All Prog From Italy Appreciation Thread

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 jimmy_row wrote:

 micky wrote:

 Dr. Prog wrote:

 jimmy_row wrote:

 micky wrote:

I have the one in Rome as well...  it is a great show.  There are some that say ...who knows really if there is truth to it that Pete got his idea for the stage get-ups from the Italian band Osanna.. .who they toured Italy with. Who knows... but Osanna predates them on that.

 This is an interesting one that I've heard several times from different people.  it's hard to tell either way, but for what it's worth, I've seen a few interviews with Pete from '71/'72 on the Italian tour, and he had the trademark "cut" out of his hair in the front.  I dont' know if it was there prior to the tour, but it was at some point during. 

If memory serves me, I believe he did that right before a festival in England called the Reading Festival in August of 1972, designed to shock the audiences a little. He also started wearing some kind of Egyptian jewelry at the same time.  That was after they did some shows in Italy earlier that year, but right after that they went back to Italy for more shows, which is where that footage could be from. I will have to check my Genesis histories to be sure.

yes.. I've heard the same.. just wasn't sure enough of the details to post it.. figured you'd pick up on that.. I thought it was Reading '72.
 that could be it.  He had been telling the stories for some time by then to make the lengthy tuning parts less awkward.  Given the band's growing theatrical approach, I wouldn't be surprised if a group like Osanna would appeal to them, and even influence them enough to borrow an idea or two (which may have been quite an honor seeing that Genesis were huge in Italy at the time). 

well, heck, it wasn't Reading, it was Lincoln at the Great Western Express festival on May 28, 1972 according at least to a book called Genesis: Behind the Lines:

"The days of starting with quiet acoustic numbers were over (they started with Watcher for the first time there), and that wasn't the only change: shortly before the Lincoln performance, Gabriel gave himself a makeover, shaving off a portion of his hair at the front, then adding eyeliner and an Egyptian style necklace.

The new look was, Gabriel admitted, a shameless attempt to get his picture in the music papers and to get the band some coverage."