Another fine Tune You've Got me into by Gilgamesh, a 1978 album.
This is the second and last studio album by Gilgamesh, a British progressive rock band, a work that marks an important piece in the Canterbury scene, blending jazz-rock, progressive and avant-garde fusion.
After the first self-titled album from 1975, the group broke up. Keyboardist Alan Gowen founded National Health with Dave Stewart. In 1977, however, Gowen decided to reunite Gilgamesh to record new songs.
Compared to the debut record, the band changed lineup: besides original members Alan Gowen and Phil Lee (guitar), the iconic bassist Hugh Hopper (ex Soft Machine) and drummer Trevor Tomkins joined.
Let’s look at the full lineup, made up of four outstanding musicians with a dense web of collaborations in the British progressive, jazz-rock and fusion scene.
Alan Gowen, keyboardist and leader of Gilgamesh, was a leading figure in the Canterbury music scene. Together with Dave Stewart, keyboardist of Hatfield and the North, he founded National Health. In the late ’70s, Gowen launched the avant-garde jazz-fusion project Soft Heap, later renamed Soft Head, together with other illustrious Canterbury musicians such as Elton Dean, Hugh Hopper and Pip Pyle. Shortly before his premature death, he recorded the farewell album “Before a Word Is Said” (1982) with Phil Miller, Richard Sinclair and Trevor Tomkins.
Phil Lee, a highly talented guitarist with an unmistakable jazz imprint, was a key element of the band alongside Gowen. He collaborated extensively both in the studio and live with National Health. He was also a regular member of drummer Trevor Tomkins’ jazz projects. Lee also worked for a long time as a session player and in the more traditional British jazz scene, playing with renowned musicians such as Gordon Beck, Henry Lowther and John Horler.
Hugh Hopper, a world-famous bassist, was a true pioneer of fuzz bass, a tool that revolutionized the world of electric bass. His career was marked by a constant exploration of experimental and avant-garde music. Hopper was a core member of Soft Machine, contributing significantly to their innovative sound during the band’s most creative period, from the album “Volume Two” through “Six”. Before that, he had been part of The Wilde Flowers, a pre-Canterbury ’60s band that laid the groundwork for the birth of groups like Soft Machine and Caravan. In the ’70s, Hopper founded Isotope, a jazz-rock band that enjoyed great success among fans of the genre. Beyond these main experiences, he collaborated with numerous leading artists, including Caravan, Daevid Allen, Kevin Ayers, Robert Wyatt and took part in the Soft Heap and Soft Head projects.
Trevor Tomkins, one of the UK’s most acclaimed and sophisticated jazz drummers, takes on this project. He played with the Don Rendell - Ian Carr Quintet, one of the most important and influential British jazz bands of the ’60s, recording five albums. He was also a member of Nucleus, the historic lineup that paved the way for British jazz-rock and fusion, led by Ian Carr. In addition, he collaborated with Giles Farnaby’s Dream Band, an experimental jazz-prog group active in the ’70s, and with the afro-fusion jazz band Barbara Thompson’s Jubiaba, led by the famous saxophonist Barbara Thompson.
Another Fine Tune You’ve Got Me Into represents a perfect blend of Canterbury progressive rock and the most refined late-’70s jazz-rock/fusion. Compared to the first album, this record comes across with more mature, fluid and fully instrumental sounds.
The album moves away from classic rock to embrace extended jazz chords, frequent time changes and the geometric structures typical of National Health. Yet it keeps that unmistakable British sound—ironic yet wistful—that fuses academic complexity with melodic lightness.
The Fender Rhodes electric piano and synthesizers (Minimoog) are the leading instruments. Gowen doesn’t chase the virtuoso solo at all costs, but prefers to create delicate, spacious harmonic textures. Lee’s guitar constantly interacts with the keyboards. His style is clean, without big rock distortions, very close to traditional jazz phrasing.
The arrival of the ex-Soft Machine member brings in a deep, warm sound and, when needed, distorted (thanks to the fuzz pedal). His approach adds an almost avant-garde push. Coming from pure jazz, Tomkins doesn’t rely on rock power, but favors an ultra-delicate use of cymbals and agile dynamics, perfect for supporting the odd meters of the pieces.
The music is structured in suites or fragments that interlock with each other. The tracks alternate moments of total improvisation and geometric abstraction (as in T.N.T.F.X.) with more relaxed, dreamy, underwater passages (as in Underwater Song).
The album’s original cover features the famous painting “The Ghost of a Flea” by visionary artist William Blake.
“Another Fine Tune You’ve Got Me Into” is a small cult masterpiece, a refined and elegant artistic testament that represents one of the late peaks of the Canterbury scene. Compared to their 1975 debut album, the pieces composed by Alan Gowen feel more fluid, less jagged, and show a perfect fusion between progressive rock complexity and jazz freedom.
The instrumental dialogue between Gowen’s spacious keyboards and Phil Lee’s jazzy guitar reaches very high levels of precision and delicacy. The addition of Hugh Hopper on bass and Trevor Tomkins on drums gives the record a unique groove. Hopper brings his typical avant-garde darkness, while Tomkins lightens everything with an exquisitely elegant jazz touch.
The album avoids the commercial fusion clichés of the late ’70s, instead creating an intimate, dreamy (as in “Underwater Song”) and intellectual sonic microcosm. Being a fully instrumental album, without choruses or easy melodies, it requires several careful listens to be fully appreciated.
Released in 1978, in the midst of the Punk and New Wave era, this record was overlooked by the general public and the media, remaining confined to a niche of enthusiasts. It’s not an immediate or background album, but a work of extraordinary transition. It represents the ideal bridge between the experimentalism of Soft Machine and the geometric complexity of National Health. For lovers of British jazz-rock, it’s an essential and precious listen.
This work marked the group’s last studio recording. Sadly, Alan Gowen died prematurely, at just 33 years old, on May 17, 1981, due to leukemia, bringing the band to a definitive end. The musical testament of a giant of last century’s music.
Great album.
My Version
Label: Charly Records – CHARLY5009LP
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, Remastered
Country: UK
Release: 2025
Tracklist
A1 Darker Brighter
A2 Bobberty - Theme From Something Else
A3 Waiting
B1 Play Time
B2 Underwater Song
B3 Foel'd Again
B4 T.N.T.F.X.
Lineup
Bass Guitar – Hugh Hopper
Drums – Trevor Tomkins
Guitar – Phil Lee
Keyboards – Alan Gowen
