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Review Summary: A landmark in the progressive rock music. A real gem for Genesis fans of the Gabriel’s era. A real cult live album because was the only live work released by Genesis with Gabriel as a band member. “Genesis Live” is the debut live album of Genesis and was released in 1973. The line up on the album is Tony Banks, Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett, Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins.
Chronologically, “Genesis Live” is the fifth album released by the group. It appears after the release of “From Genesis To Revelation” in 1969, which is a kind of a pre-record with its sound more close to the 60’s, with Anthony Phillips on guitars and Jonathan Silver on drums, after the release of “Trespass” in 1970 also with Phillips and this time with John Mayhew on drums and the release of “Nursery Crime” and “Foxtrot” in 1971 and 1972 respectively, already with Hackett and Collins as the new band members. And it was also recorded before “Selling England By The Pound” and “The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway”, both released in 1973 and 1974 respectively. So, “Genesis Live” is an album that belongs to the Genesis golden era and is performed by their best line up. This is also the only Genesis official live release with Gabriel still in the group, until the 1998 release of “Genesis Archive 1967-75”. So, “Genesis Live” became a cult album for Genesis fans, especially for the most prog, those who consider the group ended with the Gabriel’s departure from the band, in the end of the recording sessions of “The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway”.
The story of the album begun when Genesis was persuaded by their record label, Charisma Records, to release a live album as a budget priced title, to mark time, while the band recorded “Selling England By The Pound” in the mid of 1973. However, the group had no plans to release a live album at the time, because they were somewhat extremely busy with their new studio work. However, they agreed with Charisma to edit a live work, and the result was this debut live album. The tracks on the album were recorded at De Montfort Hall in Leicester, England, except for “Return Of The Giant Hogweed” which was recorded at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester, England, on the previous day, when the band was touring in support of “Foxtrot”. These recordings were originally made for the US radio show King Biscuit Flower Hour. However, they were never broadcast. So, as you can see, “Genesis Live” isn’t properly a traditional live album, because it’s made of some previous live recordings taken from the band, in different live performances.
About the five tracks on the album, “The Knife” originally appeared on “Trespass”, “The Return Of The Giant Hogweed” and “The Musical Box” originally appeared on “Nursery Crime” and “Watcher Of The Skies” and “Get ‘Em Out By Friday” originally appeared on “Foxtrot”.
“The Knife” is an excellent track and represents a great choice, because is the best song recorded on “Trespass”, and is undoubtedly the first masterpiece made by the band. Compared with the original studio version, this live version is a killer, because it's much more aggressive. It’s the track with a more significant rearranging, probably due to the new band members, Hackett and Collins who replaced Philips and Mayhew. This track is with any kind of doubt one of the highest moments on the album and represents a great closing to it.
“The Musical Box” is another great choice because is one of the best themes composed by the band and is also my second favourite song on “Nursery Crime”, after “The Fountain Of Salmacis”. This is also one of the Genesis’ songs most played live by them, as band members or as solo artists, like Hackett usually do.
The remaining three tracks “Watcher Of The Skies”, “The Return Of The Giant Hogweed” and “Get ‘Em Out By Friday” are also three great tracks. Although, in my humble opinion, they aren’t as good as the two previous tracks are. However, “Watcher Of The Skies” is one of the favourite tracks of Genesis and is also one of the songs most played live by the group, and “Get ‘Em Out By Friday” sounds even more theatrical here than it does on the original version. It’s really fascinating listen to Peter reinventing his vocalizations in such a clever manner.
Conclusion: “Genesis Live” is undoubtedly a great live album from the 70’s and represents a real gem for all Genesis fans, particularly for those who love the Gabriel’s era. It offers a very decent retrospective of the group and of their live shows in those times. Although, some songs from that live shows were excluded, like “Supper’s Ready”, which is, in general, recognized as their great masterpiece track. Fortunately, it did finally to surface twenty five years later on their first Archive box, the “Genesis Archive 1967-75” released in 1998. “Genesis Live” is real a great work and I especially enjoyed the live versions of “The Musical Box” and “The Knife”. However, and as I wrote before, it isn’t properly an originally recorded live album but a series of live tapings taken from a couple of live shows for broadcast in America. Therefore, “Genesis Live” doesn’t have unfortunately, in my humble opinion, the real consistency of a true live album.
Music was my first love.
John Miles (Rebel)
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Smoking setlist.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
I think the same.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0 | Sound Off
Nice review. It's a pleasure to see a review about a classic album. Especially in this case. As you said, this is the only Genesis live album with Gabriel. I liked particularly the informative part of the review. Have a pos.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
I think the same.
When I saw, in the last weak, some comments about this album on Sputnik, it comes to my mind it was time to do a review about it. First, it was some interest about it. Second, there is only one review about it. Third, despite the other review be good, it lacked to it the specific information about the birth of the album. So, I decided that my next review will be about it.
However, it seems to me that I was wrong, due to the few views and comments about it.
Anyway, I'm glad you like it.
Thanks, man.
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
Both Supper's Ready and Fountain of Salmacis are missing so hard. I love this album, and some people reproach the album to be too faithful of the original versions, but I think it's a good idea to doing so. It allows the spectator to recognize immediately each and every song into it's full beauty. Of course Genesis were able to add improvisations or different arrangements, but it's not always efficient imo. Rush, for example, chose to play their live stuff faithfully to their studio version with a great effect. Live versions are always more powerful anyway.
Great review, posd.
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"some people" : )
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
album is neat, but the original sources for this album (Leicester 2/25, with the exception of "Hogweed", recorded at Manchester the previous day) is the way to go with this.
Also, this was potentially planned as a full 2LP which would've given fans the true live Genesis experience: "A handful of early radio promotional double-LP test pressings by Philips/ Phonogram Int. B.V. (actually PolyGram at the time) were created which included a 23-minute version of "Supper's Ready" from the Leicester show. This pressing's running order was "Watcher of the Skies", "The Musical Box", "Get 'Em Out by Friday", "Supper's Ready", "The Return of the Giant Hogweed", "The Knife", and included between-song patter by Gabriel. Whether this test pressing was intended to be released as the actual album is unknown. "Supper's Ready" was not included, even though the front cover photograph was taken during a live performance of the song (with Gabriel donning the "Magog" mask).
We got cheated big time.
@ Jethro unfortunately, Salmacis wasn't played at the Leicester and Manchester shows that this album uses as its source
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
@altertide; Yes, I should have said ''altertide'' instead of ''people''. You're certainly not alone to think what you think, so... ;)
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
Thanks for the infos, Fripp! And you're right! On the cover art, Gabriel is shown with that mask he wears for Supper's Ready!!! I never paid attention...
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Thanks for the infos, Frippertronics, too.
I myself did not know that the cover art was from that show and that was taken from that track. I also never paid attention, too.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Jethro42
It's true that some people reproach the album to be too faithful of the original versions. Despite I prefer albums with different live versions from its studio versions, I think that wasn't a problem to this album.
The problems with this album are, in my opinion, three: It doesn't has Supper's Ready on it. The production don't be really famous, which was usual on almost all Genesis albums of the Gabriel era. Originally, it was not intended to be a live album.
Anyway, as I wrote, I think the album is excellent.
Thanks man.
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meh, I'm not a fan of reviews with a thousand paragraphs
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Good review, have a pos. I need to listen to this again, it's been ages since I last put it on!
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Thanks, doctorjimmy.
Do that.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Nice review dear, have a pos. It's time to listen this though i have heard and seen a bootleg from this era.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Do that, man. THe album deserve to be better well known.
Thanks and cheers.
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i've never been into live albums too much tbh. though Rush intrigues me a lot mainly because they're awesome live
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
You must be into live albums much more times, smaugman. There are really great live albums all over the decades. In general, the great bands all has great live albums. For instance, only talking about Genesis, "Genesis Live" is far of be a masterpiece but is an excellent live album, especially because is one of the rare live documents of the group with Gabriel on board. Their second live album "Seconds Out" is really a great masterpiece and one of the best live albums of the 70's. Before that they turned in a very successful non-prog band. I never liked to much of that musical period of them, however I always loved, in general, their live albums.
Cheers, man.
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you should hear "exit stage left" by rush if you like live stuff
btw, noticed a typo in here. " because is much more aggressive." you forgot the "it" before is
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
I already know the album. "All The World's A Stage" and this one, I really don't know what I prefer of them. Anyway, they have other good live stuff, to.
About the typo, thanks man. I've corrected it, already.
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