Darkness (11/11) ('68)



1968 Written by Peter Hammill in London.

Recordings:

1969 VdGG Trident Studios London December 11-14 1969 for "The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other" LP
1970 VdGG Maida Vale Studio, BBC Top Gear Session 4 January 27, 1970
1970 VdGG Kensington House, Alan Black Session June 10, 1970
2005 VdGG Royal Festival Hall (released on Real Time cd (2007)

Releases:

1970 "The Least We Can Is Wave To Each Other." LP (UK/USA) (February '70)
1972 VdGG '68-71' compilation
1975 Reflection compilation (Fontana)
1986 First Generation 2 cd's (Compilation)(Virgin)
1994 VdGG BBC Maida Vale Sessions (1)
1999 "Typical" Solo (Live)
2000 VdGG The Box compilation (BBC Jan 27, 1970)
2005 "The Least We Can Is Wave To Each Other." Remastered cd
2007 VdGG Real Time (Live) cd
2012 "Pno, Gtr, Vox, Box" Live box set (Solo)

Radio sessions:

1) June 10, 1971 "Sounds of The Seventies" The Alan Black Session: Studio 1 BBC at Kensington House, Sheperds Bush.
(Theme one/Darkness/Man-Erg (first broadcast June 25, 1971) and Vision (Peter Hammill/Hugh Banton) (first broadcast July 23, 1971
(Released on Maida Vale sessions)(1994)

2) January 27, 1970 Top Gear BBC, Maida Vale Studio 4, (Broadcast Feb 7, 1970)(Darkness/After The Flood)
(Included on "The Box") (2000)

In Concert:

1970-1972 VdGG Europe/UK Including Bern, Switzerland.
1974 Trio (Peter Hammill/Hugh Banton/David Jackson)
1975 VdGG
1976 VdGG
1992 Solo
2005 VdGG Reunion Tour
2010 Solo

Television:

1970 Bremen Beat Club April 5, 1970.

"A song of numbers: although I am no numerologist, the circumstances of writing this highly instinctual song dictated its form and direction.
It was composed on the night of 11th November, 1968, Remembrance Day, by chance. Some years before I wrote a novel which purported (with devastating failure) to be an Icelandic saga; on re-reading it, some time after finishing these lyrics, I was struck by the opening sentence: 'It was the eleventh day of the eleventh month.' November is, of course, the month of Scorpio, under which sign I was born, and my life number is 11. It was, I suppose, inevitable that a song about fate should be wrought amid these conjunctions. To this day I do not know how Hereward the Wake came to be involved."

PH from "Killers, Angels, Refugees" ('74)