THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY

Unlike the transition in recent memory of Neal Morse into the realm of evangelical rock, the Progressive Rock heroes of the 1970's felt free to explore mystical and theological concepts within the scope of their art, without having to subscribe to anyone's version of Orthodoxy, or place a specialized label on themselves.

Already having explored a mystical vision of the fulfillment of time in "Supper's Ready," Genesis offer another vision with "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway."

The Lamb in the title track is a well-known symbol of Christ, placed in the jarring context of a bustling modern city. The Lamb lies down, both an action of peaceful restfulness, but also possibly of death, the action by which Christ is supposed to redeem the world. Nobody knows why the lamb is there, quite out of place in the city streets. He just does what he does.

We are introduced to Rael, an almost sociopathic street thug and vandal. He tries to make his mark on the world through grafitti.

But he is about to have an incredible, life-changing experience. In "Fly on a Windshield," he makes the transition between the surface world that we live in everyday to the "world under the surface of things." In the rest of the album, it is sometimes stated that Rael is "underground," which is a metaphorical way of expressing this.

"Broadway Melody of 1974" relates a series of vignettes from Broadway, all taken out of time and jumbled together. It is a common element of mystical experiences both ancient and modern that they involve a sense of being taken out of time, meeting people who dies long ago, etc. This song is meant to give the sense of Rael being transitioned into another kind of reality.

Rael begins his journey "In the Cage." It is a common theme in Christianity that our souls are in captivity, and need to be liberated.

In "The Grand Parade of Lifeless Packaging," Rael glimpses the sight of flesh without spirit, bodies waiting to enter the world, before they are given breath and consciousness. The lifeless bodies are coupled with marketing language, the voices of salesmen hawking their wares. The image gives rise to Rael considering what more there might be to life- "I see no sign of free will, so I guess I'll have to pay."

Rael revisits his childhood "Back in N.Y.C." Young, tough, free of conscience. The experiences that hardened him and made him the way he is.

"Hairless Heart", though instumental, evokes Biblical poetry about the difference between a heart of stone and a heart of flesh. In this alternate image, Rael's heart being "shaved" so it is "hairless" is meant to give us the sense that his emotions are being uncovered and made vulnerable again.

In "Counting Out Time," Rael revisits his first sexual experiences, as he treated his partner as an object to be mastered with the help of an instruction manual.

"The Carpet Crawlers" envisions creatures like helpless babies crawling on lambswool. This is the second appearance of the Lamb, though this time, the proportions have changed, and Rael is like a flea hanging onto the surface of the immensity of God. The Crawlers need to go somewhere, into life, into birth, to face reality. You've got to get in to get out.

"The Chamber of 32 Doors" offers many directions that Rael and the others could go. But so many of them lead back to the same place again and again. Rael needs someone to believe in, someone to trust. He learns that he would rather trust a country man than a town man, someone who works with his hands, someone humble who doesn't have to self-promote and "shout what he's found."

Instead of happening upon the right door, Rael hooks up with "Lilywhite Lilith." (Lilith was God's failed first experiment with creating a woman in Hebrew mythology) he leads him forward.

He is led to the "Supernatural Anaesthetist" who brings death. While it is interesting to place birth images so close to death images, these belong together in religious allegory. Rael is undergoing an experience of being born anew, but at the same time, many things about him must die.

Rael, after being "anesthetized," meets a series of lost, hopeless creatures. The sensuous "Lamia" seek to erotically devour Rael, but like the mythical Tantalus, pleasure melts away before they can enjoy it. In "The Colony of Slippermen," Rael encounters people who are vague and indefinite, their form always shifting and slipping.

It is strange and slightly disturbing that Rael can only make progress at this point by submitting to castration at the hands of Doktor Dyper. But this echoes ages of writing and thinking about the tension between the spirit and the flesh, and the problematic nature of sexuality. From now on, Rael will wear his "package" in a vial around his neck, to be taken out and used when appropriate, but no longer ruling his life.

Since "In the Cage," Rael has caught glimpses of his brother John. The album art depicts John protrayed by the same actor as Rael, with good reason. Rael and John are different aspects of the same person who need to be reunited. John, by the way, is the name of 2 or 3 writers in the New Testament, one who tells the story of Jesus, and one who offers a mystical vision of the End of Time.

"The Raven" moves the story forward by stealing Rael's phallic vial, and then "The Light dies down on Broadway." Raels sees for a moment a glimpse of the real world, and gets the sense that he may not successfully return.

The resolution of the story comes, after "Riding the Scree," and "In the Rapids," when Rael is reunited with John. Rael, through this transformative experience, has become a whole person again.

"it' reveals the pun at the heart of the story. "It is REAL. It IS RAEL." It helps to know the origin of the name "ISRAEL" in the Bible. A man named Jacob was renamed "Israel" after spending the night wrestling with God. We walked away from the encounter physically wounded, but with a new name, which means, "One who struggles with God." That is exactly what Rael has been doing for this entire album - struggling with God, and being transformed by the experience.

As one of the great works of Progressive Rock, "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" is unparalleled. But part of its greatness is that it is also a work of literature, poetically engaging with ancient mystical truths in a modern, playful, and surprising way.

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