Genesis

[Cosmicman]

I am just curious.
Genesis today is usually related with the hits that were sung by Phil Collins.

Are there any members on here that are actually fans of the pre Phil Collins hit era with Peter Gabriel? I'm just starting to listen to some of the "off the wall" stuff that some girl gave me and that she was trying to convince me that it is "brilliant".

Well, so far...I find no brilliance here. Listened to a few Avantgarde type sounds......Anyone? Is there something I should look for?

I'm just a musician and curious to see what is up. I am a big fan of Phil Collins and I am curious what was up?

[Mikey]

I always hated Genesis with a passion.

[spamn]

Not a huge Genesis fan, but "Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" is a pretty good album. I'm more a fan of Peter Gabriel's first four solo albums than Genesis.

"Trick of the Tail", the first sans Gabriel album is also very good if you like their Prog Rock stuff. It's very different from their pop stuff and good solid stuff.

Their pop stuff isn't bad, but I heard a lifetime of it in the 80s and even though I haven't heard any for at least a decade, if I heard any again it'd be like I just heard it yesterday. So I have no use for it in my music library.

[Blue Meanie]

The pre-Collins lead Genesis is OK...It's a bit too 70's prog rock for my tastes. There are some gems though in the Gabriel lead Genesis. "I Know What I Like" is good as is the whole "Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" LP. The re-make of "Carpet Crawlers" on the Best of set is really good. It's a shame because IMO they should have done the re-union thing a long time ago. The Pre-Collins stuff is HUGE!!! over in Europe. Especially Italy. There are 2 distinct box sets that are out on the group. BTW, I personally like the just post Gabriel Genesis more than the last 20 years of Genesis. Albums to get on the just post Gabriel years are "Trick Of The Tail", "Wind and Wuthering" , "3 Sides Live" with and incredible Medley of "The Cage" and "Duke" . Duke is basically the beginning of Genesis going pop. They are being inducted into the Hall Of Fame this year. It will be interesting to see if Steve Hackett, Anthony Phillips, and Gabriel show up. I know that Phil can't play drums right now because of surgery that he had on a slipped disc in his back.

[Zemo]

Gabriel had the stage presence and the creative mind in the band. Was and still is one the best showmen on Rock n Roll. Plus I always thought he had a way better voice. I love this tune that he released about leaving Genesis.

http://www.mixx.com/videos/6255023/p...bury_hill_live

[toystalker]

i never even listened to a genisis track that i knew was genisis until somehow i got my hands on a pair of genisis earls court near the front concert tickets... curious i went along
im by no means a fan of this type of music... and i bloody enjoyed each and every minute of it

most memorable for me was collins solo drum session while the rest of the band had a break
fantastic

i dont know if the music is good or bad as im no critic in this music area

was totally out of the box for me as im a former old skool hip hop and soul radio dj

but i loved it

[wolfie]

Everything Genesis did before the Duke album was fantastic. After this which if i remember right was the end of the 70's it was a bit hit and miss. Keep away from the pop chart singles and it was still great.
Genesis were the best live band i ever saw, any concert of theirs from 74---82 was fantastic.

Compared with the crap which passes for music these days even the bad Genesis stuff was great.

[thunderbolt]

Collins turned them into a top 40 bland hit machine. nuff said.

[clemso]

I once saw the Genesis reunion gig with Peter Gabriel, Gabriel was way more experimental, I loved the songs "I know what I like" and "The lamb lies down on broadway".Give those two a listen if you have them. Collins turn them into a bland pop band

[Surfsup]

I'm probably in the minority who think they were better after Peter Gabriel left. The songs were more melodic to my ears and had more structure. I've always loved Land of Confusion. I think it's unfair to say that Collins turned them into a bland band, as all three of them chipped in on songwriting duties.

[palitoy]

I always liked Gabriel after he left, huge fan of his until he went pop.

Also didn't mind some of the Collins Genesis stuff, especially Land of Confusion, Mama etc..

[Blue Meanie]

I'm probably in the minority who think they were better after Peter Gabriel left. The songs were more melodic to my ears and had more structure. I've always loved Land of Confusion. I think it's unfair to say that Collins turned them into a bland band, as all three of them chipped in on songwriting duties.

I completely agree. Like I said before the first LP AFTER Gabriel left is, IMO, one of their best..."Trick Of The Tail". Unfortunately every band gets accused of going soft or pop at one point or another in their careers. Metallica got soft when the Black Album came out with Enter Sandman...right? That's a load of crap because they played exactly the same style they had been playing for years...Overexposure on MTV is what killed them.

Gabriel was NOT the creative genius behind the band...maybe a great showman/frontman...but not the creative genius. They all do share in songwriting.

[huedell]

Metallica got soft when the Black Album came out with Enter Sandman...right?

Nope.

The problem most Mfans had with ENTER SANDMAN wasn't it's heaviness
or lack thereof---
it was it's condensed poppier arngement....very close to VERSE/CHORUS type arrangemnent.

[Brazoo]

As a kid when I first started purchasing music I became a huge Peter Gabriel fan. His album "So" is the first CD I ever owned. Later I got into the Genesis album "Invisible Touch", so when I found out that Gabriel use to be in Genesis I naturally became curious and picked up a few albums. At first I was just baffled, but later in high school I went though a very brief prog-rock phase and got into it - especially "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" which I still consider to be the high-watermark for that group (as clemso had also mentioned). I don't have much patience for prog-rock now at all.

As time goes on I have maintained respect for Gabriel and his catalog a lot more than anything Collins related. I guess I do appreciate some Collin's hits for nostalgia or because of the cheese factor - almost against my will - so musically we don't agree as far as that's concerned. Collins is a great drummer - that's undeniable.

It's not like I listen to Gabriel's music that much, but I do think a lot of his best solo stuff has held up well. I'd recommend "So" and his first solo album (the one with the car on it). I also think the one with his face smeared is still really good. (His 4 albums up till "So" are self-titled, which is why I'm describing them in this silly way.)

When I think of it now I believe that the Genesis/Gabriel music was created more for the live experience (supposedly their show was amazing) and not created for the recordings themselves.

[darklord1967]

I am just curious.
Genesis today is usually related with the hits that were sung by Phil Collins.

Yes. I think that's a good thing.

I'm probably in the minority who think they were better after Peter Gabriel left. The songs were more melodic to my ears and had more structure. I've always loved Land of Confusion. I think it's unfair to say that Collins turned them into a bland band, as all three of them chipped in on songwriting duties.

I couldn't agree more.

I'm a HUGE fan of Genesis and I'm very familiar with their full body of work. In my opinion Phil Collins in an infinitely better singer, performer, and overall musician than Peter Gabriel. Even Gabriel grudgingly admits this. I actually saw an interview with him just this weekend in a documentary on Genesis. He admits to having felt a major kick in the gonads when he left Genesis (fully expecting it to fall apart) but instead, the band saw its greatest success with Phil Collins as the front man!

Gabriel's version of Genesis, with it's avante guarde fox heads and dresses crap always ****ed me off. When Phil Collins became the lead man, it became much more about the MUSIC... which became melodic, structured, rythmic, and pleasing to listen to... and not like some bizzarre acid trip.

When Phil Collins went solo, he only continued to prove that he is one of THE most beautiful male voices in all of pop / rock music.

When the Genesis reunion tour was talked about back in 2006, and all five original band members met, it was Peter Gabriel's bizzare ego CRAP that dissolved it from happening. Fortunately, when Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins were left alone in the room, they looked at each other and said, "Why don't we just do a re-union of our version of genesis, with our hits?"

I'm so glad they did too. Best show my wife and I ever saw!

I'm only sad that due to a spinal issue, Phil Collins can no longer play drums nor perform.