...AND THEN THERE WERE THREE...

Genesis without Hackett! . Let's see what I think of this.

"Down and Out" - a good, solid, almost aggressive album opener that features keyboards, Collin's drumming as well as a throbbing bass from Rutherford.

"Undertow" - a delicate track with a nice, rousing, emotive chorus section.

"Ballad of Big" - upbeat track that I don't dislike but that doesn't do much for me at the same time.

"Snowbound" - a delicate track again with an emotive Collins using his voice well. Quite a rousing track that I enjoy.

"Burning Rope" - The longest track on the album. It shows promise throughout but never develops in the way that it could. It misses something that I perceive Hackett could have brought to it had he still been with the band.

"Deep in the Motherlode" - more of a rocker on this album which is fine but again it lacks something.

"Many too Many" - Pretty track that my eardrums easily abide however it's nothing special. Just rests easy. "Scenes from a Night's Dream" - Shortest track on the album that is more Collin's fare than Genesis's. I don't like it much.

"Say it's alright Joe" - Smoky kind of track with soft vocals to start until the chorus section sparks things up wherafter it cuts and repeats. Interesting.

"The Lady Lies" - An interesting track that segues a bluesy, jazzy sound with a rockout chorus.

"Follow You, Follow Me" - ahh the much maligned track. I don't dislike this - in fact I enjoy it, a lot.

A very keyboard oriented album with a strong showing from Collins on vocals and drums. I thought that I would dislike this album but I don't however I will say that nothing on it stands out to me as being overly special. I'm not a Banks fan but he was a very important integral member of Genesis throughout and he is an accomplished keyboard exponent. I try to judge the music and not the man. Watching a lot of interview material in order to get a handle on what Genesis was actually all about I feel that it's almost a pity that I did because I found that Banks, in many ways, thought he was Genesis and I do believe that he was more to blame for the direction that Genesis were to take than what Collins was. I also believe that he wanted Genesis to himself, that he jealously guarded his position and strength within the band stunting the contributions that others could have made to a large degree. Although it hasn't been said outright by Gabriel and Hackett I perceive that Banks was a strong reason for them leaving the band.

This album is a pleasant listen though there is nothing special about it and nothing stands out as being magic or a necessary part of the Genesis sound. A 3 star album from my perspective.