They were formed in 1967, after Allen - then a member of Soft Machine - was denied entry to the United Kingdom due to a visa complication. Allen remained in France where he and a London-born Sorbonne professor, Gilli Smyth, established the first incarnation of Gong. This band fragmented during the 1968 student revolution, with Allen and Smyth forced to flee France for Deià in Majorca.
They found a saxophonist, Didier Malherbe living in a cave in Deià, before film director Jerome La Perrousaz invited the band back to France to record the soundtracks to his movies. They were subsequently approached by the newly formed independent label BYG and signed up for two albums (Magick Brother/Mystic Sister, Camembert Electrique and Allen's solo album Bananamoon.
Gong played at the first Glastonbury Festival and were subsequently one of the first acts to sign to Virgin Records, getting first pick of the studio-time ahead of Mike Oldfield. By 1971, a regular line-up had established itself, and Gong released their Camembert Electrique album. The UK release, put out by Virgin Records subsidiary Caroline Records in 1974, was priced at 49p (i.e. the price of a typical single rather than an album), ensuring that sufficient numbers were sold for the album to chart (had it not been barred from the charts for being so cheap).
Between 1973 and 1974 Gong, now augmented by bass player Mike Howlett and guitarist Steve Hillage, released their Radio Gnome Trilogy — three records that expounded upon the (previously only hinted at) Gong mythology — starting with Flying Teapot and Angel's Egg both released in 1973, and You in 1974. At a gig in Cheltenham, in 1975, Allen refused to go on stage, claiming that a "wall of force" was preventing him. He left the band, as did Smyth, who wanted to spend more time with her two children. The band also lost keyboard player Tim Blake, replaced by Patrice Lemoine.
The band continued under the control of drummer Pierre Moerlen in order to fulfil contractual obligations, touring the UK in November 1975 (as documented on the 2005 release Live in Sherwood Forest '75) and working on their next album Shamal, but Hillage and Miquette Giraudy left before Shamal was released in 1976. (They re-joined the band briefly for a 1977 live reunion.) Gong morphed into a jazz rock outfit, renamed Pierre Moerlen's Gong after the departure of Didier Malherbe in 1976. This group reformed without Moerlen in the early 1990s as Gongzilla.
The Gong mythology, however, continued from the late seventies up until the nineties in Allen's solo work, and with bands such as Euterpe and Planet Gong (a collaboration with Here & Now), while Smyth formed a separate band, Mother Gong.
In 1992, Allen and Malherbe reformed Gong and released the album Shapeshifter, subsequently dubbed "Radio Gnome, Part 4". In 2000, a 5th installment: Zero to Infinity was released, featuring Smyth, and classic line-up bassist Mike Howlett. However 2004 saw a radical new Gong line-up including current member Kawabata Makoto and former member Cotton Casino from Acid Mothers Temple. Allen and Smyth's son Orlando Allen joined on drums for the album Acid Motherhood.
Gong (Gong Ge) is a Chinese pop artist. Use 宫阁
Prostitute Poem
Gong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's not night
I'm happy
I'm not happy
I'm sad
I'm not sad
It's early
Je marche
Je marche pas
Bonsoir monsieur
Tu viens avec moi ?
Tu viens mon cheri ?
Oui monsieur, viens
Tu es pret ?
Viens...
Ca m'est egal
What do you want me to do?
Je veux - je veux pas
I touch you - et see'est dur monsieur
It's not like that
I'll show you...
Show you love... love...
Let me sink...
Ohhh...
Je dois manger - n'importe quoi
I break off the corner of your mind and eat it
I'm eating your mind
I'm eating your body
Viens ici ici
Come I want your body
Viens, viens faire l'amour
Faire l'amour
Faire l'amour
Come into my arms
I kiss your lips
You die
I want your body
I do not want your body
De quoi s'agit-il ?
Bonne nuit - good night
Bonjour - mornin'
It's night - it's day
It's morning
see'est ca, non?
The Gong song, "Prostitute Poem," is a haunting and ambiguous exploration of desire, loneliness, and the blurry line between day and night, pleasure and pain. The lyrics, delivered in a whispery, breathless voice, suggest a series of encounters between a prostitute and her client or clients, but the narrative is fragmented and fragmented, and it's hard to tell what's real and what's imagined.
The song's opening lines, "It is night / It's not night / I'm happy / I'm not happy," set the tone for the song's enigmatic fluctuation between states of mind and time. The singer seems to be searching for something, and the men she encounters offer a kind of temporary solace, albeit with high stakes. At one point, she says, "I'll show you love...love...Let me sink..." which suggests a desire to lose herself in the act of intimacy, but it's also a plea for release from her own pain and confusion.
In the final lines, the prostitute bids her clients goodbye, using both French and English phrases interchangeably. It's unclear whether she's content or resigned or simply moving on to the next encounter.
Line by Line Meaning
It is night
I want to engage in illicit activities that are typically conducted under the cover of darkness.
It's not night
This is an excuse to continue with our business even when it is not appropriate.
I'm happy
I have been paid well and I am content with the situation.
I'm not happy
I feel disrespected or undervalued for what I am doing.
I'm sad
I am aware of the emotional toll that my profession is taking on me.
I'm not sad
I am trying to detach myself from the reality of my situation.
It's early
I am still in the early stages of the transaction, and I am feeling optimistic.
It's late
The situation has gone too far, and I want it to be over soon.
Je marche
I am walking along the street, trying to attract potential clients.
Je marche pas
I have stopped, either because I am tired or because I have found a client.
Bonsoir monsieur
I am greeting a man who is walking by, hoping that he will be interested in my services.
Tu viens avec moi ?
I am inviting the man to come with me, insinuating that he will enjoy himself.
Tu viens mon cheri ?
I am addressing the man in an affectionate manner, in order to make him feel special and wanted.
Oui monsieur, viens
The man has agreed to my invitation, and I am leading him to a secluded spot.
Tu es pret ?
I am asking if the man is prepared, and if there is anything specific that he wants me to do.
Viens...
I am coaxing the man to come closer, so that we can start our business.
Ca m'est egal
I am indifferent to the personal preferences of my clients, as long as they are willing to pay.
What do you want me to do?
This is an attempt to ascertain the exact desires of the client, so that I can provide a personalized service.
Je veux - je veux pas
I am refusing to perform a certain act, which I find too degrading or unsafe.
I touch you - et see'est dur monsieur
I am touching the client in a tentative manner, and he is finding it difficult to maintain his composure.
It's not like that
I am trying to emphasize that what we are doing is a business transaction, and that there are no emotional strings attached.
I'll show you...
I am teasing the client with the possibility of something new or exciting.
Show you love... love...
I am trying to convince the client that what we are doing is an expression of intimacy and affection.
Let me sink...
I am suggesting that the client should abandon himself to pleasure, and trust me to take care of everything else.
Ohhh...
This is an expression of pleasure and excitement, meant to encourage the client to continue.
Je dois manger - n'importe quoi
I am indicating that I will accept any kind of client, regardless of their age, appearance, or personal attributes.
I break off the corner of your mind and eat it
I am trying to establish a psychological connection with the client, and to make him feel vulnerable and dependent on me.
I'm eating your mind
I am manipulating the client's emotions and thoughts, in order to get him to do what I want him to do.
I'm eating your body
I am physically consuming the pleasures and sensations of the client's body, and assimilating them into my own experience.
Viens ici ici
I am coaxing the client to come closer to me, as a way of establishing a more intense and intimate connection.
Come I want your body
I am expressing my desire for the client's physical presence, and my willingness to satisfy his desires in return.
Viens, viens faire l'amour
I am using the French expression for making love, in order to create a sense of romanticism and tenderness.
Faire l'amour
This is a reference to the act of sexual intercourse, implying that it is an expression of spiritual harmony and emotional bonding.
Come into my arms
I am inviting the client to embrace me, and to feel safe and protected in my arms.
I kiss your lips
I am using physical intimacy as a way of establishing a genuine connection with the client, and of showing him that I care.
You die
This is a reference to the moment of climax, which is both an ecstatic and a fatal experience.
I want your body
This is a statement of desire and ownership, indicating that I have established a sense of intimacy and possession over the client.
I do not want your body
This is a way of breaking the emotional connection with the client, and of indicating that the transaction is over.
De quoi s'agit-il ?
This is a question of clarification, indicating that I want to know exactly what the client wants me to do.
Bonne nuit - good night
This is a way of saying goodbye to the client, wishing him a restful and peaceful night.
Bonjour - mornin'
This is a way of greeting the client in the morning, and of implying that our previous transaction took place in a different time and mood.
It's night - it's day
This is a way of indicating that our transaction has come to an end, and that we exist in different worlds of social convention and emotional stability.
It's morning
This is a way of asserting that life goes on, despite what happened during the night, and that we are free to choose our own paths and identities.
see'est ca, non?
This is a rhetorical question, indicating that my profession is both simple and complex, and that it encompasses many different emotions, motivations, and experiences.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: HILLAGE, SMYTH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@brunoaguilar9337
It is night
It's not night
I'm happy
I'm not happy
I'm sad
I'm not sad
It's early
It's late
Je marche
Je marche pas
Bonsoir monsieur
Tu viens avec moi ?
Tu viens mon cheri ?
Oui monsieur, viens
Tu es pret ?
Viens...
Ca m'est egal
What do you want me to do?
Je veux - je veux pas
I touch you - et see'est dur monsieur
It's not like that
I'll show you...
Show you love... love...
Let me sink...
Ohhh...
Je dois manger - n'importe quoi
I break off the corner of your mind and eat it
I'm eating your mind
I'm eating your body
Viens ici ici
Come I want your body
Viens, viens faire l'amour
Faire l'amour
Faire l'amour
Come into my arms
I kiss your lips
You die
I want your body
I do not want your body
De quoi s'agit-il ?
Bonne nuit - good night
Bonjour - mornin'
It's night - it's day
It's morning
see'est ca, non?
@RokesEnduro
Gong Forever !!! Che capolavoro !!!
Peccato per quelli che sono nati dopo...
Ma chi ha orecchie ascolti, (ed apprezzi)!
@chrisgamble4939
I feel exactly the same way
@Burt472
Ho ascoltato ( da decenni) ed ho apprezzato........
@85nachox85
Gong sigue vivo, y tocando <3 Siempre estuvieron y estarán. Daevid ahora sigue tocando con los Octave Doctors en el más allá
@Misterknock
@EtieneyOssip This Gong's song warm me when I'm alone at home !
@laurachilders4740
I did a 16 mm B/W film and used this song as the soundtrack about 20 years ago.....
@user-ml6tb2xl9w
Sei fantastica, usare questo genere psicadelico a livelli, nucleare, e il brano in waltz. È il racconto. presentato, sono io... Domando. Ai poss. Di riversare il 16 mm? Pura, curiosità, di job. MI fai sapere?
@tulsydevi
lo mejor de lo mejor de Gong
@elsykilmister
Hermosa canción.
@Burt472
Masterpiece