None of the Above (Peter Hammill album)
Encyclopedia
None of the Above is an album by Peter Hammill
, released on his Fie! label in 2000. The genre of None of the Above is not located in progressive rock
music like Peter Hammill's band Van der Graaf Generator
and some of his earlier solo albums, but can be described best as singer/songwriter. Along with This
(1998) and What, Now?
(2001), None of the Above belongs to a set of three albums Peter Hammill recorded around the turn of the millennium
and of which it is the most accessible albeit the most conventional in terms of composition and instrumentation.
(drums, percussion) on one track. Peter Hammill's daughters Holly and Beatrice Hammill sing backing soprano voices on two tracks. The carefully arranged instrumentation is dominated by guitars (more as a "colour-wash", as Peter Hammill wrote in his newsletter), keyboards and some strings.
The long recording time is due to Peter Hammill's parallel work on a remastered 4-CD compilation of Van der Graaf Generator
called The Box.
" meaning none of the choices on a form are appropriate. The expression can be seen here as a metaphor for "people in earthy and/or earthly circumstances", i.e. as the opposite to heavenly conditions. It is, of course, appropriate too as the latest title in a list of Peter Hammill albums.
sound), violas and background choirs. It is about a gardener who names his last creation - a damask rose - after his wife who died on the very day the best blossom opened. The rose breeder fertilizes the seeds of the variety with the ashes of his wife. Thus the couple that had no children both live on in the new rose.
The first seven tracks all have the same topic as "Naming the Rose": people coming to an end of a phase in their life - in very different circumstances. But the eighth song ("Astart") says: every end can be a new start. In his newsletter from April 2000, Peter Hammill comments:
Paul Ridout again designed the booklet. Each double page shows a washed-out photo presenting a staircase or a ladder ending nowhere or against a bricked entrance or upon an empty floor with black garbage bags lying around. Only the last double page for the song "Astart" shows busy people on an elevator rolling into some kind of shop scene. -
Peter Hammill
Peter Joseph Andrew Hammill is an English singer-songwriter, and a founding member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Most noted for his vocal abilities, his main instruments are guitar and piano...
, released on his Fie! label in 2000. The genre of None of the Above is not located in progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
music like Peter Hammill's band Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester. They were the first act signed to Charisma Records. The band achieved considerable success in Italy during the 1970s...
and some of his earlier solo albums, but can be described best as singer/songwriter. Along with This
This (Peter Hammill album)
This is an album by Peter Hammill, released on his Fie! label in 1998. There is a large variety in the compositions, ranging from the minimalism of the final song, "The Light Continent", to the rough, almost Nadir-like sound of "Always is Next", the complex "Unrehearsed" and the ballad "Since the...
(1998) and What, Now?
What, Now? (album)
What, Now? is an album by singer-songwriter Peter Hammill, released on his Fie! label in June 2001. According to the booklet it was "recorded, mixed and mastered at Terra Incognita, Bath between, oh, sometime in the late XXth Century and 11:23 March 23rd 2001." It was produced by Peter...
(2001), None of the Above belongs to a set of three albums Peter Hammill recorded around the turn of the millennium
Millennium
A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system....
and of which it is the most accessible albeit the most conventional in terms of composition and instrumentation.
Production and instrumentation
Peter Hammill recorded None of the Above in his home studio ("Sofa Sound") between January 1999 and February 2000, playing, producing and arranging nearly all instruments and singing nearly all voices. Some minor contributions were made by Stuart Gordon (violin, viola) on three tracks and Manny EliasManny Elias
Manny Elias is an English drummer, notable for being the original drummer with Tears for Fears during the 1980s.Originally a member of the rock band Interview from Bath, Somerset. Elias began working with Tears For Fears in 1982 and drummed on the albums The Hurting and Songs From The Big Chair,...
(drums, percussion) on one track. Peter Hammill's daughters Holly and Beatrice Hammill sing backing soprano voices on two tracks. The carefully arranged instrumentation is dominated by guitars (more as a "colour-wash", as Peter Hammill wrote in his newsletter), keyboards and some strings.
The long recording time is due to Peter Hammill's parallel work on a remastered 4-CD compilation of Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester. They were the first act signed to Charisma Records. The band achieved considerable success in Italy during the 1970s...
called The Box.
Title
The title of the album refers, as a typical Peter Hammill play on words, to the English phrase "None of the aboveNone of the above
None of the Above or against all is a ballot option in some jurisdictions or organizations, designed to allow the voter to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in a voting system...
" meaning none of the choices on a form are appropriate. The expression can be seen here as a metaphor for "people in earthy and/or earthly circumstances", i.e. as the opposite to heavenly conditions. It is, of course, appropriate too as the latest title in a list of Peter Hammill albums.
Mood and style
The mood of the album is calm and melancholic. A typical song is "Naming the Rose", a chamber music-like arrangement for lead vocals, keyboards (in Hammond organHammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
sound), violas and background choirs. It is about a gardener who names his last creation - a damask rose - after his wife who died on the very day the best blossom opened. The rose breeder fertilizes the seeds of the variety with the ashes of his wife. Thus the couple that had no children both live on in the new rose.
The first seven tracks all have the same topic as "Naming the Rose": people coming to an end of a phase in their life - in very different circumstances. But the eighth song ("Astart") says: every end can be a new start. In his newsletter from April 2000, Peter Hammill comments:
Cover
The cover shows a serious-looking Peter Hammill photographed by Dinu and the back cover - again alluding to the title of the album - a section of the star-spangled sky.Paul Ridout again designed the booklet. Each double page shows a washed-out photo presenting a staircase or a ladder ending nowhere or against a bricked entrance or upon an empty floor with black garbage bags lying around. Only the last double page for the song "Astart" shows busy people on an elevator rolling into some kind of shop scene. -
Reception
The music press did not take much notice of None of the Above. In allmusic.com Simon Cantlon gave 3 out of 5 stars for "poignant musical snapshots" and "atmosphere" but found "points on this release when things become a bit too monotonous". With 3 out of 5 stars the same rating is given on the fan site Progarchives.Track listing
All songs written by Peter Hammill.- "Touch and Go" – 4:05
- "Naming the Rose" – 5:16
- "How Far I Fell" – 5:55
- "Somebody Bad Enough" – 4:03
- "Tango for One" – 6:43
- "Like Veronica" – 5:54
- "In a Bottle" – 8:01
- "Astart" – 4:17
Personnel
All tracks are played and sung by Peter Hammill with the following contributions:- Stuart Gordon – violin, viola (2, 5, 8)
- Manny EliasManny EliasManny Elias is an English drummer, notable for being the original drummer with Tears for Fears during the 1980s.Originally a member of the rock band Interview from Bath, Somerset. Elias began working with Tears For Fears in 1982 and drummed on the albums The Hurting and Songs From The Big Chair,...
– drums, percussion (6) - Holly Hammill – vocals (2, 8)
- Beatrice Hammill – vocals (2,8)