Peter Gabriel, known for his bold artistic choices, has admitted that one of his solo albums went so far outside the mainstream that even he considered it a risk. The record? His fourth self-titled album (often called Peter Gabriel 4 or Security).
After leaving Genesis, Gabriel embarked on a solo career that only grew more experimental with each release. By the time he reached his fourth solo record — released in 1982 — he was fully embracing world music, avant-garde textures, and production quirks.
In a 2004 interview with Classic Rock, Gabriel reflected on how that album didn’t sell well, and called out his own ambition. He said:
“It wasn’t a big seller … Some of the hardcore fans think it’s the best record but others thought it was too wacky. Maybe that’s because I was taking a bigger role in the production.”
By today’s standards, the music on Peter Gabriel 4 doesn’t sound wildly out of tune — but in the early ’80s, its mix of digital production, world percussion, and experimental arrangements made it a hard sell. Still, Gabriel’s bold ideas paid off in ways he didn’t expect: the album’s adventurous style caught the attention of David Bowie, who invited him to open the North American leg of his 1983 Serious Moonlight tour.
Beyond its rocky commercial reception, that album also spawned a stage show that matched its ambition — and helped Gabriel transcend the limits of what pop or rock could sound like. His willingness to “go weird,” as he put it, turned him into an influential figure in progressive and world-infused music.
In his own words, Gabriel may have stretched things too far — but those stretches are also what helped reinvent rock for a new era.
