IN CONCERT 1976

I have always considered that the best era of Genesis, the progressive era, is the Hackett time.

So watching this live footage I can clearly see how early in the band's history Hackett began to withdraw from his bandmates. Either that, or his bandmates or producers began to exclude him.

If you compare earlier footage, from the Gabriel era, with this performance, it is perfectly clear that, now that their former frontman had left, the other guys are obviously having a lot more fun. But that doesn't seem to be the case with Steve Hackett.

Just watch from the very beginning the thing Collins does with the hats: at first he's seen wearing several hats which as the first song progresses he starts to put on his bandmates' heads. Now watch closely what happens a few seconds later: Steve has taken his hat off, while the rest of them don't seem to mind.

Take "Cinema Show" as another example. Who is playing this song from the classic era? Only the Collins/Rutherford/Banks trio. And I am certain that Steve played guitar in the studio version. So why was he left aside here? Was it a sign of things to come? Perhaps.

Something else: I have never seen any live footage with Gabriel in which Mike Rutherford shares a mic with anyone. Certainly not with Peter. But this time he and Phil looks like they're having fun the Lennon/McCartney way.

Are all these things bad? No. Do they diminish the quality of the concert? No. They just show the direction that the band seemed destined to take eventually.

So I rate this concert with 4 stars. The performance itself is flawless; the fact that Bill Bruford is filmed here along with Genesis in what seems to be the only document of his stint with the band; the confidence that Collins exudes in his new position; and the excellent choices the band made for their setlist. The only negative thing, which demerits a star is the inclusion of those images of the sea, the lights on the ending credits and all those other things. If the producer would have stuck to showing the performers, the release would have been perfect.

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