Art Direction/Design: Terry Vucovsk
Photography: Chase Richard and Vanessa Dahmer

More The Gardeners Albums

After two invitations refused in 2003 and 2005, The Gardeners in 2008 finally accepted to record the program of the unplugged series for MTV as special of year�s end from TV station resulting later in the album THE GARDENERS UNPLUGGED. This happened after a negotiation that had begun in the July�s month when the group was still recording THE TIME'S OVER. As the invitation came from MTV Europa and The Gardeners were developing their activities in United Kingdom, Paris Theatre of London was chosen as place for the record sessions with public composed by members of several fan-clubs. In a moment of deep divergences among the members of the band mainly between Cliff and Gregor can be said that the collective interest in doing such an event type was one of the last consent points. In one and a half hour of program, the Welwyn Garden City group presented a repertoire of 14 songs composition by 4 from the most recent album, 9 from previous works and 1 cover, more 3 special participations along the presentation. Morgan invited guitarist Roland Schneider, who had been present in The Gardeners concerts at the Wembley Stadium and participated basically of the songs composed by vocalist exclusively, besides a mandolin performance in 'Reasons of Love'; Stevens called the partner John Cuccini, who had already played sometimes with The Gardeners, to participate of 4 tracks including 'Mirage' which own Stevens take a risk some notes playing citar more an outstanding performance in the slide-guitar in 'Dizzy Miss Lizzy'. To complete National Philharmonic Orchestra, that had recorded 'The Time's Over' and 'Onion Stones Forever' with The Gardeners, returned brilliantly to participate in these two music and of 'Harpha Gregorius', 'Mirage', 'Tales and Stories', 'Shadows of Darkness' and 'The View Fade Away Upon Us'. The fact of the program to be exhibited one month after THE TIME'S OVER�s release served to the presentation more as a support tool in the promotion of the new studio album what took the group to discard initially any intention in transforming it in a CD or tour. To satisfy those people that could not witness the recording of the program, the band it promoted a free show six days later in Hyde Park, in the same way of the TV production. Even with Unplugged not being priority of the recording and group, the blues version of 'Dizzy Miss Lizzy' - written by Larry Williams and recorded by The Beatles in Help! - it began to be executed in some european radios and in some venues it supplanted the work-music of The Gardeners. Only after the separation of The Gardeners in July, 2009, EMI began to work with the possibility that the program if it turned a disc thinking in a legion of the band�s orphan fans. Released on January 13, 2010, THE GARDENERS UNPLUGGED proved wisdom the recording when invested it in the production. Moved by the absence of new works of the WGC group, THE GARDENERS UNPLUGGED climbed charts with 'Dizzy Miss Lizzy', 'You Just Don't Understand Me' and 'Onion Stones Forever', tracks didn't have a lot of repercussion when THE TIME'S OVER was released. Thus, album got it to sell surprising 10 million copies turning it the second-sellest album of the group.