WE CAN'T DANCE

'We Can't Dance' was released when CD's were starting to become a popular audio format. The album is seventy-one minutes and thirty seconds in duration, which is quite lengthy for a Genesis record. Like many albums released in the 90s, 'We Can't Dance' suffered from superfluity. The band tried to squeeze as much music they could onto a single disc, resulting in some "filler" tracks.

"No Son of Mine" starts with an atmospheric chord progression and a synth noise that sounds like an elephant. It's a great pop song with a catchy chorus melody. "Jesus He Knows Me" is an upbeat rock song with interesting Mike Rutherford rhythm guitar. The music video is one of their best. "Driving the Last Spike" contains a heartfelt vocal performance from Phil Collins, and is a bit better than "Domino," if you were to compare it to another one of their 80s epics. It is a bit long for my liking, but overall, the music is good. "I Can't Dance" is awful. Phil Collins' vocals are appalling and the instrumentation is similarly egregious. This is possibly the worst Genesis song of all time. "Never a Time" is a good, smooth pop song. "Dreaming While You Sleep" is an insipid song, but the chorus is decent.

"Tell Me Why" is a superfluous track. "Living Forever" starts with an odd shuffle beat, but the instrumental section is appealing as it contains an interesting Tony Banks synth solo. "Hold On My Heart" is another smooth pop song that I enjoy quite a bit. Mike Rutherford's lead guitar playing sounds like Santana. "Way of the World" is another filler track. "Since I Lost You" is a song dedicated to Eric Clapton and his son who died the year 'We Can't Dance' was released. The song has a 50s doo-wop flavor. Unfortunately, the song is lackluster and doesn't move me emotionally whatsoever. "Fading Lights" is the final track and, in my opinion, the best song on the album and one of my favorite Genesis songs. I refuse to regard 'Calling All Stations' as a Genesis album, which is why I see "Fading Lights" as the band's swansong. For that reason, it's an emotional piece of music for me to listen to. Phil Collins' vocals are passionate, and there is a classic jam that the band play that features wonderful Tony Banks keyboard work. This song certainly elevates what is a pretty mediocre album.

In conclusion, 'We Can't Dance' is a weak Genesis album, but I appreciate that the band pursued a different sound as there are more acoustic drums on this album than on previous Genesis albums. Nevertheless, the slight change in sound doesn't compensate for the uninspired music found on this album. 4/10