Free Hand [Steven Wilson Mix & Flat Mix]

Gentle Giant: Derek Shulman (vocals, saxophones, recorders), Ray Shulman (bass, vocals), Kerry Minnear (keyboards, vocals), Gary Green (guitars, recorders), John Weathers (drums, vocals).
Recorded at Advision Studios, London, England in April, 1975.
The follow-up to 1974's surprisingly well-received THE POWER & THE GLORY, Gentle Giant's FREE HAND marks the pinnacle of the British prog-rock group's international success. (Like its predecessor, it appeared on the U.S. charts.) While the band's eccentricities--complex song structures, strange vocal harmonies--are present, these tunes are framed in a slightly more pop-conscious way, as on the funky, elastic title track. The ensemble also indulges in its occasional penchant for medieval music on the jaunty "Talybont," arguably making this the archetypal Gentle Giant album.