The Secret Life of Peter Gabriel
A Review/Rant from A. Rambler
The Secret Life of Peter Gabriel is a biography that was released just a few weeks ago from Chris Welch.
Okay, first off, the title. It reminds me of one of those nature specials on TV that chronicles the life of a wild animal: "The Secret Life of Army Ants", "The Secret Life of Mole Rats", "The Secret Life of Probosis Monkeys."
With The Secret Life of Peter Gabriel, I envision this:
[Peter Gabriel is wandering around his cottage home early one morning, clad in pajamas and bathrobe, bowl of cereal in hand, muttering to himself about how he can't seem to find his slippers anywhere. A cameraman with camera stalks behind him at a safe distance, while Chris Welsh narrates from the control booth.]
Chris: Welcome again to The Secret Life of Peter Gabriel, where we try to get a some insight into the habits of the species known as "the intense, eccentric English rock star." Now we see our subject making his way through his marked territory after having captured some nourishment...
[Gabriel stubs his big toe on a table leg and starts to hop about in pain]
Gabriel: AAAAAAAAAA!
Chris: Now it seems to be doing some sort of mating dance. Listen closely to the mating call.
Gabriel: OWWWWW! [sees the cameraman] Don't just stand there! I think I broke my toe!
[Cameraman yawns and continues filming.]
Chris: Now watch as the ritual progresses...Uh-Oh! I think he's spotted our cameraman. Sometimes the normally shy English rock star may react defensively at having his mating dance interrupted...
Gabriel: That's it...show's over!
[Grabs cameraman and kicks him out of his cottage so hard, he breaks his other big toe. (1) Cameraman lands across a field and rolls into a ditch.]
Sports Announcer: GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAALLL!
Huh? Oh yeah. The book, once you get past the title, is actually a very good read.
First, how does it compare to the other PG books out there? Well, when most long-term fans think of a PG biography, they think of I Know What I Like (mostly about Genesis but with a large focus on PG and some solo stuff) or Peter Gabriel, the both written by Armando Gallo. I haven't read the books in their entirety, but I've read many long excerpts.
Gallo's book is awesome, and has a great conversational tone to it, but (1) the detailed section of I Know What I Like it only covers Gabriel's early career, with nothing about So and Us. Peter Gabriel, does go more into PG 3, 4 and So, but details are sketchy and (2) Gallo is a very good friend of Gabriel, which is both good and bad. You get to see a warmer side of Gabriel in Gallo's book, but at the same time, Gallo's too close to PG to expose some of his foibles.
The Bright bio, (once again, I've only read a few long excerpts of it) is okay, but it's too unfocused. Bright talks of PG's love life, and will later talk about how PG met Donny Osmond. The problem? Bright talks of both items as though they were of equal importance. Aside from that, it just plain lacks punch.
"In His Own Words" is essentially a bunch of PG quotes from magazines and other resources, all thrown together in a book, with some quotes taken out of context. Despite this not even being a bio, it *is* a good compilation of quotes, and if you've never had the chance to read many Gabriel print articles, this does a quick-and-dirty job of giving you some insight into the mind of PG.
So, what does Welch's book have to offer? First, it doesn't really tell you anything the avid fan doesn't already know. Actually, many (although definitely not all) Gabriellian information can be found in other sources, including "In His Own Words", or talks about events that are essentially the same as presented in the Genesis Archives Box Set book.
However, it seems that Welch has known Gabriel since day one (so he really knows his stuff), and yet he's a rock journalist first and foremost (so he doesn't feel the need to kiss up). Also, the big benefit about this book is the way it blends all the pieces together, from childhood days to "I Grieve" into one consistent, readable source.
The first half of the book goes into great detail of Peter's Genesis days. This section is a must-read for any Genesis fanatic...Welch does a great job of reporting that era. He describes the situations, the times, and the people quite eloquently. At times it feels like you're there, living the early Genesis experience. Sometimes, in order to keep track of all the details of what's going on, Chris goes off on lengthy asides, trying to document who did what where, especially concerning Genesis' changing line-up and the parade of producers. This can get a little tedious, but it's necessary to get historical accuracy.
The second half of the book goes into all the solo albums, and all the time in between. My favorite Gabriellian post-Genesis quote? Right after Gabriel left Genesis, PG is asked about his new solo career vs. Collins-fronted Genesis: "I'm a bit non-competitive in my attitude at this moment...but in some ways I want to get something out as quickly as possible before those miserable bastards!" Go Pete!
Before I read this book, I was worried because a few people who had already read said they thought it was too gossip-y, and went too deep into PG's private life. I was relieved to find that was not the case...Welch only touches on PG's love life in later chapters, and even then, he does not judge nor dwell on what went on.
Okay, there's one scary scene...Rosanna Arquette is quoted as saying, "I've had enough songs written about me. You can only have so many songs written about you, especially if you're not getting any royalties from them!"
From the book:
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
You also get to read of many anecdotes, some interesting, some amusing. One night after a Genesis performance, Welch meets up with Gabriel, but only for a few minutes. That night, Welch goes to a hotel room. Next morning, someone knocks on his door, Welch is miffed because he thinks it's the cleaning lady, and he just wants to sleep in. Turns out it's none other than Peter Gabriel. "You ordered some words?" he quips to Welch.
This brings two questions to mind: How/why did Gabriel track Welch down like that? Two, why can't things like that ever happen to me? Why can't I ever answer the door and find Gabriel standing there with a thermos, saying, "You ordered some coffee?"
Huh? Oh yeah. Throughout the book, we get to see both good and dark sides of Gabriel, but it's confirmed what we've always known: PG is a lovely bloke and a kick-ass singer/songwriter who constantly puts his talent and money where his heart is.
However, one thing that I learned in this book that had me concerned was...well...I don't want to offend the astrologers, paranormalists, UFO-ologists, psychics, New Agers, FTBs (Frothing True Believers), pseudo-scientists, and other sorts of woo-woos who are also PG fans, but both Gabriel and Welch display an amazing lack of skepticism.
For starters, in an interview back in 1975, Gabriel talks about how he believes in psychic power and the paranormal, and he insists that he feels some paranormal "presence" in the interviewing room. None of this is questioned, examined or proven, but stated as a fact. Gabriel also states that he's interested in astrology, tarot, UFOs (UFOs equaling "alien piloted spacecraft"), and ghosts. Gabriel also attempted telepathy and levitation. For some reason Welch doesn't mention whether or not Gabriel was successful at either. (Maybe that's why he shaved his head...he *did* become successful in levitation, and he wanted less air friction as he hovers from venue to venue on his next tour.:)
In the same 1975 interview, Gabriel mentions that there is "a prospect of religious wars in the 1990's". Welch is really impressed by this as evidence of Gabriel's psychic abilities. Why? I'd be impressed if Gabriel predicted a decade when there are *no* religious wars of any kind past or present. This is like predicting earthquakes in California and hurricanes in Florida. But either this logic never occurs to Welch or Gabriel, or they just gotta believe!
I'd love to argue that particular interview was held in the seventies and *everybody* believed in that stuff in the seventies. Evidence shows that PG has eased up on the paranormal/psychic jazz, however, Welch still hints that PG is a believer, and Welch himself babbles endlessly about ley lines around the studios. The ridiculous concept is that these "ley lines" give off "energy" which is supposed to help artists with their creativity. <cheap shot>Thank goodness...if PG had built his studios where there were no ley lines...gosh, it could take him six years to finish an album!</cheap shot>
Of course, none of this affects my favorable view of PG, and I must say that if he finds inspiration in such beliefs, I probably shouldn't criticize. As Pericles [2] said to the Athenians, "Gotta love the man in spite of his flaws. I think his willingness to believe informs his music in a good way, but I would prefer that he not believe in UFOs, etc."
Also, it's rather clear that Gabriel has a much better grip on reality than most people, in his field or otherwise. The book reveals that not only does Peter know how to have fun, but he can display a great deal of serious professionalism when it comes to his music, and also Real World Inc. as a business, and WOMAD.
Welch goes into great detail of the fiasco that was WOMAD: The Early Years. Most fans know that after the first WOMAD festival, things didn't go very well financially, which led many creditors to be calling for Pete's head. Most people would have given up on WOMAD after experiencing an ugly experience such as that, but not our hero. Welch goes on to describe (although not in great detail) at how the WOMAD festivals have evolved over the years with the help of PG's determination and persistance.
One of my favorite parts of the book is where Welch waxes poetic on a Secret World Tour performance. If you haven't had the chance to see PG live or see the Secret World Live video, then you should read Welch's chapter on SWL...it's one of the most vivid descriptions on paper.
Also of note, Welch manages to squeeze in a bit about PG's CD ROMs, although mostly with Xplora 1. To my disappointment, Eve only got a small mention.
The book wraps up on an upbeat tone, and also included is a few pictures (nothing to get excited about) and a full discography (which is well organized).
So, should you get it? If you're new to PG, definitely. If you've been a long time fan, hard to say. I think this book goes a long way in making a biography feel complete and it reads well. A few fans who have read this book have told me that they were non-plussed by it, although I couldn't get them to tell me why.
All I can say is that it's up to you. If you do decide to check it out, you'll have trouble finding this book in the stores, so online is your best bet. Both Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble online carries the book (It's been reported that Barnes has it cheaper.)
Anyway, that's all I have to say, so I'm signing off for now.
[1] I know PG wouldn't act this way. I was projecting. This is how I would act if I hadn't had my morning coffee yet.
[2] Actually, a journalist I know named Chris who's met Pete a couple of times said that line, not Pericles.
Special thanks goes out to Candy for providing me with valuable research materials and for her support and encouragement.