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Playing the Fool – The Official Live is a live album by the British progressive rock band Gentle Giant which was released in 1977. Its release and title were prompted in part by the circulation of live bootlegs in the preceding year, most notably Playing the Foole – A Stake in the Heart. The original UK LP was issued with a 12-page booklet. The track "Sweet Georgie Brown" was an on-the-spot performance, played while Kerry Minnear's keyboards were being repaired during a concert.
In 2025, the band issued an expanded and remixed edition as a double CD, triple LP and Dolby Atmos Blu-ray mix (including song visuals). This version restored the songs to their original running order and included additional material from the band's most recent studio album at the time, Interview.
All tracks are written by Kerry Minnear, Derek Shulman, and Ray Shulman except where noted. The songwriting credits are taken from the studio albums the songs originally appeared on, which are noted for each track; this live album release excised all songwriting credits for Phil Shulman, who had left Gentle Giant on bad terms in 1973.
"Excerpts from Octopus (The Boys in the Band/Raconteur Troubadour/Acquiring the Taste/Knots/Organ Bridge/The Advent of Panurge)" (from Octopus / Acquiring the Taste)
