der Graaf Generator would never work with an outside producer from this point forward. Hammill made extensive use of the Hohner Clavinet D6 keyboard, which he had first using on his previous solo album, Nadir's Big Chance (1975).
The first release of the record in the United States was on Mercury Records. The 2005 reissue added live performances by the band of two songs from Peter Hammill's album The Silent Corner and the Empty Stage (1974), recorded at a concert at L'Altro Mondo, Rimini, Italy.
Godbluff's album cover was minimal, consisting of a band logo and "stamped" red album title on an otherwise black sleeve. The band logo that first appeared here was designed by John Pasche; it would also be used on the next two albums, Still Life (April 1976) and World Record (October 1976). Godbluff's sleeve design was later parodied on the cover of Fall Heads Roll by The Fall.
All tracks written by Peter Hammill, except where indicated.
Initial reception was very positive. In Melody Maker, the reviewer said that "in a very real sense, [Godbluff] is the sound of the mid-seventies: uncomfortable, coherent, unremitting, courageous." Geoff Barton of Sounds deemed Godbluff "simply, an essential buy."
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