WIND & WUTHERING

There are 3 excellent albums from the band post-Gabriel. (Duke bested TOTT and W&W but not by much. It's like comparing diamonds.) This one will always have a special place in my heart. There has never been a more fitting cover for an album of songs with that lone tree clinging desperately to its summer leaves. From beginning to end it exudes an atmosphere of a blustery day in Autumn with the sun peeking through the clouds only sporadically. The mysterious opening to "Eleventh Earl of Mar" sets the tone wonderfully and moves elegantly right into "One for the Vine" to give you almost 18 straight minutes of the kind of music only Genesis can provide. I don't have the problem with "Your Own Special Way" that others seem to possess because I'm a sucker for a beautiful love song and the guitars and synthesizer weave around each other expertly on this tune. "Wot Gorilla" would have been right at home with the best of the instrumentals on The Lamb and "All in a Mouse's Night" is fantastic music overlayed with whimsical lyrics that showed they were still capable of a little levity. "Blood on the Rooftops" is just flat-out majestic with its unique chord changes and intriguing lyrics. All leading up to the WOW moment that occurs during "...In that Quiet Earth" when the gargantuan 12-string guitar sound ushers the towering dinosaur into the room and devastates your mind. You'll find yourself reaching for the volume and cranking it up every time. Absolutely awesome! They could have ended it there but they stay in character with the heartwrenching "Afterglow" that brings the cold wind of lost love back to the forefront. It's a song that works better on stage (especially on 3 sides live) but don't shortchange the impact it has on this album. On the previous album they had something to prove (and they did!) but this one showed their collective heart exposed and they created a true masterpiece with this collection of progressive rock music.