Brandon Beck - Blog Post #4 (Genesis)

                           Left to right: Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett, Mike Rutherford, Phil Collins and Tony Banks.  

Genesis was an English rock band formed in 1967 with original band members including Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Michael Rutherford and Anthony Phillips who met at the Charterhouse school in 1966.  Phil Collins join the band in 1970 as the lead drummer.  The band is known for two distinct “eras”; first under lead singer Peter Gabriel and then under Phil Collins who took over as lead singer after Peter Gabriel’s departure in the mid-1970s.

    

The first era of Genesis ran from 1968 to 1975 with Peter Gabriel as the lead singer and most significant influencer of the band’s style.  While hard to describe, the early music was complex and almost operatic in its construction.  Gabriel had a flare for the dramatic and included unusual theatrics in most of the on- stage performances.  Likely due to the eccentric nature of Gabriel’s work, the band was not really commercially successful until the end of Gabriel’s tenure when similarly “unusual” English bands like Jethro Tull and Yes were hitting the mainstream.   

The second era ran from 1975 to 1996 with Phil Collins taking over Gabriel’s spot as lead singer.  The band was much more contemporary and bordered on a “cooler” version of pop music.  Without Gabriel,  Genesis dropped to 4 members and began their commercial success with A Trick of the Tail in 1976 which was very successful in the United States.    Even know the band was ripe with musical talent, Phil Collins had talent and a particular “charisma” that drove the band to real success.   Collins’ success as a solo artist, which included eight Grammy’s and other awards too numerous to list, is a testament to his talent both inside and outside of the Genesis construct. 

After more than 30 years of making music, Genesis was nominated for more than 25 awards, on multiple continents, across multiple musical genres and mediums.  With a Grammy, an award from the AMA, and a Lifetime Achievement Award for Progressive Music, they were inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.  

I have attached some photos and music videos:

The Lamb Lies Down On Hollywood: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pteh5hdZlg

A Trick of the Tail:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWxaidVIjXk

Wind & Wuthering.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRE-T6kcVlw

Land of Confusion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yq7FKO5DlV0

(yes it’s a little weird!)

Calling All Stations:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgAqSvhNxbc