He was an accomplished instrumentalist and composer, who played keyboards, guitars, drums, bass and cellos, as well as singing vocals. His talents also extended to producer. He toured with Eddie Money before winning the Yamaha songwriting competition with his progressive rock group Giraffe. Producer Patrick Leonard was impressed with Gilbert's performance at the competition and invited him to join him in forming a new band which became Toy Matinee. During this time, Gilbert worked on the projects of several established pop musicians, including Madonna, Michael Jackson and produced Keith Emerson's album Changing States.
The lone Toy Matinee album was released in 1990 but effectively shelved by the record company, so Gilbert assembled a new backing band to promote the album, eventually getting two successful singles released: "The Ballad of Jenny Ledge" and "Last Plane Out".
Later, Gilbert was part of a songwriting collective (called "The Tuesday Music Club") that met at producer Bill Bottrell's studio in Pasadena, California. After he began bringing his then girlfriend Sheryl Crow to the sessions, the result was Crow's debut album, Tuesday Night Music Club. Gilbert co-wrote many of the songs on that album, including 1995 Grammy Record of the Year "All I Wanna Do." Crow later acrimoniously split with most of the musicians in the collective and only Bottrell was involved in her follow-up album. Meanwhile the remainder of the collective worked with singer-songwriters Susanna Hoffs and Linda Perry on two more albums.
Gilbert continued to work in television and movie soundtrack work as well as studio work and producing and eventually released his first solo album Thud(1995) as well as partially reforming Giraffe to perform the Genesis masterpiece "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" at Progfest 94. Gilbert's manager sent a copy of the recording to Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford who were searching for a new Genesis front man to replace Phil Collins. His manager was coming to Gilbert's home to tell him that he had managed to get him an audition when he discovered him dead.
Gilbert's second solo album, The Shaming of the True was released posthumously. The album was largely incomplete, but Gilbert's estate asked Spock's Beard drummer Nick D'Virgilio to complete it based on the extant tapes and Gilbert's notes. A live album (composed mostly of songs from Thud), and a compilation of Giraffe material that Gilbert had been working on and an "industrial" album with Gilbert's latest group, Kaviar have also been released in the years since his death. His estate has promised two more posthumous studio albums and a live performance from Gilbert's promotional group for Toy Matinee.
Discography:
N.R.G. - No Reasons Given (1984)
Giraffe - The Power Of Suggestion (1987)
Giraffe - The View From Here (1989)
Toy Matinee - Toy Matinee (1990; remastered & rereleased 2001)
Sheryl Crow - Tuesday Night Music Club (1993)
Kevin Gilbert - Thud (1995)
Giraffe - Giraffe (1999)
Kevin Gilbert & Thud - Live at the Troubadour (1999)
Kevin Gilbert - The Shaming of the True (2000)
Kaviar - The Kaviar Sessions (2002)
Kevin Gilbert - Nuts (2009)
Kevin Gilbert - Bolts (2009)
Kevin Gilbert - Performs Toy Matinee Live (2010)
Kevin Gilbert - Toy Matinee Acoustic Rehearsal (2014)
Goodness Gracious
Kevin Gilbert Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When the ones that get to keep looking
are the ones that look away
It's pabulum for the sleepers
in the cult of brighter days
Goodness Gracious at the mercy of the crooks
We're broke and stroking vegetables
In every pot a pink slip, In every mouth a hook
Goodness Gracious I'm not listening anymore
Cause the spooks are in the White House
and they've justified a war
So wake me when they notify
we're gonna fight some more
Goodness Gracious not many people care
Concern is getting scarcer
true compassion really rare
I can see it on our faces. I can feel it in the air
Goodness Gracious me.
Goodness Gracious my generation's lost
They burned down all our bridges
before we had a chance to cross
Is it the winter of our discontent or just an early frost?
Goodness Gracious of apathy I sing
The baby boomers had it all and wasted everything
Now recess is almost over
and they won't get off the swing
Goodness Gracious we came in at the end
No sex that isn't dangerous, no money left to spend
We're the cleanup crew for parties
we were too young to attend
Goodness Gracious me.
Goodness Gracious my grandma used to say
The world's a scary place now,
things were different in her day
What horrors will be commonplace
when my hair starts to grey?
The song "Goodness Gracious" by Kevin Gilbert seems to be a social commentary on the state of the world and the current issues that are affecting society. Gilbert points out the lack of concern and compassion among the people, the corrupt politicians in power, and the bleak future for the younger generations. In the first verse, he mentions how people who ignore the problems are the ones who get to keep living in ignorance. They are the ones who look away from the issues rather than face them. The following line about "pabulum for the sleepers in the cult of brighter days" suggests that people are given false hope and fed bland information to keep them pacified, but ultimately oblivious.
The second verse talks about how people are at the mercy of the crooks and corrupt leaders who run the system. The ones who are supposed to help are only making the situation worse by their actions. The line "In every pot a pink slip, In every mouth a hook" seemingly refers to the idea of people losing their jobs and struggling to make ends meet. As for the third verse, Gilbert expresses his disillusionment towards the government and their justification for war. He sees through the propaganda and knows that the real reason for war is often greed and exploitation. The line "So wake me when they notify we're gonna fight some more" suggests that he is tired of the ongoing strife and he is waiting for change.
The fourth verse continues with the theme of the lack of concern among people. Gilbert observes that true compassion is rare and that people have become apathetic towards the world's issues. He can feel the tension in the air and sees it on people's faces. In the fifth verse, he talks about the older generations who had everything and squandered it. They have left the younger generations with a broken world, and they did nothing to fix it. The line "and they won't get off the swing" suggests that the older generations are still trying to hold onto their power and are not willing to give it up.
Finally, in the last verse, Gilbert questions the future and wonders what horrors will be commonplace for future generations. He is concerned about the world the younger generations will inherit and is afraid that things will only get worse as time goes on. Overall, this song seems to be a plea for change, urging people to wake up and take action before it's too late.
Line by Line Meaning
Goodness Gracious is there nothing left to say?
Is there really no more words left to express our pain?
When the ones that get to keep looking
When the privileged people choose to ignore what's happening around them
are the ones that look away
and neglect the suffering of others.
It's pabulum for the sleepers
It's just bland food for those who choose to stay ignorant
in the cult of brighter days
in the society of those who only see positive things and ignore the problems.
Goodness Gracious at the mercy of the crooks
Feeling helpless and vulnerable in the hands of corrupt leaders
We're broke and stroking vegetables
We are poor and trying to make the best of what we have
and there's way too many cooks
with too many people trying to manage things, it's a chaotic world.
In every pot a pink slip, In every mouth a hook
Everyone is either losing their jobs or being trapped in some other way.
Goodness Gracious I'm not listening anymore
Turning a deaf ear to the lies and deception of those in power.
Cause the spooks are in the White House
Government officials involved in dangerous secret schemes have taken control.
and they've justified a war
They have given reasons to invade another country.
So wake me when they notify
I don't even want to be awake for this.
we're gonna fight some more
More battles and wrangling lie ahead.
Goodness Gracious not many people care
People have turned a blind eye to the troubles of the world
Concern is getting scarcer
and showing genuine care for others is becoming more difficult.
true compassion really rare
Real empathy and understanding for others is in short supply.
I can see it on our faces. I can feel it in the air
Sadness and despair is all around us.
Goodness Gracious my generation's lost
We are the lost generation, with no clear path forward.
They burned down all our bridges
The older generation left us with nothing to work with.
before we had a chance to cross
We were left stranded without a way to move forward.
Is it the winter of our discontent or just an early frost?
Are we experiencing a temporary setback or the beginning of a long period of hardship?
Goodness Gracious of apathy I sing
Singing about the numbness and apathy that surrounds us.
The baby boomers had it all and wasted everything
The previous generation had many opportunities but squandered them all.
Now recess is almost over
Our time to recuperate is almost ending.
and they won't get off the swing
The previous generation is still holding on to power and not allowing us to take control.
Goodness Gracious we came in at the end
Feeling like we came into the world too late to have any positive impact.
No sex that isn't dangerous, no money left to spend
All the things that should be safe and enjoyable have become dangerous, and we're left with no financial resources.
We're the cleanup crew for parties
We have to clean up the mess of the previous generation.
we were too young to attend
Even though we weren't even around for most of the events that caused the problems.
Goodness Gracious my grandma used to say
Recalling the wise words of older generations.
The world's a scary place now,
The current state of the world is overwhelming and frightening.
things were different in her day
Life used to be much simpler and easier to deal with.
What horrors will be commonplace
Wondering what terrible things might become the norm.
when my hair starts to grey?
and how much worse things could get by the time I'm old.
Contributed by Wyatt D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.