SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND

Mr. Rideout below has it right: This is the one I'd be sure to save above all others. I might as well go ahead and admit it, but I was a grade-school lad in 1985/86 when No Jacket/Invisble Touch/So came out, and I knew nothing of early Genesis, yet I loved this stuff. Still do. Those three discs in particular still feel the needle in the grooves more than most prog-heads would have me admit. Imagine my surprise a few years later when I became a musician and sought out finer influences and found Genesis 1973. But Seriously, folks, this is the only one you need. This record, like the band itself, is much greater taken as a whole than the sum of its various parts. "Dancing" is a bold way to start a record, as the piece starts out with a capella voice, and creeps up on you from there, mourning the loss of a mythical Old England. Every time I listen to it, I find something new hidden in the texture. "I Know What I Like" is silly, but still far superior to what's to be found on the radio dial, and the band can be seen just having some fun. "Firth of Fifth" is THE masterpiece. Tony clearly has sonata form mastered here. The trick to a lengthy piece is to make sure that if it's over nine minutes long, it feels like four when you're done listening to it, and this one's been pulled off perfectly. (Will commit a major sacrelige here by heaping praise upon Daryl Stuermer for his interpretation of the guitar solo - Steve's version, I always felt, never achieved the level of power and energy that the rest of the song demanded.) Why does everyone hate "More Fool Me?" Whatever you think of Phil's solo career, it's a lovely little tune written by he and Mike, and it suits his voice quite well, and serves as a little relief after the seige of "Firth." "Epping Forest" is one I never quite got. Over eleven minutes, convoluted and wordy, the rehearsals - if you can find them - are much more entertaining. "After the Ordeal" is known by a few friends of mine as "Music to Open Your Veins By" - determined but somewhat discouraged to start, and haunting and majestic to finish, it's a sad but beautiful piece. "Cinema Show" contains much more to it than meets the eye in terms of lyrical content, and I find it interesting that the solos at the end were never varied at all in concert. "Aisle of Plenty" relates to the "Cinema Show" theme lyrically, and "Moonlit Knight" musically, so don't pass this one up! Brilliant use of self-quotation. Were that I could, I'd give it ten stars on a five star scale. You need this record. Go and get it now.