SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND

"Selling England by the Pound" captures Genesis at the height of their musicianship, which is better than ever on this record. I feel that Steve Hackett is, musically speaking, overshadowed by Tony Banks on most Genesis albums that he is present on. In my opinion, Hackett has never been more highlighted on a Genesis album than "Selling England by the Pound". This album has a much more polished and refined sound than its predecessor, "Foxtrot", not only in terms of the aforementioned musicianship but also the production. Genesis at this point have honed their sound, making this an incredibly mature sounding record. The structure of "Selling England by the Pound" is tried and tested with there being a subdued foil track for every bombastic track, and I believe that this type of structure enhances the flow and cohesion of the album as well as the effectiveness of each song.

"Dancing With the Moonlit Knight" opens the album brilliantly with Peter Gabriel singing acappella, "Can you tell me where my country lies?". Instrumentation then starts to build underneath Gabriel's vocals and crescendos into the chorus, which is gigantic. Once the chorus ends, the band goes into a jazz fusion section in the style of Mahavishnu Orchestra, which Phil Collins was a fan of. Phil Collins' drumming is extraordinary; I don't know how someone can manage to play the drums with that much energy and control. Steve Hackett's use of tapping is incredible, especially considering that tapping wasn't a common practice in 1973, which is when this album was released. The song moves at what feels like a million miles per hour and is rhythmically all over the place, but it perfectly juxtaposes the subdued beginning of the song. The last couple of minutes contains atmospheric sitar arpeggios. The musicians in Genesis at the time were masters of creating an atmosphere, and this is evident during the coda of "Dancing With the Moonlit Knight", which then bleeds into the hit single "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe). This song is a light-hearted, fun pop tune with a catchy chorus melody. I particularly enjoy this song when played live as it is elongated and sometimes injected with other Genesis songs or melodies, though I will say, sometimes it works and other times it doesn't (*cough* The Way We Walk *cough*). The next song is the formidable "Firth of Fifth". The piece opens up pompously with gorgeous and complex piano playing, and then the song explodes with the whole band playing together. "Firth of Fifth" contains Steve Hackett's best and most iconic guitar solo, which is mystical. This song is epic in every sense of the word, and is one of my favorite songs of all time. "More Fool Me" closes the first side, and is easily the weakest song on the album. It's the second Genesis song to feature Phil Collins singing, and like the music that Phil Collins would later write with Genesis in the eighties and as a solo artist, it's a breakup song.

"The Battle of Epping Forest" opens the second side of the album, and is the obligatory, zany, storytelling song on the album. Sometimes I love this song and other times I feel like it's unreasonably long, though it does have great moments throughout. Peter Gabriel's vocal performance is fantastic and the musicianship is incredible, but when the two are combined, it doesn't totally gel for me. "After the Ordeal" is another song that I sometimes love and sometimes don't care for, though it does contain great guitar playing from Steve Hackett. "The Cinema Show" begins in typical Genesis fashion with beautiful twelve-string acoustic guitars. The first half of the song ebbs and flows really well, but the second half is where everything starts to climax. Phil Collins, Tony Banks, and Mike Rutherford, the same three guys who would later play "Invisible Touch" and "Illegal Alien", play one of the most epic jams ever recorded, and it's all in 7/8 time. Tony Bank's melodic approach to the keyboard, especially in terms of his soloing, makes him one of my favorite keyboard players, and his playing on this track is incredible. He throws one great idea after another and it's almost overwhelming to the listener, but in the best way possible. This track bleeds seamlessly into "Aisle of Plenty", which reprises the "Dancing With the Moonlit Knight" theme and contains witty lyrics regarding British supermarkets.

In conclusion, "Selling England by the Pound" is yet another masterpiece from Genesis. The band are still progressing while being comfortable with the sound that they have honed. This album seems to capture the band at their peak in terms of musicianship and maturity. "Selling England by the Pound" is a beautiful work of art.