Product Description

After Peter Gabriel left Genesis, the band proved able to carry on without him, making high-quality albums with Phil Collins as the frontman. On the stage, though, where Gabriel'soutrageous costumes, antics, and charisma made Genesis concerts the stuff of legend, the Collins-era band had even moreto prove. Those who hadn't seen the post-Gabriel group livewere served notice by SECONDS OUT that this was a performance unit to be reckoned with.
For the tour from which thisalbum is taken, the band borrowed drummer Bill Bruford (between this and his time with King Crimson and Yes, Bruford was truly the prog-rock drummer de rigueur in the '70s) and set about exploring both new and old tunes with equal aplomb. Steve Hackett was still on hand, and his majestic guitar lines mix with Tony Banks's stately synths for that vintage Genesis sound on Gabriel-era epics such as "Supper's Ready" as well as newer tunes like "Squonk" and "Afterglow".

Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Squonk
2. Carpet Crawlers
3. Robbery Assault And Battery
4. Afterglow
5. Firth Of Fifth
6. I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)
7. Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
8. Musical Box (Closing Section)
9. Supper's Ready
10. Cinema Show
11. Dance On A Volcano
12. Los Endos

Disc 2:

1. Supper's Ready
2. Cinema Show
3. Dance On A Volcano
4. Los Endos

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2694 in Music
• Released on: 1994-10-24
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Live

Amazon.co.uk Review
The 1975 departure of vocalist Peter Gabriel--following the epic Lamb Lies Down On Broadway tour--left this band with a creative vacuum that they struggled gamely to fill. In promoting drummer Phil Collins to the role of frontman, they signalled a decisive shift away from the prog-rock theatrics of their previous work, and toward a more conventional (and commercial) adult-rock sound. This double live album--recorded in 1977--finds them attempting to reconcile both their early and middle periods, and certainly, on such Gabriel-era tunes as "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)" and the magisterial "Supper's Ready", Collins shows himself to be a perfectly proficient replacement. Yet for all his vocal chops, there's something vital missing: a necessary sense of the perverse. Instead, both band and singer run through these nightmares of unreason like the durable rock classics they are--and as a result, Genesis forfeit much of what had originally made them unique. --Andrew McGuire

Customer Reviews

Try this out if you're a Genesis "pop era" fan
Firstly, I'd like to say that this is one of the best sounding live albums ever. I've read that there was a little bit of post production shenanigans, overdubbing and the like, but it really doesn't matter - the sound quality is superb, it sounds live but doesn't have that awful "distant" feeling a lot of live albums seem to have. Steve Hackett's guitar in particular has a beautiful creamy tone - one of my favourite guitar sounds ever.

The album was a recording of a tour made to promote "Wind and Wuthering", and contains many tracks spanning the career of Genesis up to that point, including the Gabriel era. This of course means that Phil Collins will be attempting to sing some of these early pieces. I should admit straight away that I am no fan of the later "pop" incarnation of Genesis, and have no idea why Collin's would wish to give precedence to becoming some sort of Chris De Burgh style crooner as opposed to one of the world's premier rock drummers. However, I believe his performance here is nothing short of miraculous, and his interpretations of the earlier material is stunning. In particular, he sings "The Carpet Crawl" more like a ballad - which it is musically (I really like the way he repeats for emphasis on the line "the trick of the tail is the Stickleback"). And, dare I say it, I actually prefer his version of "Supper's Ready" too (the entire band puts in a more powerful performance here actually). Other highlights are "Squonk" (great Bass pedals), "Cinema Show" (fabulous ensemble playing), "Firth of Fith" (that fantastic guitar solo sounding even better than originally), and "Los Endos" (Collins and part-timer Thompson's drumming is out of this world).

I'm sure this would be difficult listening at first for those familiar to the original recordings, as they do sound quite different, mostly due to Collins contrasting approach - not as theatrical as Gabriel, he is more extrovert and down-to-Earth. What I would recommend though, is that those fans of the poppier, later material check this album out if they couldn't stomach the Gabriel recordings. Whatever, this is an album Genesis fans of either era can enjoy.

Stonking!
Loved this album since first having the double LP in my late 70's school days, and hadn't heard it for over 15yrs again until I bought the CD this week. I'd forgotten how brilliant it was - Supper's Ready is breathtaking in it's richness, and there's not one bad song on the album. Welcome back to my music system!

How good is this?
We must have listened to this a million times on vinyl when it first came out and it rates along with Rory Gallagher Live at Montreux as top musicians playing top music.

What happened that we took popular music this far and then ended up with a bunch of almost talentless druggies posing as musicians? We should be very ashamed that we let the kids buy crap without making conditions first.

This is just magnificent with the best Carpet Crawlers ever.

I also love the new one too. Great music is always great, if you can find anybody good enough to play it.

Indispensible.