From the get-go, A Trick of the Tail was one of my favorite Genesis albums. It was via the title song I was exposed to this very different side of Genesis I then only knew via Land of Confusion, Invisible Touch etc. These days, though Lamb is my #1 favorite, Trick is the one I listen to most often. Luckily enough I own a PDO "rays" disc with smooth-sided jewel case. Dance on a Volcano opens the album in style, Moog Taurus pedals striking you down like an epic blow to the head. Beautiful guitar, fantastic Phil vocals, weird lyrical imagery; beautiful. Very bold following this with Entangled, a laboring ballad with superb Mellotron work and a very atmospheric sound overall; perfect vocals, once again, and lovely subtle percussion. Squonk rolls along with a triumphant solid beat, not too complicated, still an enjoyable listen with amazing guitar and keyboards interplay. Phil's vocals really shine here on their own for probably the first time. Mad Man Moon is one of my favorite Genesis songs, an absolutely devastating epic piece with some of the most poignant, tasteful piano melodies one could ever imagine. Especially part two of the song: Elegance in rock is quite rare but here it is mastered to perfection. The guitar moans in the background, and already here you can sense Phil knows how to handle the affairs of the heart in his vocals; Oh, how I love you I once cried long ago But I was the one who decided to go Out of context one might find these sappy in a 1976 Genesis context but not out of place ten or even five years after this; still they shine on their own and the overall atmosphere of this particular song is for me one of the most captivating moments in Genesis' oeuvre. Side two kicks off with jazz-rock brilliance, a funny tale sung in a dramatic dialect, all being held up by a song that cannot decide whether to be jazzy or funky. Amazing musicianship here. Robbery, Assault and Battery was an early foray of mine into progressive Genesis; circa aged 17 or 18 I saw this on VH1 but I cannot recall how I felt about it; I seem to recall it as a ballad, which it is absolutely not... I don't know. Ripples, like Entangled, is a wonderful ballad, but unlike Entangled, Ripples has something about it that makes it shine on its own outside the album and even outside Genesis. A big riff, a chorus without too much wordplay or intelligible workouts on Greek mythology or British whimsy; a delightful message of the passage of time. For a long time I was not a huge fan of this, but within the last couple of years it has really elevated itself to my ears, an absolute winner and a brilliant introduction to newcomers of this side of Genesis. The title track is a lot of fun, personally this drew me in to Genesis, had no idea they could sound like this. There is a Beatles vibe but it still has a mystical enough air about it to be unmistakably something very different than the Beatles. Los Endos is an amazing closer, a definite showstopper, incredible musicianship and a brilliant tail-end to the album via reprises of Squonk and Dance on a Volcano. There's an angel standing in the sun / free to get back home - brilliant. Bonus rant: It's Yourself - the 2007 remix - an absolute beacon of brilliantness within Genesis' discography. Such a mystical, enthralling track with a delicious sound, too bad it did not go on for 20 minutes, at least the ending part. Don't know which hat they pulled it out off. But too bad it's only found in the green box set. Obviously this track served a purpose at one point as something to do with this album. Los Endos is evident, but I have heard people talk about this being a missing link between Mad Man Moon and Los Endos as well - sounds interesting! Have no idea what to make of this assumption, though, as all three tracks have vastly different atmospheres, go in different directions and are positioned as the last songs on each side.
There's definitely a sense of maturity with the Genesis experience, staring with Trick -- on the next album, we'd be gifted with a song "Blood on the Rooftops" that deals with a passion-less marriage. On the album that follows that, we'd have a song about facing mortality (I've often thought a battle against cancer) in "Undertow", and then with Duke we hear "Duchess" which describes the top-selling artist in a period of decline, looking back on her past glories. Things ramp up a bit when the Hugh Paghdam-produced records are released. I've always thought "Me and Sarah Jane" described a man's relationship with his Mistress. Shortly after MASJ, we witness the raw passionate rage of "Mama", and then the paranoid psychodrama of "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight".
A Trick of the Tail might be the Genesis album I listen to the most. I think it is certainly their most consistently excellent record (every song is an 8 or a 9). Just an easy listen from start to finish.
Almost everyone in the 1970s looked like that, especially rock and rollers. I can still remember crying at the barber shop when I was forced to cut my hair around 8 years of age!
ATOTT is the one Genesis MFSL record I own and it's one of my favorite Genesis albums. There is no drop off in quality from five man to four man Genesis. I find it stunning that they were able to put together such a masterpiece after suffering a loss that would have destroyed many other bands.
This is interesting. Of all the major bands I love, I almost never think of any of the members of Genesis as stoners or using any drugs at all. They all seem to be so clean and proper, and very few of their tracks remind me of drug music. Though it wouldn't surprise me to learn that Peter has tried mushrooms or LSD! Has this been discussed by the band or in biographies? I do think they've mentioned in interviews that they drank quite a bit a times.
I have no idea, but i have seen photos that suggest at least a couple of members may have partaken, but i have no knowledge of it as such.
Phil = weed and alcohol, huge binge during Lamb tour to see how messed up he could get and still get through the concert as it goes Tony = alcohol only? Mike = wife caught with weed during a flight Invisible Touch era, alcohol Steve = alcohol surely, possibly weed but he seemed rather straight Peter = alcohol only, consumed an entire weed cake in 1970 and it broke him so badly he abstained for the rest of his life. You don't eat the whole thing silly... I'm sure I got some of this wrong.
Great review. One of the most amazing intros from the band. Eerie minor second chord fragments and changing tempos....4/4, 2/4, 3/4 give a disorienting sound that is unlike anything they had previously laid down. The guitar figures stay the same and the chords change underneath until the intro resolves to B flat in a heavy rock type hook in 7/8. An brilliant use of tension. The verse stays in 7/8 but gets crazily syncopated. A fantastic opener.
Not being a fan of jams in general, I'm not that keen on Los Endos. Apart from that, I agree almost wholly with this post.
"Los Endos" is not a jam. There's no jamming of any kind on this album. Everything is strictly and precisely arranged.
Apparently Mike had a cocaine habit in the late 70s which did something to his nose, also Rutherford says himself in his book that Phil's playing on 'Turn it on again' was due to Phil being under the influence from coke... From this article - Mike Rutherford: Living In The Past, Present And Future These moments include Rutherford getting busted at Heathrow Airport with a “huge bag of grass” he’d forgotten about in his luggage, and poor Angie getting strip-searched after customs officers find a joint her husband has absentmindedly left in her bag. Did the drugs ever become a problem? Rutherford points to his nose. “I had to have my septum operated on in the late 70s,” he says, matter-of-factly. “Yuh, you know, that bit in the middle of your nostrils.” Apparently several years of cocaine use had taken its toll on the membranes. “This was pre-social, though, pre-social,” he insists. “Cocaine was simply taken as a way to keep you going on the road. Never by Tony or Pete, though.” In fact, Rutherford has a theory that the rock’n’roll lifestyle was never a problem for Genesis, simply because they were English. “It’s true,” he says. “Not many American bands last as long as English bands because they believe the dream, and someone’s always telling them they’re wonderful. When I came back off tour, I used to go to the local pub and everyone ignored me.”
Absolutely right. And up next....a pharmacuetical waltz. ! Who else but Genesis(Steve Hackett in this case) could come up with a Straussian dance to mind control or maybe just dreams?
Entangled This track starts with a dreamy feel. The guitar and the keys playing a mellow theme to bring the vocals in. We go through a key change and get some beautiful layered vocals. This chorus must be one of the best choruses the band ever produced. The layering of the vocals and the chord progression is just wonderful and very enticing. You can hear that Hackett is really working out some interesting arpeggios on here and they work really well to bring the whole song together. Banks plays a nice lead break using a kind of spooky wobbly sound, that although a little unusual works in this context and leads us out of the song. This track is actually longer than the opener, but due to the arrangement doesn't really seem very long.
Entangled A beautiful song, great use of 12-string and harmonies. I wish it had more gravitas lyrically, and that the coda had a Steve Hackett solo over the Mellotron choir, instead of the spooky keyboard sound from Tony Banks. --Geoff
Entangled is wonderful. I love Steve's work on this, the guitars are beautiful and they're recorded so crisply and accurately. To follow Volcano with this much slower track was a really smart sequencing decision. Phil really shows his singing chops here too. The chord progression into (what could be considered) the chorus is inspired and we get even more layered acoustic guitars - restrained but very powerful. Mike's bass pedals sound magnificent during the final interlude that closes out the song. A friend of mine had a copy of the MFSL and the bass really jumped out of the speakers. My own Japanese copy is bass-heavy, but not quite like the half-speed. Musically, Entangled could come from Nursery Cryme, but I could never imagine Peter singing these lyrics. In a way, Entangled cements the idea that Genesis will be able to survive Peter's departure. Volcano pointed us in a slightly new direction, but Entangled really says "we're here to stay, Gensis is not dead yet!" They still have it, they're an excellent band that has that magic power to meld their playing in such a way that it all comes together; the whole being much more than the sum of the parts.
