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
You Can't Kill Me
Gong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You can kill my son
You can kill my children
With a gun...
You can kill my family
My family tree
You can kill my body, baby...
But you can't kill me
My lord, I love you...
My lord, I love you...
Now you're here...
Then you're gone...
Night and day...
Right and wrong...
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want...
I'll be seein' you again
I'll be bein' you again
I'll be dreamin' you again
Again and again and again
I see you sittin' there on your old back veranda
You got your shady lady and waltzing Matilda
You're really only me if you'd only remember
The song "You Can't Kill Me" by Gong is a powerful and emotional ballad that speaks about the resilience of the human spirit in the face of tragedy and loss. The lyrics speak to the idea that while one's physical body and even family can be destroyed, the essence of who they are and their connection to a higher power cannot be extinguished. The verses speak directly to the loss of loved ones, with lines like "You can kill my father, You can kill my son, You can kill my children with a gun..." conveying just how devastating such losses can be. However, the chorus reminds us that while these losses may feel like the end of the world, we are ultimately more than just our physical bodies; "But you can't kill me, my lord I love you..."
In addition to exploring themes of loss, the song also touches on the fleeting nature of life and how we must try to make the most of the time we have. Lines like "Now you're here, then you're gone, night and day, right and wrong" speak to the impermanence of existence and how things can change in the blink of an eye. The repetition of the line "You can do what you want" in the bridge serves as a reminder that while we cannot control the actions of others or the circumstances of our lives, we can control our own response to them.
Line by Line Meaning
You can kill my father
No matter what you do to my family roots or ancestors, you will not be able to kill me.
You can kill my son
Even if you target my offspring or someone I cherish, you still won't be able to take my life.
You can kill my children with a gun...
Using deadly force to take my loved ones away won't make me lose my own life.
You can kill my family, my family tree
No matter how many generations of my family you get rid of, you will not succeed in taking my life or existence.
You can kill my body, baby...
Even if you physically harm me, I will still remain alive and unbroken in spirit.
But you can't kill me, my lord, I love you...
No matter the trials or hardships thrown my way, my faith in God remains unshaken and I will not be defeated completely.
Now you're here, then you're gone...
Life is fleeting and unpredictable, with moments of presence followed by absence that can't be controlled.
Night and day, right and wrong...
There are opposing forces at play in the world, with darkness and light, good and evil constantly clashing.
You can do what you want...
Others may try to control me or make me fall in line, but ultimately I have the power to make my own choices.
I'll be seein' you again, I'll be bein' you again, I'll be dreamin' you again, again and again and again
Memories, good and bad, linger in my mind and heart and come back to me repeatedly.
I see you sittin' there on your old back veranda, you got your shady lady and waltzing Matilda, you're really only me if you'd only remember...
I am reminded that no one is really different from each other and that we should all come together, regardless of our background or differences.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ALLEN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@primeracalledelasoledad8439
Well, you can kill my father, you can kill my son
You can kill my children with a gun
You can kill my family, my family tree
You can kill my body, baby
You can kill my body, baby
But you can't kill me
My lord, I love you
My lord, I love you
Now you're here, then you're gone
Night and day, right and wrong
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
I'll be seein' you again
I'll be bein' you again
I'll be dreamin' you again
'Gain and again and 'gain
I see you sittin' there on your old back veranda
You got your Shady Lady and Waltzing Matilda
I only wanna know if you really remember
You're really only me in a ......... banana
I see you sittin' there on your old back veranda
You got your Shady Lady and Waltzing Matilda
I only wanna know if you really remember
You're really only me in a ......... banana
I'll be seein' you again
I'll be bein' you again
I'll be dreamin' you again
'Gain and again and again
I'll be seein' you again
I'll be bein' you again
I'll be dreamin' you again
'Gain and again and again
(repeat)
One for the pleasure and one for the fame
Little place for heaven, around again
You can kill my father, you can kill my son
You can kill my children with a gun
You can kill my family, my family tree
You can kill my body, baby
You can kill my body, baby
But you can't kill me
My lord, I love you
My lord, I love you
Now you're here, then you're gone
Night and day, right and wrong
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
@sirhcxranov3567
You can kill my father
You can kill my son
You can kill my children
With a gun...
You can kill my family
My family tree
You can kill my body, baby...
You can kill my body, baby...
But you can't kill me
My lord, I love you...
My lord, I love you...
Now you're here...
Then you're gone...
Night and day...
Right and wrong...
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want
You can do what you want...
I'll be seein' you again
I'll be bein' you again
I'll be dreamin' you again
Again and again and again
I see you sittin' there on your old back veranda
You got your shady lady and waltzing Matilda
You're really only me if you'd only remember
@dreadsam
My send out song. always said mi want this playing in mi funereal doings when I zooming thru to zion Iyah 🙏🏽💛❤️💚🔥💚💛❤️✡️💪🏿🦁💥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
@justinoldmusician5321
I was in a band many years ago and as it normally goes, each band member made up a list of the songs they wanted the band to do. We were a pretty good band, too. I knew the guitar player from a previous association, but all of the other members were picks out of the blue. We had a high school kid in the band who was a damn musical genius. He could jam on flute, sax or trumpet with relative ease. It was amazing to see. He didn't seem to have much of a personality other than that, but after all, he was still in high school. I'd like to know where he is today. It would be interesting to see where he's gone in music from such an astounding beginning.
Anyway, the drummer wanted to do a song by Gong called Oily Way. It was the first I'd ever heard of Gong. I think he chose the song, because it was one of the easier songs of theirs to play. We did a damn good job of it, too. That high school kid really stood out on flute and sax in that song. I once had a tape of us doing Oily Way, but can't find it. That's how it usually goes...something so classic that you want to find, always seems to elude you.
Any time I get around a bunch of musicians, I try to bring up the band Gong. It never ceases to amaze me how few people with otherwise great musical chops have heard of them. It's sad, really. And to think that I may have been one of those, if I hadn't been in that band with a drummer who HAD heard of Gong.
@DominiqueVanheusden
Justin Oldmusician They don’t drink flying tea
@timnicktion9744
few musicians know gong, and even less "normal people". it never ceases to amaze me. im ok with it being "our little secret", but i still preach Gong to everyone i meet. i must sound insane to them hah. i dont care. they can't kill me
@richardnorris9184
I'm with you. Bought the album in the 70s and have loved it ever since. Can't understand why it isn't better known. Also check out Vive La Trance by Amon Duul 2. Very similar vibes.
@ignamax08
You can kill his body baby ! But you can't kill this magnificent masterpiece !
@edwardgivenscomposer
My lord I love you!
@fantasypgatour
Hey cancer, you can kill Daevid's body, but you can't kill him!
@TheHardcoreStu
unfortunately it got him in the end :( RIP Daevid X
@ALotOfBottle
Daevid and Gilli will always be present in my heart... We'll all meet on planet Gong one day - a peaceful place, reverbrating notes of Gong's quirky cosmic jazz-rock.