Gentle Giant's third album (and their first self-produced effort, Tony Visconti having run the sessions on the two previous records) was another advance, this time in the direction of a harder rock sound -- everything sounds turned up here, especially the guitars, the bass, and the electronic keyboards.
Three Friends hardly sacrificed any of the group's progressive intentions, however, and there are some softer moments here, such as the playful, sprightly first half of "Schooldays"; the harmonies and arrangements still had a distinctly medieval feel, and the melodies, though a little harder to discern here (which made them even more appealing when they did become obvious), were quite engaging.
This is supposed to be a concept album, about the relationship between three friends across a lifetime, and the original notes and lyrics have been reprinted, but none of that is necessary in order to enjoy the songs here.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PrologueGentle Giant, Kerry Minnear, Derek Shulman, Phil Shulman, Ray Shulman | Gentle Giant | Play | 06:13 | 14 MB | 33 MB |
| 2 | SchooldaysGentle Giant, Kerry Minnear, Derek Shulman, Phil Shulman, Ray Shulman | Gentle Giant | Play | 07:37 | 17 MB | 36 MB |
| 3 | Working All DayGentle Giant, Kerry Minnear, Derek Shulman, Phil Shulman, Ray Shulman | Gentle Giant | Play | 05:12 | 11 MB | 27 MB |
| 4 | Peel the PaintGentle Giant, Kerry Minnear, Derek Shulman, Phil Shulman, Ray Shulman | Gentle Giant | Play | 07:31 | 17 MB | 39 MB |
| 5 | Three FriendsGentle Giant, Kerry Minnear, Derek Shulman, Phil Shulman, Ray Shulman | Gentle Giant | Play | 02:59 | 6 MB | 15 MB |
| 6 | Mister Class And Quality | Gentle Giant | Play | 05:50 | 13 MB | 31 MB |
| 7 | Edge Of Twilight | Gentle Giant | Play | 03:48 | 8 MB | 20 MB |
| 39 mins | 89 MB | |||||
| 39 mins | 203 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rick Breach | Cover Design |
| 2 | Gentle Giant | Composer, Primary Artist, Producer |
| 3 | Gary Green | Guitar, Percussion, Producer, Vocals |
| 4 | Kerry Minnear | Composer, Keyboards, Moog Synthesizer, Percussion, Producer, Vibraphone, Vocals |
| 5 | Malcolm Mortimore | Drums, Producer |
| 6 | Martin Rushent | Engineer |
| 7 | Derek Shulman | Bass, Composer, Guitar, Producer, Vocals |
| 8 | Phil Shulman | Composer, Producer, Saxophone, Vocals |
| 9 | Ray Shulman | Bass, Composer, Guitar (12 String), Percussion, Producer, Violin, Vocals |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |