...AND THEN THERE WERE THREE...

"And Then There Were Three" - Genesis, personally...ranks as one of their crowning achievements. There's no Hackett and there's no Gabriel. This is one of its charms. How they managed to produce such a tight ensemble without the aforementioned involved is quite impressive. This album just goes to show how talented this band was, and that the rhythm section of Rutherford and Collins could really lift these guys to strange heights. You won't find a more dizzying and tight slice of prog.rock anywhere with the opener "Down And Out". I've heard Genesis had to drop this song from their live setlist because it was almost sure to fall apart in one show or another due to its complexity. Most of the rest of the album is pastoral in nature, nicely written songs(avoiding commercial cliches) with excellent keyboards from Tony Banks. "Snowbound" ranks right up there with "Blood OnThe Rooftops"(from "Wind & Wuthering"). In fact, Tony Banks plays a large compositional role on this album and gives it that 'je ne c'est quoi?" feel. I have a tendency to relate this music to autumnal colours in Southwestern Ontario (Canada) when the maple trees turn to purples, yellows and maroons. As far as Genesis goes, this album is on an island - not unlike "Trespass". They never recorded one like it again. For that reason alone, it gets 5 stars on a personal level, but a noble "4 stars" for the newcomer. Even the minor hit "Follow You, Follow Me" isn't all that commercial sounding. It has a gorgeous keyboard solo from Tony Banks that I never grow tired of. "And Then There Were Three..." is highly recommended and it's a crime it's so underrated.