...AND THEN THERE WERE THREE...

Oh, how I miss Steve Hackett. Many Too Many is a beautiful Tony Banks ballad which could have done with a bit more piano and fewer synths and Say It's Alright Joe is a passable Mike Rutherford pop song. After that it's slim pickings. Undertow begins with a nice piano passage reminiscent of Mad Man Moon then descends into a silly second stanza. Follow You, Follow Me was a big Genesis hit. I don't know why. The song is catchy but the theme doesn't develop and the song has no resolution. My criticism of the whole album is that it lacks the guitar parts to make it interesting. Moog and mellotron have their place but not as a lead instrument. Checking the song writings credits, I see that most of the songs are written by Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford. I never thought I would say this but the only conclusion I can draw is that it is Phil Collins who saves the band artistically in their subsequent albums.