DUKE

Genesis has been my all-time favorite band since I first heard W&W in 1978. The Hackett years are the best with Foxtrot being my favorite. I am an instrumentalist at heart and after hearing Apocalypse In 9/8 I was addicted to them. For me, ATTWT was the beginning of the end of Genesis as they had been. It was an okay album but lacked so much. When Duke came out I was hopeful they would include something far deeper. They did BUT wow! It is drenched in pop which is like 5" fingernails ripping down a chalkboard at 30 below zero for me. Non-Genesis tracks abound.

The opening track is lackluster instrumentation at best. Turn It on is a repetitive time eater that just seems like bad filler. The love songs just kill it for me. Collins was the one who after Gabriel left wanted to turn the band into an instrumental act and here he became the pop icon of the 80's! I did like the beginning of Duchess & the song itself is good as Collin's voice blended well. There was some hope with Man Of Our Times & Cul-De-Sac but I had lost most of my hope until?. Duke's Travels. That was a nuclear explosion of old Genesis instrumental genius. Banks was at his best and Collin's drums are explosive along with Rutherford's tight bass. Mike is a fantastic bassist but not a lead guitarist so Banks' sound ends up dominant on that album.

That track and Duke's End truly marked the end of "My" Genesis. I have the 3-man albums that followed including Stations and while there are a few tracks here and there that are acceptable it is obvious they no longer had much of an interest in turning out solid progressive work.