THE STORY OF GENESIS

Review Nº 260

"The Story Of Genesis" is a special compilation of Genesis. As happens with many releases, this is a Japanese release. It's usual for the Japanese record labels to release special versions to Japan, to promote bands and albums in their country. If we can get one in our countries, being imported from Japan, we must pay an expensive price. The gatefold cover of it includes an eight page color booklet with lyrics and photos and the quality of its sound is excellent.

"The Story Of Genesis" covers almost all of Genesis' career, at times, with the exception of their debut album, "From Genesis To Revelation". It has one track from "Trespass", one track from "Nursery Cryme", two tracks from "Foxtrot", one track from "Selling England By The Pound", one track from "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway", three tracks from "A Trick Of The Tail", two tracks from "Wind And Wuthering" and two tracks from "...And Then There Were Three...".

"The Story Of Genesis" has thirteen tracks. The first track "The Knife" was originally released on "Trespass". This is a track unusually aggressive for Genesis. It's the highlight and the most famous song on that album and it's the heaviest track ever recorded by Genesis too. It quickly became the first classic track of Genesis. The second track "The Musical Box" was originally released on "Nursery Cryme". It's an epic track, one of the most famous pieces of Genesis which acquired the status of one the band's symbols. The music begins calmly, and grows in intensity until an explosion of energy, accompanied by excellent lyrics. The third and fourth tracks "Watcher Of The Skies" and "Supper's Ready" were originally released on "Foxtrot". "Watcher Of The Skies" is one of the most popular and beloved songs of Genesis. It's a brilliant track, starting off with simple, yet harmonious keyboards. It kicks with a dramatic mellotron introduction being joined by bass and drums to lead into Gabriel's almost chanted vocals. The fourth track "Supper's Ready" is probably the most beloved song of Genesis. This is a great track, full of amazing musicianship and lyrics, and is one of the most representative of the progressive music. It stands as a true testament of how unique and creative Genesis was during the early 70's. The fifth track "I Know What I Like" was originally released on "Selling England By The Pound". It was the first charting single of Genesis. It's a funny song with some characteristics of a pop song. This gave the band their first taste of singles success, something they were to crave more and more with later albums. The sixth track "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" is the title track of that album. It's the opener and probably my favourite track, on that album. Despite being a conceptual album, this track is very much representative of that album as a whole. The seventh, eighth and ninth tracks "Dance On A Volcano", "Squonk" and "Ripples" were originally released on "A Trick Of The Tail". "Dance On A Volcano" is a very progressive track full of frantic rhythmic variations. It's a song with a beautiful melody and complex changes which correspond to the great expectations around this album. "Squonk" is a track with a fantastic and memorable opening and it also has a remarkable fantastic drumming work made by Collins. Despite being a simple track it has a great choral work. "Ripples" is a calm and beautiful track. It has nice guitar and keyboard musical textures. Hackett's guitar work is stunning and the keyboard work of Banks is wonderful. It's the quiet track on that album. The tenth and eleventh tracks "Eleventh Earl Of Mar" and "Your Own Special Way" were originally released on "Wind And Wuthering". "Eleventh Earl Of Mar" is a typical Genesis' open track. It's a fantastic track with music composed in the basic style of Genesis' music. This is a complex track, a kind of a return to their musical past. "Your Own Special Way" is the weakest track on that album. It's a good ballad with great melody but it sounds too much like pop music, for my taste. Despite it being written by Rutherford, it looks more like a track composed by Collins. The twelfth and thirteenth tracks "Burning Rope" and "Follow You Follow Me" were originally released on "...And Then There Were Three...". "Burning Rope" is a brilliant track that represents one of the highest points on that album. It's the only long epic track on that album and is one of its highlights. It's my favourite track on that album. "Follow You Follow Me" is a song written for a single. It's a good pop song, but it suited better on a Collins' solo album. This seems to me the track that would make the definitive turning point in Genesis' career.

Conclusion: "The Story Of Genesis" is a compilation well representative of Genesis' career at that time. It has tracks from all their albums that belong to their golden musical era. The only exceptions are "From Genesis To Revelation" and "...And Then There Were Three...". Of "From Genesis To Revelation" there aren't any tracks, which isn't really a great surprise. In reality, it's very rare to see any track from it on any compilation of Genesis. But, on the contrary, on "...And Then There Were Three...", there are two. But, as we know, usually both albums aren't considered belonging to their golden era. So, we are in the presence of a good compilation of Genesis. But, despite its good representativeness I can't consider "The Story Of Genesis" an essential purchase. It can't substitute Genesis' original studio albums.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

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