Although he had made the
album completely on his own
terms, Gabriel was forced to
make some compromises upon
its completion.
Firstly, the record company
refused to allow him to release
the LP with the title Peter Gabriel
as he had his previous four
albums. Secondly, they wanted
to include a photograph of him
on the cover. Realising he had
made the album with the
intention of it being heard by a
mass audience, Gabriel
begrudgingly agreed, naming it
So on account of it being an
empty and meaningless word
and it looking good on the cover
graphically. It was featured
prominently on the Peter
Saville-designed sleeve in a bold
typeface alongside a black and
white portrait of Gabriel inspired
by David Bailey’s 60s images.
“I was made to go with Peter
Saville’s idea for a retro-style
portrait as I was told my usual
obscure LP sleeves alienated
women,” Gabriel later said.Released in May 1986, So
received a warm reception from
critics who praised its
songwriting and fusion of styles
to include elements of World
music (Paul Simon’s Graceland
followed three months later).
Commercially, the album was by
far Gabriel’s greatest success,
topping the UK charts and
reaching No.2 in the US,
spawning transatlantic hit singles
in Sledgehammer, Big Time,
Don’t Give Up, Red Rain and In
Your Eyes.
So propelled Gabriel to a
global level of fame he hadn’t
experienced to date, either solo
or with Genesis, and saw him
showered with awards, become
an MTV mainstay and embark
on his mammoth This Way Up
world tour as well as playing
benefit shows for Amnesty
International and Human Rights
Now!. With sales of over seven
million copies, So saw Peter
Gabriel hit the big time, a
success made even sweeter as
he did so on his own terms.CLASSIC ALBUM SO
THE VIDEOS
SLEDGEHAMMER
Director Stephen R Johnson
A collaboration between
Stephen R Johnson and
Aardman Animations, the
shoot required Gabriel to
lie under a sheet of glass
for 16 hours while the visual
spectacular was created
around him. The video took a
week of post-production to arrive at the finished product – which
included dancing chickens, swimming sperm and Gabriel in a
myriad bizarre sequences.
Still the most-played promo of all time on MTV, Sledgehammer
was a benchmark in the world of videos and is still the most
critically successful, picking up Brits, Grammys and a record nine
MTV Awards in 1987. youtu.be/OJWJE0x7T4QBIG TIME
Director Stephen R Johnson
Having set a precedent with
Sledgehammer, Peter once
again called upon Stephen R
Johnson to helm a video which
would create a similar impact.
Also utilising the latest visual
techniques of stop-motion
Claymation and strata-cut
animation from David Daniels, with art direction from artist
Wayne White, the video took weeks of post-production to bring
the effects-laden clip to life. Big Time is the second of a trilogy
between Peter and Stephen, which concluded with Steam in 19 9 2.
youtu.be/PBAl9cchQacRED RAIN
Director Matt Mahurin
In contrast to the everything-
but-the-kitchen-sink,
kaleidoscopic clips given to
Sledgehammer and Big Time,
Red Rain is notable in its
simplicity, consisting mainly of
a straightforward performance
of the song by Gabriel,
bathed in appropriate overcast grey hues, intercut with dancers
performing with balletic flair and a blood red desert floor. Having
been painted, doused in water and encased in a Perspex coffin for
previous videos, Peter said it was a relief to shoot a video in which
all he had to do was sing. youtu.be/FkLTwX0duY4DON’T GIVE UP
Directors Godley & Creme
The simple-but-effective result
showed Gabriel and Kate
Bush locked in an embrace on
a revolving turntable as they
performed the song. “I thought
that five minutes of groping
Kate in front of the world was
perhaps not the best thing for
a dodgy marriage,” Peter later said. “At the time, I felt I needed a
blessing. Anyway, Jill [his then wife] was great about it.”
Co-director Kevin Godley didn’t think a blessing was necessary
due to the purity of the video. “There wasn’t a sexual connotation –
just one of mutual support,” he said. youtu.be/VjEq-r2agqc“THE TRUTH IS, WE FINISHED
SO ALMOST A YEAR TO THE
DAY AND THAT IS THE
SHORTEST TIME PETER HAD
EVER SPENT ON AN ALBUM”
DANIEL LANOISGabriel clutches his
Ivor Novello awards,
Grosvenor House,
© Getty Images London, 15 April 1987