WIND & WUTHERING

I am giving this album five stars because it is my favourite Genesis album. Wind and Wuthering is quite similar to the previous album "A trick of the tail", more English and elegiac, almost dreamy.

In fact the boys were writing extremely good melodies. This is an unpredictable album. While songs on 'tail' were well structured, in a verse/chorus structure with some extended instrumentals here and there. On WW the songs are more unusual in shape and size. These guys were some of the most amazing talents ever to be released within the realm of rock, and with Gabriel gone, and with his Spectre gone (Unlike Trick of the tail), there is a fierce battle over this enterprise. Battles just to have ones own songs included on the album and other sorts of struggles. So only the best stuff is going to appear on this album.

This mid-period Genesis; "The lamb lies down on broadway" and the two albums, without Peter Gabriel, and to a lesser extent "Selling England by the Pound", feature some of the most amazing music that was ever put to disc. If I had to choose a favourite, this one takes teh cake.

Although this is highly experimental music, it is always easily accessible.

My favourite song is "One for the vine" which is an ever so detailed piece with a dreamy aura, that has many interesting twists and turns. It is like the best classical music in it's complexity and sections, it's exquisite melody and choice of keyboard tones and textures. Very colourful. Other highlights include the beautiful, melodious 'Your own special way' and 'Blood on the rooftops' is just mexmerising. it begins with Hackett playing a lovely piece on his Spanish guitar, then Phil Collins starts singing what is a fairly gentle folk-ballad. Tony's mellotron/synth sounds on this one are also well chosen, innovative and well placed. They are the best three songs I guess, although "Unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet Earth" is an impressive instrumental and it seagues into the haunting "Afterglow". If that was one song, that'd be quite impressive. "All in a mouses night" is a favourite of mine, quite colourful sounding, nice story.

I wouldn't quite give this 5 stars, I would give it 4.5, because Phil Collins is very hard to understand on "Eleventh Earl of Mar", he's singing is really buried in the mix. That is an otherwise good song. Also, there is a lack of a genuine 'rocker', and this album is a bit 'sleepy', so it may not be everyone's cup of tea. But for me, I will round it up to 5 because very few albums feature such inspired instrumental music as this, as well as such well-crafted compositions as some of the ones on here.