Green by Steve Hillage

Released in 1978, “Green” is Steve Hillage’s fourth solo album and marks a major turning point in his career, blending psychedelic space-rock influences with new electronic experiments.  The album was co-produced by Hillage and Nick Mason, drummer of Pink Floyd.  Miquette Giraudy, Hillage’s partner and long-time collaborator, appears on synthesizers and vocals.

This is the full line-up:

Steve Hillage: Vocals, electric guitar, guitar synthesizer (Roland GR500), Moog synthesizer and glissando guitar.

Miquette Giraudy: Synthesizers (ARP and EMS), vocoder and vocals.

Curtis Robertson Jr.: Bass.

Joe Blocker: Drums and percussion.

With:

Nick Mason: Besides co-producing the album, he played drums on the track "Leylines to Glassdom".

Andy Anderson: He played drums on the track "Ether Ships”.

The album is renowned for its innovative use of technologies that combined guitar sound with electronic synthesis, creating those cosmic atmospheres typical of Hillage.  Guitars and guitar-synths are therefore the key instruments of this work, in particular the Roland GR-500, the album’s technological core. Hillage used this system (one of the first polyphonic guitar-synths) for much of the guitar and keyboard parts, creating unique hybrid sounds, along with the wonderful Glissando Guitar, Hillage’s signature technique, learned from Daevid Allen (Gong), performed with a metal bar or steel surgical tools to produce long, ethereal glissandi.

The title “Green” (Green) is not limited to the color, but represents a complex symbol tied to Ecology and Nature. Hillage aimed to celebrate the natural environment at a time when ecological awareness was taking hold in the counterculture.  In tune with his esoteric beliefs, green is linked to the heart chakra (Anahata), the balance point between the material and spiritual planes.  It embodies a message of positivity and universal healing, in contrast with the darker tones of punk that was emerging in those very years (1978). The album is structured as a meditative journey that Hillage often called “Green Music”. 

The first original 1978 editions were released in a striking limited edition on transparent green vinyl, an item now highly sought after by collectors.

“Green” stays true to the roots of the Canterbury sound, with its progressive structures, jazzy scales and psychedelic atmosphere.  Yet, on this album everything is more fluid, ethereal and spacious.  It is one of the first examples of fusion between rock guitar and advanced electronic synthesis. Instead of using synthesizers only as background, Steve Hillage weaves them with the guitar (thanks to the Guitar Synth), creating sound fabrics where you can no longer tell where the string ends and where the oscillator begins.  This approach anticipates by more than ten years the ambient/techno music that Hillage would later explore. The use of glissando guitar gives the record a floating sound, almost as if you were underwater. Many tracks are purely atmospheric, without a classic rock structure, and focus on creating a meditative state. Unlike much progressive rock of the time (often dark or overly cerebral), “Green” has a rhythmic and positive soul. The rhythm section is influenced by funk, which gives the tracks a steady, hypnotic groove.

Mine is the Virgin VIL 12098 edition (Italian pressing from 1978).

“Sea Nature” is a super rhythmic Progressive-Space Rock track, full of sunny energy and with a driving groove.  Hillage outdoes himself with his synth-guitar interweavings, while Robertson Jr. on bass lays down a dynamic pulse that almost recalls jazz-funk. Miquette’s voice, then, adds an ethereal touch that completes everything perfectly.

“Ether Ships” is an ambient/electronic piece that takes you on a spacey, dreamlike journey.  Andy Anderson’s hypnotic drumming (a special guest) provides the base while Hillage and Giraudy fill every space with their guitars that seem to float and the ARP 2600’s spatial effects.

“Musick of the Trees” is a pastoral folk-psych journey that celebrates nature with a more relaxed rhythm. Steve plays a crystalline acoustic guitar that intertwines with Miquette’s synths, evoking the sounds of the forest and the wind.

“Palm Trees (Love Guitar)” is a melodic jazz-fusion piece that showcases Joe Blocker’s versatility with light but technical drumming. Hillage delivers one of his most lyrical, “sung” solos, accompanied by a warm bed of keyboards.

“Unidentified (Flying Being)” is a space-funk track, the most accessible and rhythmic on the album. Curtis Robertson Jr. is the star with a driving bass line. Hillage and Miquette use the vocoder to create an alien effect that fits perfectly with the title.

“U.F.O. Over Paris” is an electronic instrumental interlude, almost a dialogue between Hillage (guitar synth) and Miquette Giraudy. The EMS Synthi oscillators create sonic vortices that simulate the passage of a spacecraft.

“Leylines to Glassdom” is an atmospheric progressive-rock piece, central to the album, featuring Nick Mason (Pink Floyd) on drums. His essential, powerful style contrasts with the cosmic bursts of Hillage’s guitar-synth, creating an epic crescendo.

“Crystal City” is a space-rock track with Joe Blocker setting a driving beat. Hillage uses saturated distortions that are still clean and bright, while Miquette works the synthesizer filters in real time.

“Activation Meditation” is a fast, super energetic psychedelic-rock piece, where the Hillage-Giraudy-Robertson-Blocker quartet plays in unison like a real rock band, setting the stage for the grand finale.

“The Glorious Om Riff” is a heavy space-rock / mantra, a remake of the riff from Gong’s “Master Builder”. The high point of the album. Robertson and Blocker create a cyclical, massively powerful wall of sound. Hillage and Giraudy push the synths to the edge of saturation, with the glissando guitar creating a hypnotic, transcendental effect.

On this album, the synergy between the four musicians is total: Robertson’s bass and Blocker’s drums provide a solid funk base over which Hillage and Giraudy embroider electronic textures. Green’s musical style is a unique mix that Steve Hillage called "Green Music". It is considered one of the peaks of Space Rock, but with a much sunnier and more rhythmic sensibility than earlier works.

Generally underrated; for me, a masterpiece.

My Version

Label: Virgin – VIL 12098
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: Italy
Released: 10 Apr 1978

Tracklist

A1        Sea-Nature    6:43
A2        Ether Ships    5:02
A3        Musick Of The Trees    4:53
A4        Palm Trees (Love Guitar)    5:19
B1        Unidentified (Flying Being)    4:30
B2        U.F.O. Over Paris    3:11
B3        Leylines To Glassdom    4:06
B4        Crystal City    3:36
B5        Activation Meditation    1:03
B6        The Glorious Om Riff    7:46

LineUp

- Steve Hillage - electric synth guitars, glissando and polyphonic (Roland GR500), lead vocals, Moog, arrangements and co-producer
With:
- Miquette Giraudy - ARP and EMS synthesizers, vocoder, vocals 
- Curtis Robertson - bass
- Joe Blocker - drums, percussion 

- Andy Anderson - drums (2)
 - Nick Mason - drums (7), co-producer

Listening links on the main streaming platforms at the following links:

Spotify: The album is available both in the original 10-track version on Spotify and in the 2007 "Compilation" version that includes the live bonus tracks.

Apple Music: You can listen to the full remastered version on Apple Music.

Deezer: The album is included in the artist’s full catalog on Deezer.

Tidal: Available to listen to in high fidelity on Tidal

Note: All links to the musicians' works are in the TAGS under the article title or on the "Artists"