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Gods Gift: Rehearsal Tape
The sessions were recorded, produced and engineered by Dale Hibbert in April 1982.
The missing recordings were preserved, online, for posterity by Dale Hibbert, who was a huge fan of Gods Gift, he had been on the verge of joining the group prior to Iain Greys arrival. Dale had been the original Bass player in The Smiths and was involved in the creation of them as an entity. He also felt that Gods Gift offered more promising and innovative attraction than The Smiths and said that it was the only group he ever wanted to play in. The history between Gods Gift and Hibbert lasted a few years, and he often mixed the sound at gigs for the group, as well as his stints recording the group. He understood what they were about and was involved completely in the Discipline Sessions. He was adamant that the feedback created by the guitar at the beginning of Then Calm Again was an integral part of the sound. He was correct. He knew that recording the tracks live were also key to the attack that the group wanted in their songs. He understood that feedback was desirable and not something to be edited out. He was the perfect Producer for the group because he understood them.
Perhaps it is apposite to read Hibbert’s view of the sessions and the group, as he was part owner of Spirit Studios, whilst working at Decibelle. Both studios frequented for much of Gods Gifts recorded history.
"I doubt there was a band in Manchester that I had not worked with. My admiration for GG continues to this day, I still vividly remember a rehearsal I had with them, this was the band I felt at home with, and would have given anything to join them. I saw them live many times, they were chaotic, passionate, visceral.
The lyrics were like short stories and would have held their own on the printed page. Spoken, screamed, shouted by a quiet, educated man. The band may say differently but this is how I saw him.
A gig that stands out was at The Mayflower. Steve; no compromise and no quarter given, just staring at the crowd and the band creating a violent cacophony behind him. A gig of violence and shouting from both sides of the stage, a performance laced with the unknown, where anything could happen. I think it ended relatively violence free but our hearts raced.
This wasn’t punk as we knew it, yes it was noisy but the only comparison I could make at the time was early Velvet Underground. Thumping, driven bass, crashing guitar, the drums almost tribal (especially on Working Class Man from this session).
Almost forty years later, I still listen to Gods Gift, still refer to them as one of the greatest Manchester bands and am proud to have been a small part of their history."
From being a part of the formative Smiths to his involvement with Gods Gift, Dale Hibbert knows the Manchester Music world better than most and that he chose to save GG tracks for posterity, rather than others, makes his work on these sessions invaluable to the history of the group. He has underestimated the part he has had in our story.
Turn all the lights out Dale…
(Steve Murphy, October 2023, Gods Gift´s co-founder & guitar player)
MP3 format
WAV format
The sessions were recorded, produced and engineered by Dale Hibbert in April 1982.
The missing recordings were preserved, online, for posterity by Dale Hibbert, who was a huge fan of Gods Gift, he had been on the verge of joining the group prior to Iain Greys arrival. Dale had been the original Bass player in The Smiths and was involved in the creation of them as an entity. He also felt that Gods Gift offered more promising and innovative attraction than The Smiths and said that it was the only group he ever wanted to play in. The history between Gods Gift and Hibbert lasted a few years, and he often mixed the sound at gigs for the group, as well as his stints recording the group. He understood what they were about and was involved completely in the Discipline Sessions. He was adamant that the feedback created by the guitar at the beginning of Then Calm Again was an integral part of the sound. He was correct. He knew that recording the tracks live were also key to the attack that the group wanted in their songs. He understood that feedback was desirable and not something to be edited out. He was the perfect Producer for the group because he understood them.
Perhaps it is apposite to read Hibbert’s view of the sessions and the group, as he was part owner of Spirit Studios, whilst working at Decibelle. Both studios frequented for much of Gods Gifts recorded history.
"I doubt there was a band in Manchester that I had not worked with. My admiration for GG continues to this day, I still vividly remember a rehearsal I had with them, this was the band I felt at home with, and would have given anything to join them. I saw them live many times, they were chaotic, passionate, visceral.
The lyrics were like short stories and would have held their own on the printed page. Spoken, screamed, shouted by a quiet, educated man. The band may say differently but this is how I saw him.
A gig that stands out was at The Mayflower. Steve; no compromise and no quarter given, just staring at the crowd and the band creating a violent cacophony behind him. A gig of violence and shouting from both sides of the stage, a performance laced with the unknown, where anything could happen. I think it ended relatively violence free but our hearts raced.
This wasn’t punk as we knew it, yes it was noisy but the only comparison I could make at the time was early Velvet Underground. Thumping, driven bass, crashing guitar, the drums almost tribal (especially on Working Class Man from this session).
Almost forty years later, I still listen to Gods Gift, still refer to them as one of the greatest Manchester bands and am proud to have been a small part of their history."
From being a part of the formative Smiths to his involvement with Gods Gift, Dale Hibbert knows the Manchester Music world better than most and that he chose to save GG tracks for posterity, rather than others, makes his work on these sessions invaluable to the history of the group. He has underestimated the part he has had in our story.
Turn all the lights out Dale…
(Steve Murphy, October 2023, Gods Gift´s co-founder & guitar player)
Gods Gift /
Complete Sessions
MP3 format
6.00 €
Add to cart
Gods Gift /
Complete Sessions
WAV format
6.00 €
Add to cart
- Gods Gift: Complete Sessions
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