| Time is the Key | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | Late 1979 | |||
| Recorded | Konk studios, August 1979 | |||
| Genre | Jazz rock, progressive rock[1] | |||
| Length | 43:39 | |||
| Label | Arista | |||
| Producer | Pierre Moerlen | |||
| Pierre Moerlen's Gong chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    [1] |
Time is the Key is the fourth album by Pierre Moerlen's Gong. It was released in late 1979 by Arista Records.[2]
Featuring an all-instrumental jazz-driven sound, notable for the prominent use of vibraphone, it has little to do with the psychedelic space rock of Daevid Allen's Gong, even though the two bands share a common history.
It features the English jazz keyboard player Peter Lemer on most tracks, their only album to do so, and Allmusic notes that there is also a progressive rock influence on the album, especially on the first two track.[1]
Track listing[edit]
All tracks are written by Pierre Moerlen, except where noted
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Ard Na Greine" (Irish for "Height of the Sun") | 6:10 |
| 2. | "Earthrise" | 2:25 |
| 3. | "Supermarket" | 3:35 |
| 4. | "Faerie Steps" | 5:33 |
| 5. | "An American in England" (Hansford Rowe) | 2:57 |
| 6. | "The Organ Grinder" | 3:56 |
| 7. | "Sugar Street" | 2:22 |
| 8. | "The Bender" | 3:16 |
| 9. | "Arabesque Intro & Arabesque" | 5:18 |
| 10. | "Esnuria Two" | 5:34 |
| 11. | "Time is the Key" | 2:29 |
Personnel[edit]
- Pierre Moerlen's Gong
- Pierre Moerlen – drums, vibraphone, gong, electravibe, marimba, glockenspiel, tympani, darbuka, synthesizers (7, 8)
- Hansford Rowe – bass (3 - 11), acoustic guitar (5), bass synthesizer (11)
- Bon Lozaga – guitar (3 - 11)
- Former Pierre Moerlen's Gong
- Allan Holdsworth – lead guitar (9 - 11)
- Additional personnel
- Darryl Way – violin (1)
- Joe Kirby – double bass (1, 2)
- Peter Lemer – keyboards (3 - 11), Polymoog (6 - 10)
- Nico Ramsden – lead and rhythm guitar (8)
Produced by Pierre Moerlen
Production credits[edit]
- Engineering – John Rollo
- Mastering – Ray Staff at Trident
- Photography – Jay Myrdal and Sheila Rock
- Sleeve layout and design – Steve Ridgeway and Julie Harris
- Additional engineer – Brian Risner
- Studio co-ordination – Brian Risner
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "allmusic ((( Time Is the Key > Overview )))". www.allmusic.com. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
- ^ "Pierre Moerlen's Gong: Time Is The Key". www.discogs.com. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
- Macan, E. L., Macan, E. (1997). Rocking the Classics: English Progressive Rock and the Counterculture. Germany: Oxford University Press. p. 243
