Music Banter - View Single Post - Trollheart's Album Discography Reviews: Genesis

Trollheart · 11-17-2021, 10:40 AM

A year on from the partial success of Nursery Cryme, with their new, now stable lineup working well together and a major tour under their belts, Genesis returned to the studio to cut what would be their fourth album, and one which would finally lift them into the British charts, as well as produce some timeless tracks that would go on to become classics. It would also further develop Peter Gabriel's stage persona, as he wore the infamous red dress and fox mask on the tour to promote the album. As if that wasn't enough, it would have the longest Genesis track ever, one of the few progressive tracks of the time to exceed twenty minutes in length.

Foxtrot (1972)

Another album that was short on actual tracks, but of which one track would take up an entire side of the original vinyl LP, Foxtrot began to be fleshed out while the band were still on tour, and as Steve Hackett, exhausted by the pressures of being on the road, contemplated leaving the band. It would also see the departure of three producers, as their original one, John Anthony, was dismissed by Charisma Records. Bob Potter, brought in to replace him, was dismissive of their music, having been more used to working with folk sensations Lindisfarne, and Tony Platt did not get on with the band either. Finally, they settled on a combination of Dave Hitchcock producing and John Burns engineering, a team that would last them through their next three albums.

We open on “Watcher of the Skies”, with a deep, sombre, classical sounding mellotron chord, with another coming in behind it, quiet at first then gaining in volume and power as, with the percussion, it blasts open the song and Gabriel begins singing. Moving slightly away from their fantasy/mythology themes of previous albums, this song is a science-fiction tale, the story of a galaxy-travelling entity who comes across Earth after Man has long since passed, and wonders what the creatures who lived here once were like. Its iconic opening still delights crowds whenever Genesis plays, and it is a highly requested song, almost fifty years later. Collins plays some powerful stuff here, driving the tune along, but it can't be denied that it is Tony Banks who breathes life into it and maintains it all through its seven-minute plus run, especially in the closing minutes, when he plays a kind of game of call-and-answer with Collins and Hackett before the whole thing explodes into a massive solo to take the piece to its thundering end.

As in previous albums, a bombastic epic is followed by a simple short song, and again “Timetable” is probably the only song on this album I don't care for. With its medieval lilting melody and its Beatlesesque feel, it's a song longing for simpler times. It's sung well, but it has always come across as the weak song on the album for me, again looking back more to the debut album than anything that has gone since. There's a really nice piano line running through it, and Gabriel is in fine voice, but I'm just waiting for “Get 'em Out By Friday”. I was always of the opinion this song paid respects to the Douglas Adams books of The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but it seems I am wrong. It's an odd little tale, concerning the forced resettlement of tenants by greedy, unscrupulous landlords. Like “Harold the Barrel” on the previous album, it's another cast effort, with Gabriel taking various parts, the song itself blasting away the softer vestiges remaining as “Timetable” fades into the distance with a blasting keyboard flurry and then a marching, thumping drumbeat from Collins as Gabriel introduces John Pebble, of Styx Enterprises (nice to see the nod to Greek mythology, tying a link back to the closer on the previous album, and also at a stroke painting this company as evil) who needs tenants cleared out of their houses so he can sell them.

“Get 'em out by Friday!” he warns his agent, known as The Winkler. ”You don't get paid till the last one/ Is well on his way!” and the Winkler approaches Mrs. Barrow, who has been living there for all her life, and does not want to move. The music is frenetic, jumping, urgent: Pebble needs those people out, and does not particularly care what measures his agent uses to ensure this comes about. Initially the Winkler uses the tactic of simply raising her rent, making it impossible for her to remain there, then later he offers her a cash incentive to move to a new tower block --- and then Pebble raises the rent again! Some gorgeous twelve-string work here from Hackett, as Mrs Barrow considers her options, reluctant to leave the home she has lived in all her life. Nice flute from Gabriel too.

After a long instrumental section which gets very dreamy and pastoral, time passes and we are now in the year 2012 (remember this was written in 1972) where Genetic Control have decreed that all humans must be reduced in height to four feet, in order that more may be housed, and once again Mrs Barrow is evicted from her home, not meeting the height requirements. Pebble is now Sir John, heading one of the largest construction conglomerates on the planet, and intends to make even more money by buying up all the tower blocks and kicking out the tenants who are too tall. Where will they go? Hey, that's life in the big city, as they say! The song then reprises the opening section before ending with some thumping drumbeats and a sort of angelic arpeggios on the keys as we're advised ”Invest in the Church for your Heaven.”

The legend of King Canute, who tried to prove how mighty he was by commanding the sea to recede, is explored in the cleverly-titled “Can-Utility and the Coastliners”, with a harpsichord opening and a soft vocal, keyboard and flute rising a little as does Gabriel's voice, as Canute decrees ”By our command, waters retreat!/ Show my power, halt at my feet!” An extended instrumental section then builds, trundling along nicely with mellotron and bass, guitar and drums before the mellotron takes over fully, carrying the tune into the final minute, almost echoing parts of “Watcher of the Skies” before guitar joins in and the song gets a little rock and roll. Tweedling keys from Banks brings back the stately grandness of a song about a king, and it heads for the big finish, with a sort of chaotic ending, Gabriel singing a little manically, Collins and Banks blasting out the final notes as it ascends and then stops abruptly.

“Horizons” is the first Genesis instrumental, and a chance for Hackett to show what he can do, and why he would become one of the most respected guitarists of the progressive rock era. It's short, only just over a minute and a half, but beautifully simple and yet intricate, recalling the traditional ballads played by minstrels in medieval times. It's his solo effort, and is the calm before the approaching storm, which breaks slowly but will, if you've not heard it before, take your breath away.

The longest ever Genesis composition, and one of the longest songs even in the ever-indulgent world of prog rock, “Supper's Ready” is a multi-part epic in the grandest tradition of classical symphonies and epic poems, and is split into seven sections. It opens on “Lover's Leap”, which begins with Gabriel's soft retelling of an experience he and his wife once had, an out-of-body thing, where they looked into each other's eyes and suddenly found themselves in other bodies. What were they smoking? I don't know, or even if the story is true or just anecdotal, but it's led on acoustic guitar in a soft, relaxing melody, that somehow has the potential in it to turn into something much darker. And it does. On a twelve-string and piano instrumental it moves into part II, “The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man”. It's often pointless to try to figure out Gabriel's lyrics, and I've never understood what this is about, but it drives on a powerful guitar, the soft ambience lost as the song takes off.

”I know a farmer who looks after the farm” Gabriel advises us, ”With water clear he cares for all his harvest.” Indeed. A bubbling keyboard melody from Banks takes the tune, mellotron booming in the background as Gabriel smirks ”Can't you see? He's fooled you all!” Perhaps a sly wink at those who read too much into his lyrics? On a children's chorus of ”We will rock you, rock you little snake/ We will keep you snug and warm” we slide into part III, “Ikhnaton and Itsacon and Their Band of Merry Men”, the tempo increasing as the characters join a battle with a ”Host of dark-skinned warriors”. Again Banks's synth jumps, dances and whirls all over this piece as battle is joined before it all falls down in part four, “How Dare I Be So Beautiful?” to slow, dreamy, drony synth in the aftermath of battle, and ”Wandering the chaos that battle has left” the characters come across Naricssus, who stares morosely at his reflection in the water, turning into a flower.

A flower? Two words which mean more than nearly anything to Gabriel-era Genesis fans, as they then signal the cosmic shift as the song moves into its fifth part, “Willow Farm”, where things just get silly. Onstage, this also marked the moment where Gabriel would appear dressed as a huge flower. Um. Anyway, riding on a twenties-style melody, the lyric is past ridiculous as Gabriel sings about ”Winston Churchill, dressed in drag/ He used to be a British flag!” It goes on like something out of Alice in Wonderland or Monty Python, before for some reason the characters become seeds in the ground and we move into part six, “Apocalypse in 9/8 (Co-starring the Delicious Talents of Gabble Ratchett)” (yeah) with a return to the soft, gentle meandering guitar and flute, with lush organ backing it until it ramps up into a real rocker (presumably in time signature 9/8, though I'm no musician) building towards the big conclusion as Judgement Day looms. A bubbling keyboard solo brings us into the apocalypse and returns us to the opening section, as the travellers finally return home, I guess into their own bodies, to witness the return of Jesus Christ in part seven, “As Sure as Eggs is Eggs (Aching Men's Feet)” and a beautiful almost orchestral ending with a superb guitar solo to take it out.

TRACK LISTING

Watcher of the Skies
Time Table
Get 'em Out By Friday
Can-Utility and the Coastliners
Horizons
Supper's Ready
I: Lover's leap
II: The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man
III: Itknaton and Itsacon and Their Band of Merry Men
IV: How Dare I Be So Beautiful?
V: Willow Farm
VI: Apocalypse in 9/8 (Co-starring the Delicious Talents of Gabble Ratchet)
VII: As sure as Eggs is Eggs (Aching Men's Feet)

Foxtrot was an important album for Genesis in many ways. Firstly, as mentioned, it provided the band with their first measurable chart position in their homeland, though the single released from it sunk without a trace. Well, what did they expect? Whose bright idea was it to release “Watcher of the Skies” as a single? Surely the shorter “Time table” (even though I don't like it) or even “Horizons” - instrumental singles were nothing new at the time - would have been better choices? But apart from that, it was also the album on which the lineup finally solidified, with Steve Hackett's reservations about playing live and remaining with the band put to rest for now, and it shows a major jump in Gabriel's talent for lyrical mastery, even if often I haven't a clue what he's singing about.

The track “Supper's Ready” is indeed the focal point of the album, but it would not be fair to say that the rest of the songs are filler, not at all. They do play second fiddle to the epic composition of course, and it was this closer itself that would be both the shining jewel in Genesis's crown as they went forward, and the tool of their ultimate downfall, seen as originally evocative, powerful, compelling and exciting as well as ambitious, but in latter years as overblown, pretentious, ridiculous, overlong and pointless, a real symptom of what was seen as the malaise afflicting progressive rock, and which would ultimately bring it down under the weight of its own hubris. But the album marked almost a creative peak for Genesis, and while almost everyone disagrees with me, I feel this is the quintessential Peter Gabriel era album, and the one that was to come, though lauded by so many as their best, somewhat pales in comparison to this masterwork.

Rating: 9.8/10

11-17-2021, 10:40 AM	#33 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,996	A year on from the partial success of Nursery Cryme, with their new, now stable lineup working well together and a major tour under their belts, Genesis returned to the studio to cut what would be their fourth album, and one which would finally lift them into the British charts, as well as produce some timeless tracks that would go on to become classics. It would also further develop Peter Gabriel's stage persona, as he wore the infamous red dress and fox mask on the tour to promote the album. As if that wasn't enough, it would have the longest Genesis track ever, one of the few progressive tracks of the time to exceed twenty minutes in length. Foxtrot (1972) Another album that was short on actual tracks, but of which one track would take up an entire side of the original vinyl LP, Foxtrot began to be fleshed out while the band were still on tour, and as Steve Hackett, exhausted by the pressures of being on the road, contemplated leaving the band. It would also see the departure of three producers, as their original one, John Anthony, was dismissed by Charisma Records. Bob Potter, brought in to replace him, was dismissive of their music, having been more used to working with folk sensations Lindisfarne, and Tony Platt did not get on with the band either. Finally, they settled on a combination of Dave Hitchcock producing and John Burns engineering, a team that would last them through their next three albums. We open on “Watcher of the Skies”, with a deep, sombre, classical sounding mellotron chord, with another coming in behind it, quiet at first then gaining in volume and power as, with the percussion, it blasts open the song and Gabriel begins singing. Moving slightly away from their fantasy/mythology themes of previous albums, this song is a science-fiction tale, the story of a galaxy-travelling entity who comes across Earth after Man has long since passed, and wonders what the creatures who lived here once were like. Its iconic opening still delights crowds whenever Genesis plays, and it is a highly requested song, almost fifty years later. Collins plays some powerful stuff here, driving the tune along, but it can't be denied that it is Tony Banks who breathes life into it and maintains it all through its seven-minute plus run, especially in the closing minutes, when he plays a kind of game of call-and-answer with Collins and Hackett before the whole thing explodes into a massive solo to take the piece to its thundering end. As in previous albums, a bombastic epic is followed by a simple short song, and again “Timetable” is probably the only song on this album I don't care for. With its medieval lilting melody and its Beatlesesque feel, it's a song longing for simpler times. It's sung well, but it has always come across as the weak song on the album for me, again looking back more to the debut album than anything that has gone since. There's a really nice piano line running through it, and Gabriel is in fine voice, but I'm just waiting for “Get 'em Out By Friday”. I was always of the opinion this song paid respects to the Douglas Adams books of The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but it seems I am wrong. It's an odd little tale, concerning the forced resettlement of tenants by greedy, unscrupulous landlords. Like “Harold the Barrel” on the previous album, it's another cast effort, with Gabriel taking various parts, the song itself blasting away the softer vestiges remaining as “Timetable” fades into the distance with a blasting keyboard flurry and then a marching, thumping drumbeat from Collins as Gabriel introduces John Pebble, of Styx Enterprises (nice to see the nod to Greek mythology, tying a link back to the closer on the previous album, and also at a stroke painting this company as evil) who needs tenants cleared out of their houses so he can sell them. “Get 'em out by Friday!” he warns his agent, known as The Winkler. ”You don't get paid till the last one/ Is well on his way!” and the Winkler approaches Mrs. Barrow, who has been living there for all her life, and does not want to move. The music is frenetic, jumping, urgent: Pebble needs those people out, and does not particularly care what measures his agent uses to ensure this comes about. Initially the Winkler uses the tactic of simply raising her rent, making it impossible for her to remain there, then later he offers her a cash incentive to move to a new tower block --- and then Pebble raises the rent again! Some gorgeous twelve-string work here from Hackett, as Mrs Barrow considers her options, reluctant to leave the home she has lived in all her life. Nice flute from Gabriel too. After a long instrumental section which gets very dreamy and pastoral, time passes and we are now in the year 2012 (remember this was written in 1972) where Genetic Control have decreed that all humans must be reduced in height to four feet, in order that more may be housed, and once again Mrs Barrow is evicted from her home, not meeting the height requirements. Pebble is now Sir John, heading one of the largest construction conglomerates on the planet, and intends to make even more money by buying up all the tower blocks and kicking out the tenants who are too tall. Where will they go? Hey, that's life in the big city, as they say! The song then reprises the opening section before ending with some thumping drumbeats and a sort of angelic arpeggios on the keys as we're advised ”Invest in the Church for your Heaven.” The legend of King Canute, who tried to prove how mighty he was by commanding the sea to recede, is explored in the cleverly-titled “Can-Utility and the Coastliners”, with a harpsichord opening and a soft vocal, keyboard and flute rising a little as does Gabriel's voice, as Canute decrees ”By our command, waters retreat!/ Show my power, halt at my feet!” An extended instrumental section then builds, trundling along nicely with mellotron and bass, guitar and drums before the mellotron takes over fully, carrying the tune into the final minute, almost echoing parts of “Watcher of the Skies” before guitar joins in and the song gets a little rock and roll. Tweedling keys from Banks brings back the stately grandness of a song about a king, and it heads for the big finish, with a sort of chaotic ending, Gabriel singing a little manically, Collins and Banks blasting out the final notes as it ascends and then stops abruptly. “Horizons” is the first Genesis instrumental, and a chance for Hackett to show what he can do, and why he would become one of the most respected guitarists of the progressive rock era. It's short, only just over a minute and a half, but beautifully simple and yet intricate, recalling the traditional ballads played by minstrels in medieval times. It's his solo effort, and is the calm before the approaching storm, which breaks slowly but will, if you've not heard it before, take your breath away. The longest ever Genesis composition, and one of the longest songs even in the ever-indulgent world of prog rock, “Supper's Ready” is a multi-part epic in the grandest tradition of classical symphonies and epic poems, and is split into seven sections. It opens on “Lover's Leap”, which begins with Gabriel's soft retelling of an experience he and his wife once had, an out-of-body thing, where they looked into each other's eyes and suddenly found themselves in other bodies. What were they smoking? I don't know, or even if the story is true or just anecdotal, but it's led on acoustic guitar in a soft, relaxing melody, that somehow has the potential in it to turn into something much darker. And it does. On a twelve-string and piano instrumental it moves into part II, “The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man”. It's often pointless to try to figure out Gabriel's lyrics, and I've never understood what this is about, but it drives on a powerful guitar, the soft ambience lost as the song takes off. ”I know a farmer who looks after the farm” Gabriel advises us, ”With water clear he cares for all his harvest.” Indeed. A bubbling keyboard melody from Banks takes the tune, mellotron booming in the background as Gabriel smirks ”Can't you see? He's fooled you all!” Perhaps a sly wink at those who read too much into his lyrics? On a children's chorus of ”We will rock you, rock you little snake/ We will keep you snug and warm” we slide into part III, “Ikhnaton and Itsacon and Their Band of Merry Men”, the tempo increasing as the characters join a battle with a ”Host of dark-skinned warriors”. Again Banks's synth jumps, dances and whirls all over this piece as battle is joined before it all falls down in part four, “How Dare I Be So Beautiful?” to slow, dreamy, drony synth in the aftermath of battle, and ”Wandering the chaos that battle has left” the characters come across Naricssus, who stares morosely at his reflection in the water, turning into a flower. A flower? Two words which mean more than nearly anything to Gabriel-era Genesis fans, as they then signal the cosmic shift as the song moves into its fifth part, “Willow Farm”, where things just get silly. Onstage, this also marked the moment where Gabriel would appear dressed as a huge flower. Um. Anyway, riding on a twenties-style melody, the lyric is past ridiculous as Gabriel sings about ”Winston Churchill, dressed in drag/ He used to be a British flag!” It goes on like something out of Alice in Wonderland or Monty Python, before for some reason the characters become seeds in the ground and we move into part six, “Apocalypse in 9/8 (Co-starring the Delicious Talents of Gabble Ratchett)” (yeah) with a return to the soft, gentle meandering guitar and flute, with lush organ backing it until it ramps up into a real rocker (presumably in time signature 9/8, though I'm no musician) building towards the big conclusion as Judgement Day looms. A bubbling keyboard solo brings us into the apocalypse and returns us to the opening section, as the travellers finally return home, I guess into their own bodies, to witness the return of Jesus Christ in part seven, “As Sure as Eggs is Eggs (Aching Men's Feet)” and a beautiful almost orchestral ending with a superb guitar solo to take it out. TRACK LISTING Watcher of the Skies Time Table Get 'em Out By Friday Can-Utility and the Coastliners Horizons Supper's Ready I: Lover's leap II: The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man III: Itknaton and Itsacon and Their Band of Merry Men IV: How Dare I Be So Beautiful? V: Willow Farm VI: Apocalypse in 9/8 (Co-starring the Delicious Talents of Gabble Ratchet) VII: As sure as Eggs is Eggs (Aching Men's Feet) Foxtrot was an important album for Genesis in many ways. Firstly, as mentioned, it provided the band with their first measurable chart position in their homeland, though the single released from it sunk without a trace. Well, what did they expect? Whose bright idea was it to release “Watcher of the Skies” as a single? Surely the shorter “Time table” (even though I don't like it) or even “Horizons” - instrumental singles were nothing new at the time - would have been better choices? But apart from that, it was also the album on which the lineup finally solidified, with Steve Hackett's reservations about playing live and remaining with the band put to rest for now, and it shows a major jump in Gabriel's talent for lyrical mastery, even if often I haven't a clue what he's singing about. The track “Supper's Ready” is indeed the focal point of the album, but it would not be fair to say that the rest of the songs are filler, not at all. They do play second fiddle to the epic composition of course, and it was this closer itself that would be both the shining jewel in Genesis's crown as they went forward, and the tool of their ultimate downfall, seen as originally evocative, powerful, compelling and exciting as well as ambitious, but in latter years as overblown, pretentious, ridiculous, overlong and pointless, a real symptom of what was seen as the malaise afflicting progressive rock, and which would ultimately bring it down under the weight of its own hubris. But the album marked almost a creative peak for Genesis, and while almost everyone disagrees with me, I feel this is the quintessential Peter Gabriel era album, and the one that was to come, though lauded by so many as their best, somewhat pales in comparison to this masterwork. Rating: 9.8/10 __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 11-18-2021 at 05:01 AM.