FOXTROT

"Watcher of the Skies" is the one of the most majestic pieces of music ever. Hackett's influence thruoghout the piece with his driving guitar leading the song. Banks' intro to the piece is very powerful and gives a feel of the presence an otherwordly power. Gabriel's vocals are very energetic and the lyrics are very thought-provoking.

"Time Table" is a soft contrast to the album's opening song. The piano is the dominant instrument and Banks plays with much grace in the piece and also incorporates many syncapations and toug rhythms. This is a very good song and Gabriel's lyrics shed some light on the lives of people in medeival times.

"Get 'Em Out By Friday" is a very clever mini-epic. It gives a slight warning of a totalitarian-like state where people's heights puts them at a disadvantage. Gabriel is showing his talent for portraying many voices in just one song while telling the story of tennants being forced to move because they "can fit twice as many" in their stead. He also shows his skill of showing multiple viewpoints of the same event. Hackett's guitar also plays a big role in this song.

"Can-Utility and the Coastliners" is an extremely good song about the VIking English King Canute. It tells of how he was tired of all of his ollowers praising him and sayin he was all powerful. He hated praise and was very modest. To teach them a lesson, he asked them if they thought he could stop the sea. They said that of course he could, so he sat on his throne on the beach. He yelled at the waves to stop when they were approaching his throne, but he could not. Some versions of the story tell that he almost drowned waiting for his followers to admit he wasn't all powerful. Hackett's acoustic guitar is the main instrument for most of the song. During the powerful instrumental section, Collins' drums are simply amazing.

"Horizons" is a very good classical guitar song, showing his skill at composing classical music.

"Supper's Ready" is the defining Genesis song. The first section is a beautiful 12-string guitar passage with very good lyrics creating a vivid image. The second section is a very upbeat section and where the drums start in this song. This segues into a very fast part of the song with some good gutar rriffs. The next part is very soft and depicts the after effects of a battle. The next part is called Willow Farm, and is very energetic. Gabriel 's voice is very lively and the lyrics are very poetic and strange. He makes good use of anaphora and other literary techniques in this section. There is a short flute and guitar segue into my favorite section: Apocalypse in 9/8. The rhythms for this section are very complex and it is sung with much energy. The lyrics are very vivid and dark and the keyboard solo in the middle is very complex and very good. The drums in that section are also amazing. The guitar and keyboard leads very successfully into the last section which is a reprise of the first two sections. This last section has a very good guitar melody and Gabriel sings with as much energy as i have ever felt. This song is Genesis' best song, even though it is not my favorite song by them.

Foxtrot is a wonderful album and should be bought by anybody who wants to start listening to prog.

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