Peter Gabriel is well known as a fine musician, but his real forte is the politics of the human condition around the world.

Peter Gabriel

"I'm also sure George Bush (George W. Bush) is an affable bloke but he's highly dangerous and I wish America was in the hands of someone else."

Peter Gabriel is well known as a fine musician, but his real forte is the politics of the human condition around the world.

Gabriel With Genesis

Peter Gabriel was born on February 13, 1950 in Woking, Surrey, England. In 1967, he and Tony Banks founded Genesis, the much acclaimed rock band known around the world. Their first album, From Genesis to Revelation, released in March, 1967, caused enough of a stir that the band was on its way. The band met with quite a bit of success, but while touring in 1975, relationships among the group became strained. Feeling estranged from the other members, Peter Gabriel announced that he would soon be flying solo. The strains that touring had caused his marriage and the disagreements among band members, along with the problematic birth of his first child, were the reasons he cited. Proving that he was an honorable man, Gabriel stayed with the band long enough to see them through the tour. At the end of the Out, Angels, Out tour, Gabriel told fans that the "...vehicle we had built as a co-op to serve our songwriting became our master and had cooped us up inside the success we had wanted. It affected the attitudes and the spirit of the whole band. The music had not dried up and I still respect the other musicians, but our roles had set in hard." The band would continue to produce the music for which they were well known, and Gabriel would become a solo force to be reckoned with.

Gabriel Going Solo

You may know Gabriel's first three album's as Car, Scratch, and Melt, released in 1978, 1979, and 1980, respectfully. In reality, Gabriel named them all after himself; they were all simply Peter Gabriel. The other names are just names given by fans in an effort to identify the album about which they were talking. He finally had a top 40 hit with Shock The Monkey from his 1982 album, Security. Those recognizing the humor in much of Gabriel's work were rewarded with the MTV renditions of Big Time, Sledgehammer, and Kiss That Frog. Somewhat less popular albums were So, which was released in 1986, Us released in 1992, and Up in 2002. His most recent CDs are called Hit and Miss, released together as his interpretation of the greatest hits format. For some great examples of his work, check out the free MP3 music downloads.

Will The Real Peter Gabriel Please Stand Up

As well known as Gabriel is for his association with Genesis and his equally stellar solo career, he is becoming even better known as a musical innovator, philanthropist, and human rights activist. Gabriel has an interest in promoting world music and, in 1980, was one of the founders of WOMAD (World of Music, Arts and Dance). In that same year, he and a fellow humanitarian founded Witness which he hopes will shine a light on heretofore hidden human rights atrocities around the world. His interests extended to music distribution with his founding of On Demand Distribution (OD2) in the United Kingdom. Further, Gabriel established his own his own record label, Real World.

Of his many contributions as a human rights activist, perhaps the most nobel, the group with the most potential for real change is Globel Elders. The group was the brainchild of Gabriel and Sir Richard Branson. Branson is involved in numerous enterprises including telecommunications, travel, and health and is one of the world's largest employers.

"Peter Gabriel and I started a journey with Nelson Mandela several years back when we felt the world was rapidly becoming a global village, yet we had no advisers who were driven by what's best for humanity rather than what's best for the military, the economy, or a political group. We hope this group will become the elders of our global village and play a role in alleviating human suffering." Among the group's illustrious members are Desmond Tutu, Graca Machel, Koffi Annan, Jimmy Carter, Li Zhaoxing, Mary Robinson, Muhammad Yunus, Ela Bhatt and Gro Harlem Brundtland. The group was formally launched by Nelson Mandela who said, "The Elders can speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes on whatever actions need to be taken. Together we will work to support courage where there is fear, foster agreement where there is conflict and inspire hope where there is despair." Gabriel's role in the development of this group is a rare achievement for a musician who exists in a world where fame and fortune are so important.

Did You Know...

• Peter Gabriel won the Man of Peace Award of the Nobel Peace Laureates
• Sledgehammer is considered by some to be the best music video of all time

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