THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY

'The Lamb lies down on Broadway' was a creative triumph for Gabriels Genesis. Although not selling as well as 'Selling England by the pound' only achieving a chart position of 10, this ambitous album is now widely regarded as a classic. It should come as no surprise that Peter Gabriels writing talents were noticed by Exorcist director William Friedkin.

The Lamb was an ambitious project, a four sided concept album in which a young Peurto Rican man is sucked into a alternative reality through some portal in Times Square, NYC, and has his senses pulled and stretched to their outer limits. The Sci-Fi element of the concept may not have appealed so much to those who liked the eccentric, English side of Genesis. However, musically, the lamb is a force to be reckoned with. Rich in memorable melody, mystery and a vast variey of moods and soundscapes. For Tony Banks, Steve Hackett and PG the Lamb is a masterpeice.

High points on this album, for me, are 'In the cage', a masterpiece; driving and tense and riddled with Tony Banks genius, a riffing Hammond organ, and dramatic keyboard solo. 'Fly on a Windshield' and 'Broadway melody of 1974' merge an almost dreamy Egyption feel, into a classic Mellotron based tune, as PG poetically namedrops numerous American cultural icons into the mix. 'Lillywhite Lillith' has an almost Beetle-esque feel, a great song that should have been longer!! 'The Lamia' and 'Silent Sorrow in empty boats' close, what would have been the third side of the vinyl album. These two two tunes are haunting, melodic and are blessed with classic Gabriel lyrics. The only thing that arguably lets the album down is the poor production.Of course, it's by no means the worst production Genesis had in the early years.

As a teenager this was my favourite Genesis release. These days I favour Foxtrot and A Trick of the Tail, but it's always going to be a close call. The Lamb is one of the best, if not the best prog concept albums ever released, in terms of feel and atmosphere alone IMO.