The Long Hello -

The Long Hello was a side-project put together in 1972 by instrumentalists from a temporarily halted Van der Graaf Generator. The project yielded one album of haunting instrumental music before VDGG regrouped for a second go-round.

After VDGG folded a second time, the Long Hello name reappeared with different personnel for three additional albums during the early 1980s.

Members: David Jackson (saxophone, flute), Hugh Banton (keyboards, 1974), Nic Potter (bass, 1974, 1980), Guy Evans (drums), Ced Curtis (guitar, 1974), Piero Messina (guitar, piano, 1974), Giles Perring (piano, guitar, 1980, 1983), Chris Barnes (guitar, 1982), Dave Anderson (bass, 1982), Jakko M. Jakszyk (guitar, 1982), Nic Graham (bass, 1982), Peter Hammill (vocals, guitar, 1982), Chris Kerridge (guitar, 1983), Dave Sawyer (percussion, 1983), Dayne Kranenburgh (bass, 1983), Harry Williamson (guitar, vocals, keyboards, 1983)

Background

The Long Hello formed around drummer Guy Evans during the first Van der Graaf Generator break, triggered by the mid-1972 exit of Peter Hammill. Saxophonist–flutist David Jackson and organist–engineer Hugh Banton came from the classic VDGG quartet behind the 1970/71 albums H to He Who Am the Only One and Pawn Hearts. Bassist Nic Potter returned from an earlier VDGG iteration that produced The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other. Italian guitarist–keyboardist Pietro Messina and guitarist–bassist Ced Curtis completed the first recording group.

Evans and Foel Studios founder Dave Anderson provided the Welsh recording base for the project. The group recorded seven instrumentals during August 1973 at Foel, with Evans as producer and Banton as engineer. United Artists issued the resulting album in Italy under The Long Hello nameplate.

The Long Hello

The Long Hello released their self-titled debut album in 1974 on United Artists in Italy.

Long Hello contains seven instrumentals, with five David Jackson titles, one Pietro Messina piece, one Hugh Banton piece, and one Jackson–Messina co-write. Jackson leads the record through saxophone, flute, and piano, with Messina and Ced Curtis as the guitar presence. Potter supplies the main bass role. Banton works mainly as engineer, apart from bass on “The Obsession” and a solo multi-instrumental role on “Brain Seizure.”

“Fairhazel Gardens” glides through calm saxophone lines and Messina’s acoustic-guitar underlay. “Lookin’ At You” slips from a brief experimental opening into an acoustic folk-like tune with layered reed lines. “I’ve Lost My Cat” drifts through a flute-led first section before Messina’s acoustic figure quickens the passage.

“The Theme From ‘Plunge’” courses through jazzy turns and funkier movement, with Messina stepping into a featured guitar passage. “The O Flat Session” scrapes through raw, musique-concrète-like squeals and unsettled studio space. “Morris To Cape Rath” leans into jazzier ensemble motion. “Brain Seizure” runs Banton’s baroque electronic sequence through synthesizer figures and studio effects.

A1. “Fairhazel Gardens” (7:56) – Jackson, Messina
A2. “Looking At You” (6:16) – Jackson
A3. “I’ve Lost My Cat” (8:28) – Jackson

B1. “The Theme From ‘Plunge’” (5:31) – Jackson
B2. “The Obsession” (5:32) – Messina
B3. “Morris To Cape Wrath” (6:33) – Jackson
B4. “Brain Seizure” (4:01) – Banton

Sessions occurred during August 1973 at Foel Studios in Cefn Coch, Montgomeryshire, where Evans and Banton respectively produced and engineered the album, mixed collectively at Chalk Farm Studios in London during the following year.

The Long Hello features cover art by Paolo Paglia. The United Artists sleeve presents a painted road-and-sky image below the artist and title line.

Philips lifted “Brain Seizure” as a 1977 French single backed with “The Theme From ‘Plunge.’”

Banton, Evans, and Jackson rejoined Peter Hammill for the second Van der Graaf Generator phase. The quartet cut Godbluff, Still Life, and World Record before Banton and Jackson left the lineup. Evans continued with the shortened Van der Graaf on The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome and Vital, which returned Potter to the bass role. Potter also appeared on Hammill’s Over and resumed outside session activity before the next Long Hello release.

The Long Hello Volume Two

Nic Potter and Guy Evans released the second Long Hello album in 1981 on Butt.

Volume Two reduces the project to a Potter–Evans axis, with Jackson on the first side and Giles Perring on “Hidden Drive.” Potter wrote side one; Evans and Potter share the first two side-two titles before Evans closes the LP with three solo credits. The arrangements use bass themes, short reed statements, percussion cells, and synthesizer parts in compact instrumental forms.

“Surfing With Isabelle” drives through a compact fusion figure with brisk instrumental motion. “Elsham Road” skips along Potter’s bouncing bass line, lead-synth figure, Jackson’s reed entry, and a brief guitar break. “Dolphins” flickers through beat-box motion, cheap-synth figures, and saxophone inserts. “Carnival” grinds through fuzzed guitar, heavy bass, and stray studio noises. “Broken Chain” settles into acoustic guitar and flute lines.

“Hidden Drive” rattles across Evans’s percussive underlay while Potter scatters synth and guitar figures. “Indian” tightens the Evans–Potter side into a more structured passage with several synth parts and an ominous bass figure. “Zen” and “Agua Blanca” lean into Evans’s percussion-heavy experiments. “Welcombe Mouth” drifts through ambient space, Jackson’s saxophone line, and Evans’s sea recording.

A1. “Surfing With Isabelle” (4:06) – Potter
A2. “Elsham Road” (3:30) – Potter
A3. “Dolphins” (3:21) – Potter
A4. “Carnival” (2:48) – Potter
A5. “Broken Chain” (2:30) – Potter

B1. “Hidden Drive” (2:14) – Evans, Potter
B2. “Indian” (3:36) – Evans, Potter
B3. “Zen” (3:05) – Evans
B4. “Agua Blanca” (4:06) – Evans
B5. “Welcombe Mouth” (2:40) – Evans

Potter and Evans recorded and mixed The Long Hello Volume Two at Hidden Drive Studios, Pyworthy Rectory, near Holsworthy, North Devon, with Evans as engineer and Nigel Mazlyn-Jones as assistant engineer. Evans and Potter produced the album for Butt.

Chris Harris prepared the cover artwork, and Anton Corbijn photographed the sleeve. The front cover presents a blue field with vertical yellow characters and small red title text.

Butt lifted “Dolphins” as a UK single in August 1981, backed with “Welcombe Mouth.”

Evans and Potter moved next into Peter Hammill’s K Group circle, where Potter used the stage name Mozart. Evans appears on Hammill albums from Sitting Targets through Patience. Potter joined Enter K, Patience, and the live The Margin. Jackson developed the third Long Hello volume as a solo-led studio project with Evans, Hammill, and Jakko M. Jakszyk in the guest circle.

The Long Hello Volume Three

David Jackson released the third Long Hello album, The Long Hello Volume Three, in 1982 on Butt.

The album places the nameplate under Jackson’s direction. Evans returns on drums, while Peter Hammill contributes organ and keyboard sounds to “Jacko And The Polar Bear.” The wider group includes bassist Dave Anderson, guitarist Chris Barnes, bassist–twelve-string guitarist Nic Graham, electronic drummer John Clarke, and singer–multi-instrumentalist Jakko M. Jakszyk. Hammill co-wrote “The Honing Of Homer,” and Jakszyk co-wrote “Sogni D’Oro [Sweet Dreams].”

“Jacko and the Polar Bear” winds a folksy tune through Jacob Jackson’s sung part, an odd-meter riff, and Hammill’s atonal organ stabs. “Dr. Mop” rides a rhythm-box pattern under Brian Evans’s sung line, Anderson’s bass figure, and Jackson’s rough reed lead. “Mayday Mayday” recasts the same direct track language as a rhythm-box instrumental. “Sogni D’Oro” stretches Jakszyk’s sung entry across steady electronic-kit motion and ethereal instrumental passages.

“Stonewall Stands With Thomas Davies” skips through playful whistle figures and reed exchanges. “Sometimes I Do, Sometimes I Don’t” glides on Graham’s bass part beneath Jackson’s saxophone lead. “Range Change” threads cheap keyboard tones and rhythm-box motion under Jackson’s reed lines. “The Honing Of Homer” twists Jakszyk’s sung line through direct sections and stranger Jackson–Hammill turns.

A1. “Jacko And The Polar Bear” (3:30) – Jackson
A2. “Dr. Mop” (4:48) – Jackson
A3. “May Day, May Day” (3:44) – Jackson
A4. “Sogni D’Oro [Sweet Dreams]” (7:50) – Jackson, Jakszyk

B1. “Stonewall Stands With Thomas Davies” (4:15) – Jackson
B2. “Sometimes I Do Sometimes I Don’t” (4:04) – Jackson
B3. “Range Change” (4:48) – Jackson
B4. “The Honing Of Homer” (5:47) – Jackson, Hammill

Sessions spanned September 1979 through November 1981 across Hidden Drive, Roof, Sofa Sound, Norton’s Noise, Graham’s Groove, Foel Studios, and Crescent Studios, with Dave Anderson as engineer and mixer. Gary Lucas, John Goodman, and Mike Kemp added engineering to selected tapes.

Anton Corbijn photographed the front cover, which shows Jackson posed with saxophones and a flute against a pale ground. Sue Jackson assembled the rear-cover collage.

Jackson followed the album with Stiff-era singles beside Jakko M. Jakszyk. Evans worked around Mother Gong, Didier Malherbe, and Life of Riley, where Harry Williamson, Giles Perring, Chris Kerridge, Dave Sawyer, and Dayne Kranenburgh entered the Long Hello network.

The Long Hello Volume Four

Guy Evans with Life of Riley and David Jackson released the fourth Long Hello album, The Long Hello Volume Four, in 1983 on Shanghai.

The album rebuilds the project around Evans, Jackson, and Life of Riley. Perring, Kerridge, Sawyer, Kranenburgh, Williamson, and Paul Schubert divide guitar, bass, piano, paper drums, percussion, and auxiliary sound devices. The program uses thirteen short instrumentals, several built from percussion parts and brief saxophone or flute entries.

“Der Traum von Julius” uncoils through strange intervals and Jackson’s mysterious reed tones. “Martha’s Express Wishes” drives through fast percussion and an active bass figure. “The Finger Points” skips through a whimsical percussive pattern and light guitar commentary. “Haben Sie Waffen Oder Funk Dabei?” revisits the “Martha’s Express Wishes” material through glissando-guitar treatment.

A1. “Holsworthy Market Place” (2:02) – Perring
A2. “Trick or Treat” (3:46) – Evans
A3. “Der Traum Von Julius [The Dream of Julius]” (4:39) – Perring
A4. “The Rock of Riley” (3:55) – Evans
A5. “The Caretaker’s Wife” (6:33) – Jackson, Perring, Evans
A6. “The Wonderful Brothers” (2:43) – Sawyer, Perring, Evans

B1. “Martha’s Express Wishes” (3:05) – Evans
B2. “Hamburg Station” (2:35) – Sawyer, Evans, Williamson
B3. “Solo Kabine [Solo Cabin]” (0:46) – Evans
B4. “The Finger Points” (2:20) – Kerridge, Perring, Evans
B5. “Haben Sie Waffen Oder Funk Dabei? [Do You Have Weapons Or Radio Equipment With You?]” (1:57) – Evans, Williamson
B6. “Slow Slither Loop” (2:59) – Sawyer, Evans, Williamson
B7. “My Feet Are Freezing But My Knees Are Warm” (3:49) – Evans

Sessions occurred between November 1981 and August 1982 at Otter Studio, Oxe’s Cross, Devon, with Evans and Williamson as producers and Williamson as engineer. “The Rock of Riley” originated at Hidden Drive Studio in Pyworthy and received overdubs at Otter.

The Long Hello Volume Four appeared in a Shanghai sleeve with pictures by Giles Perring and Harry Williamson. The cover shows a monochrome landscape with a central dark form, water reflection, small lower-edge figures, and magenta title text.

Postlude

Jackson, Banton, and Evans reunited under their surnames for Gentlemen Prefer Blues, issued in 1985 on Demi Monde. Jackson remained active through the Jakszyk singles, Sarah Jane Morris sessions, Magic Mushroom Band albums, Judge Smith’s DemocraZy, and the 1992 solo album Tonewall Stands.

Evans moved through Mother Gong, Amon Düül UK, Nigel Mazlyn Jones, Peter Blegvad, Frank Tovey, Kazue Sawai, and the Anthony Phillips–Harry Williamson project Tarka. His percussion network also led into Echo City, whose albums Gramophone and The Sound of Music reached release before the mid-Nineties.

Potter built a parallel Zomart catalogue with Mountain Music, Sketches In Sound, Self Contained, The Blue Zone, The Blue Zone Party, and New Europe–Rainbow Colours. He also remained in Hammill’s orbit through The Margin, Out Of Water, Room Temperature, Fireships, The Noise, and Offensichtlich Goldfisch.

Banton concentrated on electronic church-organ design after the second VDGG phase and founded The Organ Workshop in the early Nineties. Williamson, Perring, Kerridge, and Sawyer remained connected through the Mother Gong, Life of Riley, and Echo City circles.

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