Gentle Giant
by Gentle Giant

Gentle Giant by Gentle Giant
Year: 1970
Overall rank: 4,194th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 115 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1970 (75th)
Award Top albums of the 1970s (710th)
Award Best albums of all time (4,194th)

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Gentle Giant - Gentle Giant [New Vinyl LP] Black, Gatefold LP Jacket, 180 Gram
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Gentle Giant - Gentle Giant Vinyl Bundle [New Vinyl LP]
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Gentle Giant Gentle Giant CD (REPUK 1035) Repertoire In Shrink w/ Insert NM-
Condition: Like New


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Gentle Giant bestography

Gentle Giant is ranked 5th best out of 18 albums by Gentle Giant on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Gentle Giant is Octopus which is ranked number 1982 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 833.

Gentle Giant album bestography « Higher ranked (4,118th)
In A Glass House
This album (4,194th)
Gentle Giant
Lower ranked (5,221st) »
Acquiring The Taste

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

Upcoming concerts

Mar
19
Thu
Brendan Walter
The Bronze Peacock at House of Blue, Houston, United States. United States
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Apr
19
Sun
Fantastic Cat
The Southern Café & Music Hall, Charlottesville, United States. United States
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Apr
11
Sat
Almost Queen
The Santander Performing Arts Cente, Reading, United States. United States
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Gentle Giant rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 4,194th | 1970s rank: 710th | 1970 rank: 75th

Gentle Giant collection

Gentle Giant ratings

Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 115 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 115 ratings for this album.

Sort Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
75/100
 
02/11/2026 05:07 BurndenAce  Ratings distribution  1,12576/100
 
75/100
 
01/05/2026 15:26 Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distribution  7,74670/100
 
25/100
 
12/29/2025 01:13 Proto  Ratings distribution  4,10233/100
 
90/100
 
09/14/2025 11:36 acoustic-horn  Ratings distribution  21275/100
 
70/100
 
08/22/2025 10:04 SomethingSpecial  Ratings distribution  1,73982/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 77.2/100, a mean average of 77.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.6/100. The standard deviation for this album is 12.7.

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Gentle Giant favourites

Showing all 12 members who have added this album as a favourite

Gentle Giant comments

Showing all 4 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
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From 04/27/2023 04:11 | #296402
"Why Not?" is Gentle Giant at its bluesiest.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 09/20/2018 03:29 | #221326
This album is criminally underrated, even amongst Gentle Giant fans. To me, this is their fourth best, after Three Friends, Free Hand and Octopus. It is definitely their most "folkish" album (especially tracks 2,4 and 5) and I must admit I like it very much.

"Funny Ways" is simply amazing.

"Isn't Quiet And Cold" is a lovely tune, one of my favorite all time. I really like the scenery described in the poetry and the melody is just perfect with the arrangement.

"Nothing At All" is another strong moment, and the intro to this song reminds me of Stairway To Heaven, even though it was recorded before Stairway To Heaven.

"Why Not" is where guitarist Gary Green shines.

The two weakest tracks here would the first and last, but they don't compromise the quality of this album.

All in all, an amazing first album by a great band who went on to do even better albums next!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 02/16/2016 00:12 | #159858
A classic in it's way. Not their best record but not their worst.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 02/04/2015 09:29 | #133941
Nice prog rock album. Not bad, but you can find out better stuff of the same genre.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (1 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1970
1. Paranoid by Black Sabbath
2. After The Gold Rush by Neil Young
3. All Things Must Pass by George Harrison
4. Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel
5. John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band by John Lennon
6. Bitches Brew by Miles Davis
7. Moondance by Van Morrison
8. Cosmo's Factory by Creedence Clearwater Revival
9. Led Zeppelin III by Led Zeppelin
10. Fun House by The Stooges
11. Let It Be by The Beatles
12. Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath
13. Loaded by The Velvet Underground
14. Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek & The Dominos
15. Déjà Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
16. American Beauty by Grateful Dead
17. Deep Purple In Rock by Deep Purple
18. Abraxas by Santana
19. Tea For The Tillerman by Cat Stevens
20. Morrison Hotel by The Doors
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