After the Ordeal

I've always considered After the Ordeal to be the best track on Selling England By the Pound, an absolute masterpiece. Naturally no one would disagree. I recall in an interview once, Steve Hackett said that he was originally trying to make it as a Rock piece, but it turned into the more classical style piece we know today. I ran across this YouTube upload of an old demo, which seems to be the early version Steve alluded to. Give it a listen. It's fascinating:

After the Ordeal (earlier version)

What do you think made Hackett change course? What would you have preferred? A polished version of this, or the version that actually came out?




Edited by HackettFan - February 09 2019 at 20:36

That used to be my assessment too. In the last few years, I've made my peace with MFM. The (seemingly) weak track I skip over now is I know What I Like... Peter Gabriel got tired of performing it early on. I do see why. However, I like the slightly funky twist Hackett puts on it from the first revisited album onward. Very enjoyable.

Back concerning After the Ordeal, I also truly adore the original, as I've already raved. It's difficult to really and truly weigh the merits between a fully developed studio track and a demo version. Given my sensibilities as a teen, it might have been nice to have had a stronger Rock element on the album, as the demo version might have provided. But really all I wish is that we had both. Maybe Steve could be persuaded to finish and flesh it out? Who knows?




Edited by HackettFan - February 10 2019 at 11:02

Well, thanks ever so much for sharing this, Todd. I have never heard this before, and that first couple of minutes, especially, is fascinating. Indeed, I am surprised that a similar recasting of this wasn't on one of the Genesis Revisited albums Hackett did.

I do love the SEBTP version, because, to me, it is a reassertion of the calm, English, pastoral theme of the album after the chaos of The Battle of Epping Forest, a return to calm and order of the country which the album is all about.

However, in terms of the history of this great band, this demo is incredible. I wonder just how much there is to hear out there?

Much prefer the album version. 

The intro for blood on the rooftops, sounds great to me ,but of course ,i am 100 years old, and play only acoustic guitar, but I agree with you AFTER THE ORDEAL is definitely, a masterpiece .Steves finest work in genesis.

Gerinski wrote: Thanks for posting that version, I had never heard it. It's nice as a curiosity, but I'm glad they settled for the slow version for the actual album, it sounds so much nicer.

Good to hear from you as well, Gerard. Yeah, there is an eloquence to the actual piece. Go in another direction and you might gain something, but you'll probably lose something too. I wouldn't want to rewrite history, but to be a fly on the wall when such a creative decision is being made, I'd go for that (if I didn't have a phobia of insects, that is).