Drummer Manu Katche captures a funk influence with an eighties pop of the gated reverb snare. Pulling from his progressive rock roots, the free flowing flute sound draws the listener quietly in before the horn section dramatically announces the onset of the song’s magnetic groove. It opens with a synthesized Japanese shakuhachi flute sample, played on Gabriel’s Fairlight CMI. The song certainly does come together, bringing innovative sounds and diverse influences into one incredible track. In fact, Tony Levin reminded me that he was packing his bags to go home, and I called him back into the studio, saying “I’ve got this one idea that maybe we can fool around with for the next record – but I like the feel.” That was “Sledgehammer.” It was late in the day and we just fell into the groove, landed a beautiful drum track on it, a great bass line and it all came together.” “With “Sledgehammer,” everyone thinks, “Oh, he must have created that to get a hit.” And it wasn’t done that way. Gabriel reflected on the song’s success in 2012 explaining: While several of the solo albums include charting singles, it was Gabriel’s fifth album, So (1986), that gave him his first and only number one hit – “Sledgehammer.” With an irresistible groove, a horn part straight from Stax, and brilliant production, “Sledgehammer” transformed Gabriel from an edgy seventies rocker into a eighties pop superstar.Īlthough “Sledgehammer” would turn out to be a massive success, appealing to a large and diverse audience, Gabriel did not have such grand intentions with the track when he began. On the musical side, he began releasing a series of four self-titled albums, which his fans have since provided with their own nicknames (“Car” (1977), “Scratch” (1977), “Melt” (1979) and “Security” (1982)). I felt I should look at/learn about/develop myself, my creative bits and pieces and pick up on a lot of work going on outside music.” Certainly, the next decade became a time of discovery for Gabriel – personal and musical. It is difficult to respond to intuition and impulse within the long-term planning that the band needed. Citing the challenges of personal growth within the necessary structures of a band environment, he explained: “As an artist, I need to absorb a wide variety of experiences. In August of 1975, Peter Gabriel of Genesis fame delivered his resignation letter, “Out Angels Out” to the press.
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