Peter Gabriel: Us
My first memories of Peter Gabriel are mostly connected with mentions of his previous association with the band Genesis, and then with some of his early solo work, like “Solsbury Hill” and “Games without Frontiers”. Most of what I heard was was good but it’s not like I sought out his music. Then in the mid-80s he put out his most successful album, So, and became more of a mainstream star, partly thanks to that legendary video animation for “Sledgehammer”. I was listening right along with his music at this time and I did like it a lot although it wasn’t one of my priorities when it came to the record store.
It was 1992 and I’d been out of college and working for a few years and I guess you could say I was out in the real world by now. No it wasn’t my ideal plan to work in a call center, but it was a full-time job and I was pretty good at it and it did allow me a bit of space to indulge myself in my own interests. The Scientist and I were sharing an apartment and sometimes we would travel off together. We’d made three trips to Florida to Disney World within a few years. The Scientist’s parents were in Maryland and I would drive us to visit occasionally.
There was one instance when the Scientist went to Maryland separately and I joined them later on. I’d had to work so the plan was for me to drive up after my shift. I can’t recall specifics on the occasion but maybe it was around Christmas time. It was definitely winter time. My hours went until around 1am but I was a night owl and so I took off after work one night and drove. It just happened that there had been ice and snow on the roads going up through the top end of North Carolina and into Virginia. I particular recall getting close to Lynchburg and the roads being really slick and slippery. A truck had jackknifed along the way and traffic was held up. It was slow going the whole way. I didn’t have a car phone and I was on my own. Not an ideal time to be driving.
My only company was the radio and I remember hearing a few songs during that drive. One of them was the Spin Doctors’ “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong” which I really liked. I think there was also a U2 song in there and then there was “Digging in the Dirt” by Peter Gabriel. I already knew the song but it has stuck in my mind that it played that night/morning. It was a song I really liked and the video for it was pretty cool too and it came to mind when it played, evoking thoughts of Peter Gabriel being buried alive and then covered with foliage and so on. The song kept me going in the middle of that night. I obviously did make it to my destination with great relief on my part and for those waiting for me.
At some point I came to own the album and it was an oft listened to cd. The song “Steam” became another big hit single and had another popular video. This song was more reminiscent in sound of “Sledgehammer” and I think was more successful than “Digging in the Dirt”. For my part I prefer “Digging in the Dirt” for the video and the song although I do like this song too.
“Kiss that Frog” is another interesting song that was released as a single. I don’t remember the video for that one but the song sticks in my mind as being one of my favorites from the album. It’s mainly a pop song with catchy tune and lyrics, obviously taking some inspiration from the fairy tale frog prince.
A lot of songs on this album are about relationships with others. “Come Talk to Me” is about a difficult time Gabriel had with the relationship with his daughter. It’s one of only a couple songs I know that features bagpipes. Another favorite for me is “Love to be Loved” which is kind of straightforward in its meaning. It’s filled with that very human longing for love and need.
I listened to this album again before writing and I remember why I liked this so much. I don’t have a lot of Peter Gabriel music in my collection but I like his music and this one is surely my favorite. I think the feelings expressed are kind of universal to people and their relationships. The music is also filled with nice little touches like the bagpipes and chill rhythms that you can relax into.
