Hillage moves to kill Gong myths

Steve Hillage wants to dispel the myth that he staged a “coup d’etat” against Daevid Allen over Gong 40 years ago.

Allen, who died in March, left the band in 1975, later restarting it on several occasions. Hillage departed soon after Allen although he returned a number of times.

Hillage tells MusicRadar: “It used to irk me that, when Daevid left the band, people were saying, ‘Steve is the new leader of Gong.’

“But I had nothing to do with Daevid leaving at all. I wasn’t even around at the time – I was finishing the Fish Rising album. But people were talking like I’d made some sort of coup d’etat, which was absolutely not the case.”

He wants to set another point straight regarding Gong. “There’s a live album called Gong Est Mort, based on a Paris concert we did in 1977. It was a kind of brief reunion and my face on the artwork is whited out.

“A lot of people think it’s because I had some sort of nuclear row with Daevid – and it’s absolutely not true.”

Gong, now fronted by Kavus Torabi, are set to tour the UK in October. Hillage’s System 7 play five dates later this year:

Oct 16: Reykjavik Hurra, Iceland Oct 28: London Jazz Cafe Nov 21: Manchester Megadog 30th anniversary Nov 26: Nottingham Rescue Rooms Nov 27: Southampton Talking Heads

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Not only is one-time online news editor Martin an established rock journalist and drummer, but he’s also penned several books on music history, including SAHB Story: The Tale of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, a band he once managed, and the best-selling Apollo Memories about the history of the legendary and infamous Glasgow Apollo. Martin has written for Classic Rock and Prog and at one time had written more articles for Louder than anyone else (we think he's second now). He’s appeared on TV and when not delving intro all things music, can be found travelling along the UK’s vast canal network.