Genesis: Album Ratings

IN THE BEGINNING there were five members of Charterhouse School who ONE DAY decided to form a band. That band was GENESIS. They were LOOKING FOR SOMEONE to promote and produce their first album when a WINDOW of opportunity came along in the shape of Jonathan King, a DUKE of record producers working BEHIND THE LINES at the time. The album "FROM GENESIS TO REVELATION" entered a LAND OF CONFUSION and MISUNDERSTANDING though when many record stores placed the album in their religious music sections due to the religious-sounding title. The album and first single "SILENT SUN" both flopped, and barely caused any RIPPLES in the music press either, despite Jonathan King CALLING ALL STATIONS to try and promote the album and single on the radio. GENESIS' second single "A WINTER'S TALE" was also met with about as much indifference as A FLY ON A WINDSHIELD by radio stations and barely NO REPLY AT ALL from the music press. Their record company Decca became ENTANGLED in a dispute when it was discovered there was another band in America called GENESIS, but by A TRICK OF THE TAIL, the band managed to keep their name ANYWAY by changing their name to "Revelation" in the United States.

The music business has always been as fickle as a HARLEQUIN, where THE DIVIDING LINE between success and failure depends on a combination of good luck and hard work. Every new band is sailing through UNCERTAIN WEATHER where they can easily be dragged down by the UNDERTOW and SHIPWRECKED by having THE KNIFE stuck into them by their record company or by the music press. THAT'S ALL it takes to finish a band's career. There's NEVER A TIME when it's been easy to make it in the tough music business, but LIKE IT OR NOT, that's just the WAY OF THE WORLD. No astrological WATCHER OF THE SKIES can predict who's going to make it in today's cynical music industry, where the chances of success are about as hard as climbing a WHITE MOUNTAIN of snow before the FADING LIGHTS of DUSK close in.

AFTER THE ORDEAL of seeing the commercial failure of their first album, GENESIS were IN LIMBO and left out IN THE WILDERNESS during a short period of STAGNATION when the band members returned to their studies at Charterhouse. They weren't DOWN AND OUT or TAKING IT ALL TOO HARD though, because making great music was far more than JUST A JOB TO DO for the five talented band members. Contrary to being IN HIDING, GENESIS were just COUNTING OUT TIME in THE WAITING ROOM of THE CINEMA SHOW of life before returning to the recording studio. The band members were confident of THE MUSICAL BOX of talent they had between them and their HORIZONS were positively bright with the general feeling that IT'S GONNA GET BETTER soon. GENESIS were working to a TIME TABLE and they didn't plan on LIVING FOREVER on borrowed time, or waiting around each day until SUPPER'S READY. They were IN TOO DEEP to consider THROWING IT ALL AWAY at this late stage. The band were more than ready to TURN IT ON AGAIN with an INVISIBLE TOUCH of magic with the release of their next album, "TRESPASS". It would be several albums later though before GENESIS were basking in the AFTERGLOW of a successful album release, followed by the DOMINO effect of success breeding further success in the proverbial AISLE OF PLENTY.

 

 

 

 

From Genesis to Revelation - 2

Trespass - 4

Nursery Cryme - 4

Foxtrot - 4

Genesis Live - 4

Selling England by the Pound - 5

The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway - 5

A Trick of the Tail - 5

Wind & Wuthering - 4

Seconds Out - 4

And Then There Were Three - 3

Duke - 4

Abacab - 3

Three Sides Live - 4

Genesis - 3

Invisible Touch - 3

We Can't Dance - 3

The Way We Walk (Shorts/Longs) - 2/3

Calling All Stations - 3

"And Then There Were Three" sounds like a crossover album to me where Genesis were evolving from a Prog-Rock band into a regular Pop/Rock band, but not for the better - although it didn't do their album sales any harm throughout the 1980's. 

 

We agree on about half of the Genesis album ratings, although a 1-star rating for Calling All Stations is a bit harsh.

1. Selling England

2. Trespass

3. Live

4. The Lamb Lies Down

5. A Trick of the Tail

6. Wind and Wuthering

7. ...and then there were three..

8. Duke

9. Three Sides Live

10. Genesis to Revealation

11. Nursery Cryme

12. Foxtrot

I did not buy 'on release' after Duke...

That looks like a very fair rating for all of Genesis' albums and it's very much in line with my own album ratings. I was tempted to give the disappointing Abacab and Calling All Stations albums  lowly 2-star ratings too, but I must have been in a generous mood that day when I was handing ratings out.

I get that it's tempting, and even now when i'm on a bit of a Genesis high, I still have to be honest...

From Genesis to Revelation - 2 

Trespass - 3 

Nursery Cryme - 4

Foxtrot - 4

Selling England - 4.5

The Lamb - 4

A Trick of the Tail - 4.5

Wind and Wuthering - 3.5

And then there were three - 3.5

Duke - 3

Abacab - 3

Have not listened to Genesis after this point, save for a few songs.