Genesis - Genesis

UK 2007 digitally remastered and expanded two disc (Hybrid SACD + PAL/Region 0 DVD) pressing of this 1983 album from one of Rock's most successful bands. Disc One features the remastered version of the album on an SACD Hybrid disc which is playable on both normal CD and SACD 5.1 Surround players. The DVD features the album in DTS 5.1 Surround Sound plus rare video extras including an interview, music clips and live performances. From their Progressive Rock beginnings to their commercial superstardom, Genesis created some of the most challenging, creative and rewarding albums of their generation. This special edition not only offers bonus material, but also allows the listener to experience the album as never before! EMI. Album Description

Great CD, DVD falls short

The self-titled Genesis "shapes" album is full of great songs, and remains one of my favorites from the band. The anthem to older prostitutes, Mama, is eerie and captivating in its style, and still sounds fresh 25 years after it came out. That's All is a bouncing pop masterpiece, and Just A Job To Do is one of my favorite songs, along with the ode to a haunted house, Home By The Sea. While the album is a classic, the DVD kind of falls short of my expectations. I really like the Genesis reissue series with the extra DVDs because most of them give you a nice amount of good footage and info, especially on the standard Reissue Interviews sections. The main feature on the shapes DVD is a 1983 tour rehersal, which while cool to witness, is filmed from a stationary out-of-focus camera far away from the stage. The MTV videos and tour programs are of little to no interest to me. June 15, 2008

Taking It All Too Lard

Not since Then There Were Three did the 3-man version of Genesis sound so confident, full of ideas, on the cutting edge. A lot of people accuse this album of being a sellout, but that isn't so. Every song is a marvel of creativity and tasteful playing, the omnipresent synthesisers carefully chosen for each song rather than the standard mess-o-keyboards that a lot of bands fell into during the 80s. There is more poppish music than before, but even the blatantly commercial "That's All" and "Taking It All Too Hard" benefit from good songwriting and plain catchiness. "Mama" and in particular "Home By The Sea" show where the group's strengths still were, swirly, atmospheric, classical, and dense with echoes. Listen to the simple electric drum start up for Mama, building up to the thundering, gated drum kit sound at the end, and you'll realize "In The Air Tonight" was just a warmup. "Home By The Sea" is one of their best studio jams, with a good mix of electric and acoustic drums, symphonic keyboards, understated guitar parts by Rutherford, and some fine vocals from Phil, recalling the older style of music from Genesis. "Illegal Alien" is meant to be funny, it certainly isn't a work of music or philosophic art. Think of it as their equivalent of 'Industrial Disease'. A lot of people whine about its supposed racism, but no matter what they had said in that song, SOMEONE would have been hurt I guess. And how come LEGAL aliens don't get a song? I'm sure their lives are not all peaches and cream too. But I digress.. Just a Job and Silver Rainbow are good songs, not quite as strong as the other stuff, but each with their own interesting twists. Gonna Get Better is one song I just don't have any use for, it's just wispy and tuneless, but the beautiful keyboard sounds redeem it somewhat.

The reissue of this has really improved the sound, I must say. For someone who has listened to this album a lot since the early 80s, it has never sounded so good. Lots of details that were missed before are noticeable in the mix. If only the Moody Blues would reissue Long Distance Voyager now!

May 25, 2008

Insufferably Mediocre.

By the mid-eighties, Genesis had covered a lot of ground with music. From the near metal of "The Musical Box" to the pop R&B of "No Reply at All" they had trascended genres and generations. Abacab, the previous album, was a somewhat succesful attempt by the band to capture some of the essence of New Wave, and its not a bad album. However, by 1983, the band seemed on the verge of a drought of ideas, and also in the middle of Phil Collin's burgeoning solo career. Their self-titled release, "Genesis" is far too much of an example of a band sliding into self parody and mediocrity. The only saving grace of the album are the better moments, usually written or composed by one Tony Banks. Even though he is given cowriting credit on songs, its obvious from any good reading of Genesis history that his were the better songs on this and follow-ups. However, even Invisible Touch had its moments. The songs on this that follow a good example are definitely the first "four", if you include "Second Home By The Sea" as an example of a second part of "Home by the Sea". "Mama" is an overrated song that follows some of the formulas put in place years early by Peter Gabriel's solo material (example: Intruder, and Phil Collin's solo "In the Air Tonight" which sort of, uh, took form from this formula). "That's All" has a good guitar groove and I've always liked it, despite it being pop. "Home by the Sea"/Second Home by the Sea is decent, but the triggered drums/drum machine really bring it down a notch. Now for the frustrating part of the album:

I would consider the rest of the album very worth its MOR (middle of the road rock) criticisms people give it from time to time. All music can make us remember things if we heard at a certain time, but unfortunately the rest of this album reminds me of two things: 1. Being at a grocery store in the mid-eighties. I'm sorry but this is what they played (and often still play) as the "muzak" of many grocery stores around the world. Just hearing makes me think of those flourescent lights (ick!)

2. The dentist's office. I think that this is self-explainatory. "Taking it all Too Hard" is likely an orthodontist's theme song!

Humor aside, I just don't like the rest of the album. It is indeed far too close to some of Phil's solo material at the time. "Illegal Alien" is far worse than "WhoDunit" in my mind, and "Just a Job to Do" reminds me too much of Miami Vice. Overall, the carpet crawling former prog rockers come up short on this one. And the last songs (like the last three on Abacab) are pretty much forgettable. February 8, 2008

Genesis' classic follow-up to Abacab gets a deluxe makeover

English art rockers Genesis released their self-titled 15th album in October of 1983.
The album was the band's first new studio effort since the monster selling 1981 album Abacab and first all around relase since 1982's Three Sides Live album.
Singer/drummer Phil Collins, guitarist/bass player Mike Rutherford and keyboard player Tony Banks in the interim between Abacab and Genesis released their second solo albums Hello I Must Be Going, Acting Very Strange and The Fugitive respectively. In the spring of 1983, Banks, Rutherford and Collins went back to their own studio dubbed The Farm in Surrey, England with co-producer Hugh Padgham to work on another album. Would the final result be another winner or a loser, read on and find out (as I did in September of 1997 when I first bought the album on cassette and then on CD two months later).
We begin the album with the album's biggest hit in the UK and a rock radio staple here in the US called "Mama". The music is haunting and revolved around a drum machine and the lyrics tell of one's desire for a prostitute or a mother-like figure. The guitars and keyboards are haunting but superb. Also, the maniacal laugh is amazing and it was inspired by Grandmaster Flash's The Message where it had a maniacal laugh so rap did influence Genesis. great number. Next is the album's biggest hit here in the US called "That's All" which reached #6. This piano-driven number is a great song and its video was humorous depicting the lads as homeless hobos was a lighthearted look at the homeless problem. The lyrics are quite superb and the melody is very catchy. We end the album's first half with the two part epic "Home By The Sea" and "Second Home By The Sea". The former is a ghost story with a great melody and then segues into the latter which is keyboard and guitar soloing with electronic drums that manages to not get boring. The drama of the piece increases towards the end as Phil repeats the final lines of 'Home By The Sea' in an extremely emotive way.
The album's second half starts with "Illegal Alien" which is a light hearted poke at illegal immigration! This song (and its video) is extremely fun especially with Phil's failed attempt at a Mexican accent. The three Genesis men looking like Mexicans was hysterical, especially when Phil took his fake wig off in the video while getting his green card (LOL!). Nest is the ballad "Taking It All Too Hard" which is a great number. Next is the rocker "Just A Job To Do" which is a great rocker. The song was used as a theme song to a short live US ABC series and is a cop-and-robber chase song but a great one. "Silver Rainbow" follows and musically sounds like The Beatles circa 1967-1968 psychedelia only with synthesizers and electric drums replacing orchestras and regular drums. While it sounds dated today to many, it's a great song! We end the album with "It's Gonna Get Better" which is a great piece of music with lyrics providing optimism to maybe a disheartened listener after being alone and/or in despair.
The self-titled Genesis album reached #9 on the Billboard album chart and has sold 4 million copies to date in the US.
In 2007, the album was re-released in a re-mixed/re-mastered version with a bonus DVD. The DVD contains videos for the album's first five tracks plus interviews with the members of the band and also unearthed rehearsal footage of the band running through songs that the band would play on The Mama Tour. Also, it includes the tour program that was sold at shows on the 1983/84 tour.
Recommended! December 24, 2007

Yet Another Great Genesis CD

Genesis' self-titled 1983 album has been reissued in a wonderful CD/DVD format that really gives you proof that the band did have a sense of humor, especially when it came to their videos. Their songs on this great album ranged from humorous fooling around ("Illegal Alien") to pure menace ("Mama", "Home By The Sea", "Just A Job To Do") to tales of romantic discord ("That's All", "Taking It All To Hard") to songs of hope that are helping me look good for a young woman whom I met in the fall of 2007 ("Silver Rainbow", "It's Gonna Get Better"). Some critics were deriding the band as easy-listening lightweights by 1983, but I disagree, and have been watching reruns of the sitcom WHAT I LIKE ABOUT YOU for a template to take these comments like, as they aren't totally true. The music is harmless, yet never boring. This is a package you must own if you enjoy progressive pop-rock. November 23, 2007

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