FROM GENESIS TO REVELATION

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Everybody can´t compare this album to Trespass or Foxtrot, because the musical style is very different. We have to consider that most songs were written between 68 and 69, and there was no progressive rock like in seventies. But we can see the talent of the band, with good melodies and beautiful string arrangements that fit perfectly the songs of that era. This proto-progressive album hasn´t the progressive sound of Trespass and the next albums, but listening to it, for me, is so pleasurable as listening to Selling England by the Pound, my favorite Genesis´ album.

The best songs in my opinion are In the Beginning, Am I Very Wrong, The Serpent, The Conqueror and In Hiding. These songs contain great keyboard, guitar parts and good singing. Some of the finest Gabriel singing is contained in this album.

Jonathan King looks after young lads in need of a helping hand

This was Genesis first album (predating "Trespass", which many assume to be their first album), and was produced by pop music impresario Jonathan King. King's influence is strong, with strings overlaid on many of the short, pop orientated songs. The result is similar to the way Phil Spector hijacked the Beatles "Let it be" album. It would be interesting to hear FGTR without the strings, as I am sure it would sound far more like the Genesis with whom we are familiar.

In retrospect, the band's capabilities are clearly there, and some of the songs such as "One eyed hound" hint at what was to come on "Trespass". Much of the band's efforts to explore their capabilities are smothered by King's over production, and his efforts to make the band commercially successful. Even Gabriel's vocals only occasionally point to the power which would be unleashed on subsequent albums.

We should not however be too hard on King, he did after all discover them and set them on the road to becoming the band we all know and love. The poor selling original "From Genesis to revelation" LP is of course very rare and of significant value. It has however been re-issued on numerous occasions under titles such as "Rock Roots" and "The Compact collection", usually with 2-4 additional tracks such as the Bee Gees like "Silent sun" from the same period.

Most people/friends I know discard this as rubbish . OK , this is not good but it is very naive as the musicians were but certainly ambitious as they also were, and they will be more ambitious with further works . That alone makes this a Genesis album in its own right. If one listens to it well , (I realize that this may be hard to do) you will hear that a lot of the ingredients , that we all recognize and love in future albums , are already present here and there are some very good moments fully worth the patronym Genesis. On the other hand , this can be a messy affair but I will call it "un péché de jeunesse"

The first GENESIS album: we are still not in the 70's here so do not expect "Foxtrot" 's elaborated compositions.

We just have here tons of short, pop, mellow and accessible songs, where acoustic and soft electric guitars work together with piano and background mellotron. The bass is not timid. We have not to forget GABRIEL's voice, who sings rather like a good young boy coming good parents. I would say that the songs are even a bit sentimental.

Not bad for a bunch of kids that were at school, some poppy ballads, a couple of great tunes like Silent Sun and Am I Very Wrong? Others good and a few bellow the average, but lets be honest, Genesis was a school band searching for a hit and nothing more, but they made a better album than many pop professionals.

The music is nothing special, but Peter's unique voice and Tony's piano are outstanding, maybe Anthony Phillips great talent is wasted.

I understand why some people hate it and others love it, it's a good album but it isn't Progressive Rock at all. Of course it's better than anything Genesis released after Seconds Out, but that doesn't mean too much.

Good, if you are a collectot or a Genesis fan you can buy it as part of the history.

To me, I find this album to be little more than a historical curiosity. At this point, the members of GENESIS (Peter GABRIEL, Tony BANKS, Mike RUTHEFORD and Anthony PHILLIPS) were finishing up their education at the notoriously exclusive and snooty public school (that is, the UK eqivalent of a private or boarding school) called Charterhouse. "From Genesis to Revelation" sounds very little like the early GENESIS sound that's to be found on their following albums. As has often been said, the music has more in common with the MOODY BLUES and early BEE GEES, but in my book, it's more like those two band's worst aspects (like the BEE GEES' "I Started a Joke" which a lot of this album reminds me of or many of the overblown ballads the MOODY BLUES are known for).

The music is plastered with reall bad dentist office Muzak-style strings, out of tune piano, barely noticible guitars, and bad lyrics. "Fireside Song" to me is by far the worst thing on this album with inane lyrics that go: "Once upon a time there was confusion, disappointment, fear and disillusion". This album seemed more the product of producer Jonathan King (himself a former Charterhouse student) than what the guys of GENESIS had in mind. At that time, the legality of the name GENESIS was in question (because of an obscure American band that recorded for Mercury Records that existed at the same time, who vanished very quickly without a trace), so the original LP was simply titled "From Genesis to Revelation" with no mentione of the band's name, with most of the copies being sold under the religious section, explaining the pitiful sales (the musical quality also explains a lot as well).

The only good I can say of this album is Peter GABRIEL, his voice is still quite unmistakable. But luckily the band will be heading in the right direction by changing labels and being much more serious. As for this album, basically get a copy if you can find it for cheap.

Love this album. You have got to remember these were just kids and Jonathan King was producing so hence the Bee Gee type similarities. There are moments on the album where you can already pick up the potential of Gabriel's voice. It is not a bad album at all when you consider the time it was produced. What I found most unusual was the chenge to Trespass. This album but a seed, Trespass was already growing.....

My Stereo L.P. copy is called "Rock Roots: Genesis", released by Decca in 1976, and it was the first time this album was released with the 4 bonus tracks:two singles and their "B" sides (with Chris Stewart on drums, all Mono recordings). I begin with the review of the singles. "The Silent Sun" is a Mono version of the song called "Silent Sun" and also released in the original "From Genesis to Revelation" album. It sounds different, of course (it is in Mono), but as this single was recorded and released when original drummer Chris Stewart was in the band, I can`t say if Stewart is also in the album version of this song (John Silver played the drums in "From Genesis...") , and apart from the mixing, I can`t say if it is the same recording. This is one of my favourite songs in the album, but I prefer the Stereo version. Good orchestral arrangements. The B side of this single, "That`s me", is also good, without orchestra, with teenage lyrics. "A Winter`s Tale", the second single, is another good (love) song, without orchestra. "One Eyed hound", the B side of the second single, is also good, and also without the orchestra. Most of my favourite songs from the "From Genesis..." album are in the Side Two of the L.P. : "One Day", "Window", "In Limbo" (the best of all, with a very good lead guitar and very good drums, and here the orchestral arrangements really worked well with the song), and "Silent Sun" . "In the Wilderness" from Side One is also one of my favourites. This album is good, and it shows that Genesis had an own style since the beginning of their career. But this album was promoted in a wrong way: the original cover was a black cover with the words "From Genesis To Revelation" printed. Yes, it sounds like the Bee Gees in some places, but the Bee Gees of the sixties were in their peak, I think (in comparison to "Saturday Night Fever"), so, if they were an early influence, it was a good influence. GENESIS still sound inmature in this album, but being an album recorded when the members of the band were 16-18 years old, it is still good. The original full Mono album version of "From Genesis to Revelation" (originally released without the singles and the B sides, of course) is not only different due to the mixing. The songs also were edited differently. Some songs are longer, others are shorter, than in the full Stereo version of the album.

Genesis debut album was far from a success when it was released back in March 1969. It only sold 650 copies worldwide, most of them by christians who thought this was a christian record because of the album title, "From Genesis To Revelation". Genesis played short pop songs at this time, and the production was awful, the drums is nearly inaudible and some of the songs are very bad.

But this album also features several good songs too, but not good enough to get a higher rating by me. But if the production and drums was better and if the awful string-arrangment on this album was removed, I would have give this 2.5 or 3 stars.

2/5.

Unlike some other poor Genesis albums (which would come much later), 'From Genesis To Revelation' is less than exemplary due to outside influence. Then pop-mogul Jonathan King not only named the band and got them their record contract, but he had huge influence in shaping this album's arrangements, adding horns and strings to the band's disapproval, as well as snipping their tendency toward longer pieces.

There isn't a lot you'd call real prog here (or real Genesis either!), other than the interesting linking of one song to another by themed musical segues--and the insanely ambitious concept: the history of man's evolution in 12 pop-length songs. 'From Genesis To Revelation' is wrapped in a somewhat ethereal production (maybe "muddy" less kindly describes it), and the band's latent creative abilities are hugely dampened. Little of the forthcoming Genesis sound is heard, Tony Banks hardly audible but for the thin tinkling on what sounds like a child's plastic piano. Mellow acoustic harmonies and melancholy melodies offer a mere glimpse into what would become a large part of the Genesis approach. Peter Gabriel is instantly recognizable. He takes command confidently enough, despite his fairly unobtrusive presence. His voice carries otherwise average songs like "Where The Sour Turns To Sweet" and "Am I Very Wrong?", showing a good degree of maturity and command. When the band gets to flex its muscles a bit and go for heavier textures and relatively ambitious playing--as heard on wonderful songs like "The Serpent", "In The Wilderness" and "The Conqueror"--things reach a sublime level. (An interesting note: the opening segue into "The Serpent" incorporates what seems to be a foreshadowing of "Twilight Alehouse".) Then there's the dull plod of the rest of the album. "Fireside Song" sounds uncomfortably close to Spinal Tap's flower-power parody, and many other moments are mired in hokey brass enhancements. "In Hiding", "In Limbo", "The Silent Sun" and the nauseating boys-choir stylings in "Am I Very Wrong?" are pretty much abysmal. Too bad they didn't replace one of these songs with the hypnotic "Let Us Now Make Love", which found release on the first 'Archives' box set much later.

This album was licensed to the point of ridiculousness by Jonathan King, and goes by other titles like 'In The Beginning', 'The Silent Sun', 'Where The Sour Turns To Sweet', '. And The Word Was', and geez, about 20 others. (Collect 'em all!) It's not a great album by any name, thanks in large part to a (well-meaning) visionary who saw this band's potential but not its purpose. A footnote in the Genesis discography, a mere curiosity dotted by a few worthwhile tunes and a lot of flat-out crap.

This is an album that must be taken at face value. Jonathan King, the producer whose hit single "Everyone's Gone To The Moon" (a great song, incidentally) may have been a template for the overall sound on this album, obviously had more impact on the finished product than the band members themselves. Just like the pre-King Crimson album "The Cheerful Insanity of Giles, Giles & Fripp" (which is actually a pretty good album), this effort is worthwhile as a glimpse into the beginnings of a great band. In addition, some of the songs, though hopelessly "of their time", are pretty good pop songs. I happen to like The Bee Gees' output up until their Disco period, and this material is about as good as their non- hit album tracks. Find a cheap used copy of the CD, and add it to your Genesis collection.

"We're waiting for you. Come and join us now. We need you with us. Come and join us now!" - GENESIS "Where The Sour Turns To Sweet"

Yeah! It's an encouraging lyrics. Whenever I facilitate a leadership / strategy workshop (hey, music has been in my blood since I was at fourth grade enjoying local bands like Koes Plus, Panbers, Golden Wing, The Rollies, etc. So I breathe, I sleep, I work with music!) I sometimes put this CD and played Where The Sour Turns To Sweet after the participants enjoyed coffee break. The reason is simple: I love Genesis and I think the above lyrical part is suitable to gather the crowd back to my class. People usually do not complain because the music is truly simple - no heavy guitar riffs, no soaring keyboard sounds - but it has wonderful melody! We're waiting for you. Come and join us now . uugghh man .. it's truly encouraging lyrics! And it's suitable for leadership subjects. Sometime I got a new prog friend as one of the participants approached me before my class started: "Gatot, do you like Genesis?". Wow . I got new prog friend since then ..!!! Prog rules!

One should not put one eye to this debut album even though the music is simple. Look, all the ingredients of future Genesis album are here: great melody, neat composition. What lacking was probably the complexity as a prog rock album. It's fine with me because almost songs are excellent. Please imagine if song like "Am I very Wrong" is rearranged with a bit of complexity, you would find it interesting. Echolyn did a tribute song to Where The Sour Turns To Sweet and it's an excellent composition! In The Beginning, Fireside Song, The Serpent are all great tracks!

I think we should put thing into perspective when we put a review of this album as that time the psychedelic music was the major movement in music industry with previously released Pink Floyd's Pipe at The Gates of Dawn. The only this=ng that this album doe not deserve five stars is because of the comparison with In The Court by King Crimson that had moved the prog music forward as compared to Genesis debut. The follow-up album, Trespass, was really a take-off in Genesis music direction. Keep on proggin' ..!

Progressively yours, GW

I am a big GENESIS fan, but let's be serious and realistic: "From Genesis to Revelation" is a very weak album.

Several substantially good songs ("Where the Sour Turns to Sweet", "In the Beginning", "The Serpent"...) are drowned among the amateurish production, additionally spoiled by inappropriate orchestral arrangements, with terrible sound. On the other hand it is amazing to see that Gabriel was already a developed singer and Banks an excellent pianist. Others are virtually non-identifiable on this record, which was notorious for its numerous re-packages by various labels. Mine is a Dutch release by Disky in 1996, including a standard singles "Silent Sun/That's Me" + "Winter's Tale/One Eyed Hound" as bonus, with previously unreleased "Image Blown Out" and an interesting early demo of "The Serpent" under the title "She's So Beautiful" with the same melody but different lyrics (teenage romantic desire instead of God's creation of man!).

Not recommended to anyone but a devout GENESIS enthusiast. Still, close to **1/2!

Because of the name of the band, this album was often put in the section 'Religion' in the record stores! Anyway, it achieved poor sales and Genesis decided to get rid off their producer Jonathan King. The main reason to do that was his commercial musical view, for instance to add polished violin arrangements to some compositions, the band was absolute furious about this!

In general this album is a pleasant mix of pop, rock and classical featuring the emotional, very distinctive voice from Peter Gabriel, the lush 12-string acoustic guitars and the tasteful keyboards from Tony Banks. Some tracks sound very promising but most of the songs are no more than nice progressive pop. No wonder that Tony Banks once said Jonathan King wanted Genesis to sound as a 'Bee Gees pastische'...! The great compositional skills from the band members lift "From Genesis to revalation" to a good album, no more or less.

This my favorite underdog record! Some of the songs here are very good, though there are also non-essential ones included. Some of the duller ones may also have nice parts, but I'll focus on my favorite tunes.

"In The Beginning" has a nice aggressive feeling in it, with straightforward acoustic guitars, and Peter is doing preachy vocals about the creation of man: "It has begun, you're in the hands of destinyYY!". The track begins with strange organ sound, and is a quite good one really. "The Serpent" continues with the genesis-themed lyrics. There's a very funny chorus going from one single note behind the singing! There are also no orchestrations and some keyboards instead here. "In The Wilderness" is also a great performance, Peter gets to do some powerful singing, and the composition is nice. "The Conqueror" has a gospel kind of feeling done by acoustic piano and guitar driving the song towards, and Peter is again singing about "The day of justice". I don't find it surprising this LP was first sold as a religious record, 'cause I think it is it to a very high degree! I don't mind it, I also have satanic albums of BLACK WIDOW on my record shelf, so they can counterbalance each other, and do some fighting when people are not witnessing it. "Window" has also very peculiar feeling of The GENESIS sound in it's beginning, though it's a quite dull song otherwise. "Silent Sun" was a some sort of hit I believe, and it sounds like it, very boring...

I have this as DCC re-release, so I have heard some of the bonus tracks. There's a small funny detail at least in my copy, "Silent Sun" is named as "Silent Gun" in the track listing! I'm not sure why it's also here as a bonus track. Maybe the re-releasers thought these are two different songs 'cause of this error? It could be also a B-side of a single, named just differently. "A Winter's Tale" is great song with dual layered vocals, which in some parts have different lyrics, just like in the song "Fountain of Salmacis" to be recorded few years later.

I wouldn't recommend this as the first GENESIS album except to those who like only 60's music, but when one is familiar with the band's music, it's nice to find elements of their style yet in their birth process. The songs have very often some short piece of playing not related to the actual song in them, and there are also some fade-outs and similar stuff, which are probably producers ideas. Well... There are also some songs from this era on the "Archive - vol.1" CD-box, if you want to check them out!

Well, I will have to agree with most all the reviews. Not really an album that IMO deserve much of my time. Proto-progressive at most, but nothing progressive to show for. Remember, this one is 1969 and they were very young! Still is part of my GENESIS collection! But, overall maybe 2 1/2 stars at the most.

Not so awful as some reviewers saw and not so spectacular as some unaware person should expect from Genesis. Songs are generally good, production is generally bad.

When doing the first hearing we could think about a band in the midway between Bee Gees, with their easy-cheesy tunes and Moody Blues, with more elaborated orchestrations; I wonder... try to realize some songs in a "Trespass" or "Nursery Cryme" kind of arrangement, for instance 'Silent sun' or 'Am I very wrong?': longer, more dramatic, with more extensive solo parts, etc. The result would be fine.

Even with the problems Banks, Rutherford and Phillips show a fair musicianship and Gabriel gives a demonstration of even better times to come. Phillips style, soft and discreet, could be better observed in his solo works.

Best tracks are: 'Where the sour turns to sweet', the shaking opener; 'Fireside song', with a dark intro; 'In limbo', very catchy and rocky. Other tracks are simply average, although easily hearable.

Knowing Genesis output in the following years, it is very interesting to make contact with the band childhood and first features, and to perceive that in some moments they show the same punch observed later.

Minus 1.5-star for the weak production, minus 0.5-star for the obvious commercial and poppish bias. Total: 3.

Everything goes to such extreme as to say that this album is a total failure just because it cannot compare with what will follow;just because the next album,Trespass,is of dimensions and proportions completely different and superior and because the perspective changes so much.I do admit that what follows,the four magnificent years of the Gabriel-Genesis (and,of course,further on to at all the fall years) is too sublime,too complex and too grand for this first album result to a comparison material.It is,I admit,something different from what we "will hear"...from now on.But it is no reason to reach such extent of arguments,childish oftenly,unfounded,used lascivious and frivolious etcaetera.Everything resumes to what wasn't and what will be,this would constitute the main motive used.But by this the album is thrased and refused.It is a plan of perspective quite wrong,which-many times-I condemn it.We judge the "From Genesis To Revelation" album from the present point,having the entire Genesis history,and not in the year 1969,when there was "From Genesis To Revelation" and nothing else than "From Genesis To Revelation".Just think for a moment,transpose yourselves in the moment of the year 1969.WHO could have forseen the 180 degrees change of style and performance level of Genesis at that time?Is there someone?!Cause I can bet that not even Genesis itself were not aware.So,we must judge "From Genesis To Revelation" only from it's perspective.More than that,I really don't see what is the problem? Just like Genesis,neither Yes,neither Rush,nor Pink Floyd (scuze me,but Piper from the rest...hmm),nor Focus and many others have had a masterpiece debut."From Genesis To Revelation" must be seen as a starting point,an experiment,something of initiative character.This side of Genesis should be excepted.Not the best,still something...

and between you and me,of what eyesores we get after Duke,I'd rather listen to "From Genesis To Revelation"...

Now for the real review. An album that,in my humble opinion,breaks the standard level.A collection of sons,made in a mixture of psychedelism (just a hint,though),ballad-like essence,story type manner,even some light Beatles influences.Very simple structure in every pieces,absolutely nothing to come spectacular as composition,A-B-As,mos tof them,A-B-A-shortC-As some.Peter Gabriel has obviously the main role here.In fact,the whole album is focusing on the vocals,on the firmament of a song,the instrumental part not imposing at all,just maybe in some special cases complementing the main wire more than it normally does.Except that,pretty much ioc!Whatever mood is generated,it is a temporary one.I don't think there are songs that will remain in the memory after the album was finished listening;the mood starts with the album and ends with the album;at least that's my impression.The range of emotions does not change its construction line either.It doesn't ascend in an extraordinary way,nor does it dangerously descend.Besides "The Silen Sun" and "In The Wilderness" nothing reaches grand heights.These two pieces can be considered better from this point of view (the emotions,that is),yes not by much.Anyway,one thing stands as important:it is an album that should be enjoyed in the moment of listening,in a leasurely and relaxing manner;it is nothing complicated after all;an album of late evenings (maybe),of easy letargy (perhaps),of relaxing moment (nonetheless).I've said it before:rather than pop-Genesis,"From Genesis To Revelation"-anytime!!And if what you want to listen is not a complex Genesis album,one full of geniality,one that necesitates a special mood and a larger,more profound,vision,but nor a plastic album of the 80's,that this album can prove just perfect.Because,after all,we're talking about songs too beautiful to be neglected.

To sum up:an album to be perceived more optimistically and a collection of nice songs.I'll give it 3 stars.

This isn't a Genesis album that should be disregarded into obscurity. Sure it's little more than a collection of cleverly written pop songs, and besides Gabriel's distinctive voice has little resembling even Trespass era Genesis, but the sheer innocence and naivety of the music here has its own magical quality to be appreciated.

The tracks here are simple, acoustically driven, melodic pop songs delivered beautifully with Gabriel's soulful voice and lyrics which stand out above others of the time even at such an early age. There isn't much to talk about in terms of musicianship, influence, or anything really progressive to be found within. But Genesis fans and those who can appreciate a clever pop song will certainly enjoy this. Definitely not the album to discover Genesis, but worth picking up after you've exhausted the rest of Gabriel era Genesis.

Two stars simply because this is a prog site (and the album does have a few clunkers), but otherwise I would probably call this a three star walbum.

If only these young lads from Charterhouse had spent more time developing ideas and had used a more sophisticated producer than the awful Jonathan King, this album might have been something listenable. As it is, the tracks range from total bilge to some with clear promise (The Serpent, Silent Sun, The Fireside Song) but the string arrangements and poppy feel ruin almost everything. You can sense King's hand pushing them to release an album before they were really ready. Their playing shows some promise but is far short of what they would achieve later.

They didn't take long to get it right (indeed next time out) but this is definitely only for completionists.

Black Holes or Revelations?

An intriguing debut that shows tantalising glimpses of the band's full potential - and goes a little way to realising some of that potential in several places. The initial impression is of a super-light folk song collection with little consequence, but closer inspection reveals a surprisingly subtle range of very musical expression and something on the outer fringes of Flower Power with a couple of dark twists.

For Genesis fans, an interesting historical document, for collectors, if you can find a first press, a real gem - since the value will continue to climb, even from the outrageous prices it currently commands - for folk fans, an interesting curio by one of Prog's greats, but for the average Progger (if there is such a person) a bland and mushy throwaway collection of insignificant trivia.

Musically, the melodies seem to be the biggest let-down as they wander up and down the major scale, sounding like Gabriel had raided the nearest English Hymnal. The harmonies and arrangements, though, are more interesting than King's bland production and naff string arrangements would have us believe.

But these are generalisms - if we listen in a bit more detail, then there are a lot of nice proto-prog touches that would otherwise be completely overlooked - incuding the fact that this is very nearly a concept album.

Starlight

"Where The Sour Turns To Sweet" is very interesting lyrically - almost prophetic in places. "Look inside your mind, See the darkness is creeping out, I can see in the softness there, Where the sunshine is gliding in, Fill your mind with love, Find the world of future glory". This could also infer the time before the universe began, where all was potential.

The introduction is fairly interesting - Banks' lonely piano lines accompanied by a finger- click rhythm are quickly joined by Gabriel's familiar tones inviting us to "come and join us now". This early statement of the chorus idea is followed by a piano and light guitar accompanied verse - and there may be a Mellotron in there - "Can you sense the change" modulates to a minor key, and the second chorus is more fully accompanied and more passionately sung using a variation on the original melody. After a second iteration of this pattern, featuring the notable line from Gabriel "Paint your face all white " the first chorus variant is re-used and extended as a burn-out. OK, it's nothing stunning, but it's not your average song structure.

Then there's a dark and throbbing keyboard and bass introduction to "In The Beginning" - the title continuing the prophetic vein - and the Biblical connections are re- inforced as Gabriel sings about the birth of planet earth - although in Darwinian terms rather than Biblical.

The melody is shockingly naff and robs the lyrics of their authenticity, while the accompaniment hangs around single tonal areas - although the line "It has begun You're in the hands of destiny" is colourfully arranged. It does get more interesting in the "C" section, however - the structure of this piece is ABABCABC - again indicating the fledgling Genesis' intention to break away from the run of the mill - everything as normal until the re-visted C section, which seques neatly into "Fireside Song" via a Banks piano line that modulates neatly before the horrible strings ruin everything. This also happens at the beginning of each chorus - a wonderful modulation is masked beneath unnecessary and vulgar strings that server up lashing of cheese faster than you can say "Edam".

Gabriel's lyrics this time revolve about the emergence of life, and you might make out fragments of melody from "Dancing With the Moonlit Knight" - because I certainly can.

The introduction to the Serpent is very badly produced, with a nasty drop-out at the end, but full of interesting key and tempo changes. Gabriel finds a darker melodic line to follow, keyboard lines shine through and the music ebbs and flows dynamically. Really, if some of those keyboards, drums and guitars were higher in the mix, we'd be entering into Doors territory - this could be such a powerful song, despite Gabriel's weak melodies. Lyrically, we consider the creation of man, woman Garden of Eden and serpent, but there are no real poetic fireworks here - this is just the next logical part of the story.

Banks' piano lines on "Am I Very Wrong?" remind me of Marillion's Fugazi, but the acoustic guitar and flute lines are pure early Genesis. The concept of the song structure, however, is pure Genesis with the lonely man questioning and worrying, while the chorus reassures (in abysmally precious vocal style) - in the first signs of theatricality from this band. The concept of the album, on the other hand, is virtually lost - this song just doesn't fit into it.

Burn in hell for your sins

Here, the album loses concept and direction, taking a massive nosedive;

"In The Wilderness" is a more intriguing title than song - it should have been called "Music, All I hear is Music"... although we're using the term Music loosely in this case to describe this rather naff and cheesey piece. Even Banks little improv at the end doesn't save it - it's FAR too short.

Anthony Philips reprises the "Music, All I Hear Is Music" theme as the intro for "The Conqueror" - but the awful drop-in makes it just sound like a mistake. A vaguely average song that isn't saved by the keyboard and guitar layers one iota.

"In Hiding" is a bit of a Gabriel showcase, with rich melodies, a little vocal harmony and very interesting lyrics asserting "I have a mind of my own". It's a pity Jonathan King didn't listen to this one as he could have learned something.

"One Day" shows Gabriel in a more poetic mood, while Banks and Philips wrap rhythms around each others parts...(don't even go there, it just gets a bit wearying reviewing music this average!) - if only those strings and horns would just shut up!!! You can kind of hear what King was trying to achieve, but no. Just no.

Supermassive Black Hole

So... 4 tracks to go, and the concept well and truly dead. Or is it? Who said the Revelations had to come from the Bible? The interpretation of Genesis didn't.

Ostensibly, 4 standard songs - but songs with lyrics that are pure Gabriel and melodies that hint of what he is capable of. Banks' keyboards are more interesting than the run- of-the-mill and Philips' guitar is unfairly suppressed in the mix dominated by horrible strings and horns that threaten to strangle the delicate songs underneath...

Witness these great lyrics from "In Limbo"

"Take me away From the power of my ambition And I'll be happy Peace - floating in limbo, Limbo - leading me nowhere, Peace - now without motion I cry - when will i die? God - where is my soul now? My world, please set me free"

Coulda Woulda Shoulda

It could have been so much better - and this album could have killed Genesis forever. Fortunately, as the evidence in these grooves shows, they were so much better than this artifact despite King's attempts to prove that he was better.

Side 1 gets 3.5 Stars because it sticks to the concept and develops nicely. Side 2 gets 2 Stars because of the quality of individual band members' contributions.

It's just a pity about the quality of the resulting album.

Buy out of curiousity by all means - but if you do, don't give up on it after one or two hearings.

I purchased this album together with their back catalogue in April 1974. Needless to say, it was quite a deception : some poppy songs with classical orchestra in the background.

No wonder that this album won't be a huge success: it doesn't a single great tune even if "In The Beginning" has some psyche flavour à la "Jefferson Airplane" and is one of the best track of the album.

The low of the album is reached with "Fireside Song" : a mellow song with no feeling nor melody. Very poor (same for "In Hiding" and "Silent Sun"). "The Serpent" has some insights of what "Genesis" will be be a year later. Unfortunately, the orchestration is quite useless.

Their first album though, won't be remembered as a great one. Mostly poor compositions. And I can tell you, I purchased this one just after "Foxtrot", so the disappointment was enormous. It is really not comparable with their later work even if on some tracks, Peter's vocals are precursory of "Trespass".

I can only rate this album for what it is and not as a "great" start of one of the most fabulous band (IMHHO).

Too many boring orchestrations, lacks of passionate songs : this album contains too many weak moments to be reasonably rated more than two stars. The band was really disappointed by the poor sales of this record and almost called it quit.

But then they signed a contract with Charisma...The story could begin.

OK. So this was their very first album. It sounds more like a demo for the Trespass album. It's also ruined by a very bad orchestration their producer added. Reminds me of The Beatles' Let It Be album also ruined by production in my opinion. Anyway, this is only for fans of Genesis and Peter Gabriel.

Being introduced to Genesis in the mid-1980s, I worked my way backwards through their catalogue from the self-titled Genesis album of 1983. As I progressed with each album, they got better and better. What an amazing group this was. Alas, I finally reached their first album and was quite disappointed with it.

Here we have the humble beginnings of what will become one of the greatest prog bands of the 1970s. It's basically a collection of mellow 1960s pop songs, sorely lacking the musical and lyrical skill of Trespass and all other albums that followed. Still, you can hear potential here and there on this oddity of a record. On some of the songs, Gabriel's voice carries that raw energy he would be widely known for on later recordings, especially on the song "In the Beginning." The music though, has an almost demo feel to it.

Not the best place to start if you want to get into Genesis. I would recommend starting with Trespass and then acquiring each album chronologically after that. Only for the curious, thus two stars.

Genesis debut is clearly much different from all the albums they did after it. But listening close you can hear hints of what was to come. Even today I listen to this CD with great pleasure. Ok, I´ll have to agree with most reviews here stating this is really a pop oriented album most of the time. So what? It´s good music after all and I still think it´s a tremendous first efford for such a young band. In fact a band that didn´t really exist: according to their offical bio Chapter and Vsrse, before going to the studio they were actually just two teams of songwriters (Ant Philips and Mike Rutheford on one side and Tony Banks and Peter Gabriel on the other).

The lyrics for instance are quite original and interesting. The orchestration do make them sound a little more appealing than their raw demos available later on the Archives boxset (which indeed sounded too unoriginal and a little too derivative). Anyway, the resulting album shows great promise, specially on tracks like Where The Sour Turns to Sweet, In Hidding, The Serpent and Am I Very Wrong? The rest of the songs are alt least good, and I think Silent Sun is a fine pop tune. Producer Jonathan King definitly saw their potential.

Although Tresspass would be a giant step forward, From Genesis To Revelation has a special place in my heart. It shows Genesis still struggling to find their sound, but talented as they were, even their early effords were better and bigger than much of other bands best stuff. 3,5 stars, really. Not really essential (except for the Genesis fans) but a very good start that survived the test of time.

I first encountered From Genesis to Revelation about the same time I became a big Genesis fan in the first place, in '78 at the time And Then There Were Three came out. At the time, I was able to get exposure to the whole catalog. Certainly, my least favorite from the discography so far, back then. Still, I've always regarded as part of the family. It really shows the promise and potential that Gabriel, Banks, Rutherford, and Phillips had for the future as musicians. Also , quite a good effort in it it's own right, considering the age of thes guys. Maybe as time has gone by and a lot more music has entered my life, this material has been diminished a bit, but too much. I won't speak too much about the music. Because there are so many reviews that already go into detail.

The current CD version in my collection was sort of fast one by Decca released in 1987 to capitalize on the fame of the band at the time. They titled it And The Word Was.. Some bonus tracks were provided, but they sandwiched the main album between them, which I consider wrong, but I was glad to get it just to complete my old Genesis collection (I think I bought it early '90's). It starts out with a mono version of Silent Sun, which I wouldn't really rate a "bonus". That's Me follows, which was the B side of the single, no orchestrations on that one, I really like it.

They did leave LP's tracks in proper order. The music is a nice combination of mellow and harder tracks. It has a lot of progressive elements to it and yet still has one foot stuck in some of the '60's sound. The last two tracks on the CD are from their second single demonstrate this in particular. But I think songs on the album really are musically half way to Trespass.

The album certainly is an essential for any big Genesis fan and an excellent addition for those of the '70's era band. It's not a masterpiece of progressive as much as a historical artifact, that may or may not be of interest to the average prog fan. If you're in the latter category be sure to try it before you buy it. I give it the benefit of the round up.

Footnote: There's a really good version of In the Beginning on a tribute album called The Fox Lies Down performed by Mother Gong. Yes, that Gong.

The first album from Genesis is generally overlooked in the discography of the band. The music is of another nature than their later efforts, but hints of future grandiour are there, if you listen close enough.

Genesis didn´t have their symphonic sound yet, and the album is really a collection of 2-4 minute long Pop/ rock songs. The expression is rather melancholic and simple.

There are some really great songs on this album though, which I find really enjoyable. The mix is not that good, but you can easily hear what´s happening. Songs like Where The Sour Turns To Sweet, The Serpent and In the Wilderness are good solid tracks.

Phil Collins and Steve Hackett had not joined the band at this point, and wouldn´t until Nursery Cryme, which meant that Jonathan Silver plays the drums and Anthony Phillips plays the guitar. Anthony would also play on Trespass where he would make a much bigger impact than on this album.

If you are a diehard fan like me you will surely enjoy this early attempt from Genesis. It´s not the place to start for new fans though as this is not really comparable to what they stood for in their Symphonic Peter Gabriel period.

Personally I would give this one 3 stars as I find this album enjoyable and good, but I realise that this is a collecters item and it probably won´t have any relevance to anyone else than completists. This means I have to give this one 2 stars. Not because it´s bad, but because it´s simply only for the diehards.

From Genesis To Revelation is a very sweet sounding debut record from a band that would go on and define what Symphonic Prog was all about. The album is acoustically based, mainly 12 string guitars and Piano, with a subtle rhythm section. Peter Gabriel's vocals are clear and perfect, maybe a tad innocent, but still demonstrates a singer with a fine set of vocal chords. The lyrics are generally fantasy oriented, with well crafted choruses and memorable melodies. The songs are all short, they flow into one another, giving the record a continuum which tends to hook the listener onto what they were doing (not that it was the first, or last album to do so, but it is an early example). Arthur Greenslade's orchestral arrangements are integral to most compositions, they are somewhat 'cheezy', but in all fairness, I couldn't imagine what the songs would sound like without them. Occasionally, sound effects have been employed to enhance certain songs, and Banks uses an organ on what I think is the best track, 'The Serpent'. Hints of things to come on that one. It does sound dated by today's standards, but maintains a certain 'magic', making it more than just a completists acquisition. 3.5 stars.

Review 8, From Genesis To Revelation, Genesis, 1968 StarStar

A rather weak album, in my opinion: a load of pop songs, none of which are very compulsive, and the few flashes of excellence are soon obscured by massed string/horn parts and appalling choruses. However, it's occasionally good for background music, and, apart from The Conqueror, I wouldn't consider any of the tracks irritating. The concept in itself is feebly done (producer Jonathan King's fault, since he suggested it) and the lyrics vary from terrible to passable. I prefer a couple of the stringless mixes to those included on the album, and the original 'She Is Beautiful' floors the reworked version 'In The Beginning'.

Where The Sour Turns To Sweet has a fairly nice melody and vocals, but the lyrics are a little poor, and for no real reason, the end result doesn't make a real impression. The string and horn overdubs here are generally tolerable.

In The Beginning begins with a promising chaotic sound into a bass part into a song dragged down by the poor sound quality and slightly pretentious lyrics. I like the components, but the recording isn't very clear, and you can't really hear anything except Gabriel properly: Rutherford and Philips are good musicians (at least, they are later), but it seems that here, as on the rest of the album, they can't be heard properly.

Fireside Song goes on too long with too little variation, and the lyrics are pretty ineffectual. Gabriel's unsteady voice and the whiny strings do nothing to alleviate this. However, the starting piano theme is passable, and the acoustic parts are sometimes good. The end result is dull and cheesy, sadly.

The Serpent starts off quite well with a sort of hollow drumming thing and excellent acoustics and a decent bluesy rocking guitar part, then it moves to a rework of what was originally 'She Is Beautiful', not bad, with a decent bass part and bits of organ if you listen hard enough, as well as good electrics, and enjoyable drumming, but the vocal harmonies (aaaa) (aaaa) (aaaa) everywhere really make it difficult to listen to the music, and the lyrics are feeble, compared to the original piece.

Am I Very Wrong has one of the highlights of the album: the excellent pensive acoustics-trombone-and-vocals of the verses, with great piano parts between them, unfortunately, it then goes on to have a silly, moderately mindless chorus that ruins everything. Could've been a pretty good song, but wasn't.

In The Wilderness actually isn't too bad, though the childish dun-dun-dun-dun thing leading to a passable chorus annoys me if I'm listening properly. The verses have a hint of Gabriel's future ability and range as a singer, but it doesn't quite work here, for whatever reason. The strings don't hurt me. The piano solo end is a decent touch.

The Conqueror opens with a guitar repeat of the In The Wilderness themes, and then a fairly mindless and unclear acoustics and piano tune with fairly weak harmonies and appalling lyrics. On the plus side, the electric guitar in the background and then soloing over the top of the theme is good, however, the piece overall is very weak.

In Hiding has the same problems as the much of the rest of the album: repeated and uninteresting music, and a weak chorus. Gabriel's voice here is pretty good, but that's about the only thing I like about the song.

I like One Day, silly horns and strings, yes, repeated chorus, yes, fairly weak lyrics, yes, but it seems to work here. The bass-and-piano are good, the xylophone or vibraphone or whatever it is additions to the start are nice, and it all works together quite neatly.

Window starts promisingly with a bit of acoustic guitar and piano, bass in the background, a quiet and haunting vocal with (what sounds like) trombone in the mix, slowly building to... a bland and generic chorus with irritating strings and fairly idiotic lyrics. The verses are generally quite good, though they could have lost the violin, but the end result is an unmemorable song.

In Limbo again starts with a decent theme, and this time it's the vocals that bring it down, and the choruses are also annoying. The ending limbo section suffers from poor mixing, in my opinion, I love the electrics and hectic background music, but it's not very audible behind the weak brass and vocals in the foreground.

The Silent Sun is a little uninteresting: an essentially generic ballad crossed with a generic pop song. The harmonies are badly done, the vocals aren't that great, and the violin is completely redundant here. Just unmemorable.

The concluding A Place To Call My Own is probably the best thing on the album. Banks and Gabriel give their first real indication of their future vocal and piano talents, and the instrumental end is quite good, with the strings/brass being used in a more constructive way. I don't love the final 'lalalala' thing that much, but it's a decent effort.

The bonus tracks I have on my 2 CD compilation thingy make it much easier to piece together the problems: recycling of material to fit producer Jonathan King's concept results in weaker lyrics, and the strings and horns seem to be added a lot when not needed. I prefer Patricia without the vocals to the piece it became (In Hiding), Try A Little Sadness is a weak pop song, with basically the same random strumming and good piano with a couple of tolerable musical moments in there that can actually be heard. She Is Beautiful is essentially a better version of The Serpent with piano taking the lead, better lyrics ('cool as ice, but brittle as glass') and the (aaaa) being less dominant. Although I think the final mix has better basic material, this one sounds better. Image Blown Out is a fairly silly, whimsical composition, tolerable once if you're in a good mood.

The Silent Sun's single version isn't really that much different, but the slightly more audible bass is good. Retains the problems of the original, but slightly less dull. That's Me is an enjoyable pop song, although the vocals in the chorus grate a little. The guitar solo (and guitar in general) is fun, and the lyrics are tolerable. It sounds as if the band had fun playing/writing it, something not always evident here, and Philips (guitarist), whose playing made Trespass for me, doesn't seem to be on such a leash here. A Winter's Tale has a quiet organ in the background, which gels amusingly with the pop chorus. I enjoy listening to it, but partly for the wrong reasons. A better song than the album proper. The One-Eyed Hound is a bit weaker, with an annoying refrain ('This man committed a sin, this man, he never can win') absolutely wrecking the song, which would otherwise be passable. The rough mixes generally strike me as being equivalent to or better than the album pieces in quality/sound quality.

Only recommended if you want to see the first stages of Genesis' development and the opportunity to rant about poor producing in reviews. I feel the album could've done with more music time instead of chorus repeat time, and the strings rarely work well here. This seems to me like a mix of poor production, poor mixing and a musical immaturity or a lack of direction in the band. Nonetheless, there are occasional glimmers of promise, and Genesis would go on to produce no less than seven very strong studio prog albums in a row after this.

Rating: 2 Stars. Flashes of promise, but mostly weak.

Favourite Track: That's Me, or, in the album itself, A Place To Call My Own

Two updates on this: 1) I enjoyed this album a lot more when in the right sort of relaxed mood for it (much like Dire Straits' debut). Still think the production brings it down, and keeping to the rating, but admit the review is perhaps a bit missing the point. 2) I now ADORE That's Me. Superb, superb song. Great guitars, lovely and weird vocals from Peter, and great lyrics. The drumming also feels quite right for it. A serious favourite now, and all because it came up on shuffle.

At last, I own every album in the GENESIS catalogue. I found this record on a discount price in a record store and I couldn't stop myself from buying it. Now that I've listened to it, I don't regret my decision, even if the album is quite weak.

The music, as has been said before, is very different to what GENESIS would deliver starting with "Trespass" and on. This is pop music ,60's pop music to be correct, so it sounds very innocent, very unpretentious, very modest. All the songs are extremely short, and none of them has any long instrumental section. The sound has a little bit of folk, a little bit of hippie, and a little (very little) of psychedelic.

There are, though, some minor hints of the future band that would emerge out of this. There are moments where Banks shows he's no typical keyboard player, and sometimes the melodies (which aren't so good as those GENESIS was able to produce later on) are darker than it appears. Peter Gabriel, on the other hand, while restrained and pretty much completely relaxed, starts to give little clues here and there of the amazing frontman and singer that he would become.

But even for a pop/rock record from the 60's, most songs are weak, and the music itself lacks energy, lacks more soul. In a way, it's not good pop/rock because it doesn't feel like true, honest pop/rock. Neither does it sound, of course, like progressive-rock, not at all. So, we can say that what this album truly lacks is character. Who would imagine, saying that of a GENESIS record?

After all, it was the product of 5 very young people who still had to wait a few years to give us what they were truly capable of. To say they just got better with time is quite a monstrous understatement. Even their next album, "Trespass", is so many miles ahead of "From Genesis to Revelation" in quality that it's outstanding only one year separates one from the other.

All in all, an album that GENESIS completionists should have, even if only for filling the gap in their shelves. And don't get me wrong: after a few tries, some songs actually become quite decent ("That's Me", "Am I very Wrong", "In limbo", among a few more), so there's nothing to lose in buying this record.

And, yes, as it doesn't have "Illegal Alien", it still rates higher than 1983's "Genesis" and, as a better song collection -with no electronic drums- , than 1986's "Invisible Touch".

What a poor debut album for a band like Genesis!This album is so naive,like the little boys that made it.The musicianship is very weak and it is normal for teenagers.I think this album doesn't hint at what will come later.There are some good ideas,but they aren't enough for 2 stars.For me 1.3-1.4!

Here it is...where my favorite band (up to 1975 of course) started. While it is not at all like Foxtrot, it is still a great album. It is sort of like a concept album, but is more proto-prog than full-blown prog. Now like, I said don't expect anything like their later works at all. This album is a lot like early Moody Blues records more so than Yes records. This album is focused a lot more on mellow pop music than Foxtrot or Nursery Cryme, but I still love it almost as dearly. This album could be a pleasent surprise for many people, but many probably couldn't shake the image of early Genesis making pop music. If you can however push that aside, you will find some of Genesis' most beatiful melodies, Peter Gabriel's best singing, and Tony Banks' best piano sound.

I understand it's hard to take this early sound of Genesis, in contrast to later perfect albums in early 70s. But being this released by some one-shot band, ratings would be higher I suppose. For me, it's easy. I evaluate these songs as 1969 proto-prog band. Maybe not completely, but at least to some extent, this should be applied. Because take for example their "Nursery Crime". Considered by most as very good album, but worse than "Foxtrot". But if you'll think about Nursery without thinking about Foxtrot, you're possible to get 5-star album. It's hard and I'll try to fight with it.

This is not so strong as their later albums, it's (after all) their debut. Acoustic guitars mostly, use of strings, half prog folk and half early symphonic prog. Not like their future albums at all. But far better (for me) than their 80's work. Songs are quite short, but nevertheless, they're consistent and long enough to be interesting.

4(-), if Genesis would be continuing in a way of this album, I wouldn't be so sad