For me, Ballad Of Big is one of the mediocre tracks on the album. I like the music to the chorus (when they play with a straightforward 4/4 rock beat) but the verses are too frenetic. Someone stated that the verse and chorus don't match musically, and I agree. Although this isn't why I dislike it, it just doesn't flow well. There's no solid transition into the change, the music just changes suddenly. Lyrically, in both the verses and chorus parts, this is a rather stupid song, and I agree that calling the guy 'Big' instead of 'Jim' in the lyrics is pretty dumb. It's only the musical part of the chorus that raises this up to the mediocre category instead of the terrible category.
Easy misc. reference guide A brief introduction to genesis Genesis - The Album by Album Thread after the debut Genesis - The Album by Album Thread the road to nursery cryme Genesis - The Album by Album Thread the threat of the giant hogweed WATCH: Did Genesis bizarrely predict Britain's Giant Hogweed nightmare 44 years ago? thanks @Giant Hogweed Who wrote what (more than likely) Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @fRa The Foxtrot over story Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @The_Windmill How the mellotron works Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @Thievius Get em out by friday the comic book Genesis - The Album by Album Thread King Canute and the tide Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @The_Windmill Tony banks talks supper's ready Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @Mirror Image Live - Gabriel's album cover story Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @rednoise newspaper interview just prior to selling england Genesis - The Album by Album Thread selling england info Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Moonlight Knight review Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Tony on FOF Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Lamia Lamia - Wikipedia Thanks @bob_32_116 slubberdegullion (n.) Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Thanks @sheffandy Annotated Lamb bloovis.com - The Annotated Lamb Lies Down on Broadway thanks @Funky Meadows Phil Collins interview Phil Collins: from Genesis to resurrection Thanks @Rick Robson Phil Interview 77 Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Cool links Genesis museum - The Genesis Museum thanks @peterpyser Genesis archive - The Genesis Archive thanks @peterpyser Genesis radio shows - The Complete Guide To Live Genesis Radio Shows thanks @misteranderson Genesis the movement - Genesis - The Movement thanks @abzach Genesis discography - ~A Genesis Discography thanks @abzach Table Top Genesis - Tabletop Genesis thanks @bob_32_116 Album thread from 2007 (that I didn't find) - The River of Constant Change: The Genesis Album-by-Album Thread Some interesting stuff Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @Giant Hogweed Banks Synths Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @Parachute Woman Genesis A History Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @The Zodiac Peter Gabriel Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Steve Hackett Genesis - The Album by Album Thread John Mayhew Genesis - The Album by Album Thread thanks @Funky Meadows Phil Collins Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Tony Banks Genesis - The Album by Album Thread Mike Rutherford Genesis - The Album by Album Thread
He' s very info a small bit of American history: the Alamo. He collected lots of artifacts which he later donated to a local museum.
I like "Ballad Of Big" a lot. Tony's organ chords in the chorus are what I first noticed about this LP on my first listen, back when I was very skeptical & just investigating post-Gabriel Genesis. The lyrics are silly, yes. I can say the same about The Lady Lies & Scenes From A Night's Dream & The Day The Light Went Out... but, for me, this album works, goofiness & all. Duke needed a little more goofiness, IMO. I do understand how this LP might not "work" for some of you, but for me it's a very conforting listening experience.
The more I listen to it, the better it gets. I was wondering if it may fall in stature due to enjoying a few albums more with the closer listening, but this album is a gem to me
"Undertow" is OK. Not a favorite. I think it might have worked better with some love-themed lyrics though. I like "Ballad of Big". I love the fantastic change in pace. I have no problem with the Wild West-themed lyrics. Actually, I like these lyrics better than the philosophical stuff -- Undertow, Burning Rope. I think it takes a brilliant lyrics' writer to pull out that kind of stuff IMO.
And Then There Were Three aka No Hackett Required was a bit of a grower for me. Early on, I could only listen to Many Too Many and The Lady Lies. The rest of the album was too covered in glossy synths, odd lyrics, anonymous guitar and came across as being way too long at 53 minutes. I was however intrigued by the B-side The Day the Light Went Out: A disastrous mix of a disastrous melody describing an even more disastrous set of lyrics, a very intense sci-fi scenario cooked down to two and a half minutes. Brilliant. Banks was always good like this, with later songs such as Alien Afternoon being standouts in this vein of songwriting. I only knew the 2007 remix until sometime in 2013. This may have added to my claustrophobic thoughts about the mix and overall sound of the album. But as for the album itself, it took its time for me to warm to this, but nowadays I enjoy most of it. Down and Out opens the album in a messy, chaotic fashion, which suits what the group was going through at this time. The drum pace is frantic and can be off putting, and was for a while to me way too cluttered in terms of sound. But the strong vocal saves the song, as do the odd time signatures. Following this with the beautiful and tranquil Undertow was clever; for me this would not have been out of place on Wind & Wuthering. A nice, warm melody with a winter-like atmosphere, passionate vocals, a very strong chorus and the bass nestled delightfully in the mix. Definitely one of the group's best ballads, and personally my favorite from this album. Ballad of Big was always the weakest link in the chain for me. Musically it sounds as if they are trying to appease a stereotypical American audience demographic which was not as narrow-minded as they might had thought (Gentle Giant did this as well circa 1977/78) with the whole theme about cowboys and a very shallow story line. Snowbound is a beautiful song, very winter-y in its feel but not in the same vein as Wind & Wuthering. The lyrics are quite deep and could take on various meanings, still the melody and the passionate vocal delivery makes this a good performance and a standout. Burning Rope is probably my second favorite from the album. At 7 minutes it has a suitable length for a progressive rock song anno 1978 but still comes across with elements of the group's past glories and a very focused melody, delightful bass that seems to comfort the entire mix of keyboards and whining cod Hackett guitars that actually sound rather good and compliment this mix. Either I'm going deaf or else Banks is playing a whole lot of keyboards on this song alone! Phil kicks the **** out of the drum kit and delivers a strong vocal performance. On the archive box, there is a live version of this with a slightly slower tempo, but it still sounds marvellous and it is a shame that it has become a bit forgotten in the wake of the critical reevaluation where e.g. One for the Vine is seen as one of the group's best efforts. Deep in the Motherlode again sounds as if it's trying to cater to a more middle-of-the-road audience much as a Ballad of Big did; but here, the story is much deeper and the overall song is better structured. A huge, pompous introduction paves the way for an atypically blues-based (?) verse structure with great vocals, still heavy on bass and synths... The softly spoken middle section sounds brilliant, very brisk in pace and a bit nervous sounding, well fitting to the lyrics describing a (in today's view) very young man trying his fortune during the gold rush. One of the better songs on the album. Many Too Many... This was one of the few songs off the album I liked early on. It's a perfect pop song. Had it been re-released circa 1983 it would probably have become a hit, as it has that melan-Collins sound about it that so many of his solo career singles had. The guitar is solid, not too far from what Hackett would have done. Beautiful piano melody... Moody synths... Yes, I can get totally into this. Scenes From a Night's Dream, not so much. It's a fun little song, the length is good (glad it's not longer) and overall it's more lightweight and playful. But it only adds to the awkwardness of the album in that it tries to be a lot of things. Say It's Alright Joe sounds as if it should have been taken out and restored to something more during Phil Collins' big band era, especially the There were kings... section where you can easily imagine dramatic big band horns blaring out and so on... As Rutherford said in the interview posted here, the Dean Martin piss-take as an inception should either have been followed through or left alone. The song itself could have been a total mess, but is nevertheless still quite good, mainly due to the tender vocals and the hazy guitar. The Lady Lies was a big favorite of mine for a while, superb keyboard work overall, magnificent and playful bass, dramatic vocals by Phil Collins (I always felt there was a light Gabriel send-up in this song) even if the lyrics have a pretty predictable message. The choruses with their manic percussion and the hammered piano only adds to the soundscape. Easily for me my third favorite on the album. Follow You Follow Me on the first couple of listens (I remember seeing the video on VH1 a handful of times before becoming a fan) sounded a bit uneven, the goofy synths made little sense to me, but over time I think it still works out all right. In a live setting it also works quite well. A cute little love song, we all know what happened after this one, and for some this was the kiss of death, for some it was the very first kiss. All in all the album as it is deserves a bit more attention, especially the longer songs... Genesis as we knew them or Genesis, the progressive rock band as such was definitely not over and done by this time. In some respects they were just getting started.
Just to clarify....my dislike for that line has nothing to do with political correctness. It's just a terrible line. Not even sure what it means. If they needed two syllables to fit the meter, why not something like savage or ruthless vs all-star?
I don’t mind the western theme in and of itself, but these particular lyrics are just bad. The story is trite and cliched.
I quite like the keyboard riff in this song, and it has one part that is so unintentionally funny that it gets a pass from me - it was in the setlist for a short time but got dropped for... I forget. The weather was hard, but so were the men, Though I don't think even Jim will try this trip again. His horses were edgy, sensing trouble ahead, But the trouble didn't start till the men were in bed
More like he was obsessive about collecting artifacts from The Alamo, had what was reputed to be the largest/best private collection of Alamo artifacts, and then donated those to a museum a few years ago--probably part of a plan put together to help him deal with his depression issues.
These phitos were new to me! There's a cool story that accompanies those b&w pics at the source: Phil Collins & Genesis Studio Rehearsals for Knebworth in 1978
Call me crazy but I really like Ballad of Big. Rocking Abacaby verses followed by triumphant choruses. Whats not to love?
I don't really understand all the dislike lol ... the music is very cool, the lyrics are typically Genesis goofy
It’s interesting playing the interviews what the band members felt about their Classic lps. It’s a shame that 1976 concert film can’t get a real remastering
