In The Cage I heard the live version on 3SL first so that's my preferred version. Although I do prefer Gabriel's "In the cay-eeege" to Collins' "In the cage". Grand Parade Meh. Back In NYC Cool arpeggio riff in 7/8, but I always felt it should have been a bit beefier in the guitar, with a more metal sound. --Geoff
I’d like to contribute a few videos to this thread. First are two excellent concerts from this tour: Providence, Rhode Island and the ever popular Empire Pool, England show. Here’s Providence:
And secondly, I’d like to give attention to Nathaniel Barlam’s great work on The Lamb illustrated series. Here’s some link: Nathaniel Barlam
OP did an excellent write up of this song. I completely agree -- especially about Gabriel's vocals. what a performance! one of my all-time favorite songs!
Back in NYC, Grand Parade ... these are a couple of the more unique and different tunes in the catalog, love 'em
Hairless Heart/Counting Out Time Although this may not be the most important song on the album, the melody here is superb and this is a track that I am very fond of. I like the arrangement and the way this track rises and falls, but the overriding thing with this is that melody, sublime. In the face of what we have just come through it is just great. I have joined these two together because it sounds so wrong to separate them. This track has a fun and light sound after the heaviness we have been through. We have a nice piano lead verse and then in the change we get so very effective guitar from Steve. This is a great stand alone song. In the narrative this is described as Rael's first sexual encounter. We get a goofy little lead break in there that sounds like the guitar through some form of modulation device. This is a great song and again breaks the heaviness up just enough. Adding to just how beautifully this album flows.
Hairless Heart is a great little instrumental. My interpretation is that Rael is transforming, both physically and emotionally. He is just a boy but becoming a man. He changes his appearance by shaving all his hair off, and then the Hairless Heart becomes a metaphor, as he removes all of his emotions and empathy as well. Then the subtle but effective change to Counting Out Time. Never before has Genesis been so overtly sexual. But at the same time it's incredibly childish with the cartoonish break and the subject relying on a book, believing that passion can be taught. Both of these tracks (taken as one, of course) are highlights of side 2, and Time would have been a very nice choice for a single, if radio stations could get past the lyrics (if they even paid attention to them in the first place.) While Time is important to the story and concept, it also shows a rare side of Genesis - their sense of humor. A track that is essential in their catalog and one of my favorites from this album.
Such a fantastic use of melody. It really is pretty special. I like the way on this album, instead of taking all these great parts and making a big epic, ala Supper's Ready, they were confident enough in themselves to allow the pieces to stand up by themselves..... and it is such a great album, and so well sequenced
I know it’s a bit corny and the lyrics might take a bit of getting past, but “Counting out Time” really shows they knew how to write a good and catchy song, when they wanted to...
I don't really have any problem with the lyrics. They had proven themselves to have a quirky English sense of humour, that pops up all through their catalog. I suppose many may think it's weird for a serious prog band to have a sense of humour, but that, to me, is just another area where Genesis kind of stand apart from a lot of the other prog bands.
Well, I don't see it as having anything to do with confidence, rather what by then was fashionable - but nevertheless, the result is great. You can chose as hearing it as different songs or as one long piece.
The same word appears again in "Pigeons", used in its literal sense. It's also an apt description of the song "Pigeons".
I think a lot of people -- I'm one of them -- do not find the plot interesting or appealing enough. That's the starting point. And it's not anything suprising. That's what happens with art and literature, etc. You like some, and some you don't. I don't find the story interesting at all but I do like a lot of the lyrics in the album. I think they stand pretty well on their own for the most part -- songs like "Fly on a Windshield", "Broadway Melody", "In the Cage", "Carpet Crawlers" or "The Chamber of 32 doors" have great lyrics which you can enjoy even without knowing much about the plot. So the story adds nothing to the album for me but it does not detract either.
We'll get to the medley into more detail later. But here is my take in general. I enjoy the well constructed medleys, incorporating transitions that were specifically created to make them run smoothly -- The Lamb/Musical Box; In the Cage/Cinema Show; It/Watcher of the Skies; etc. Some have simpler transitions, some are a little more polished, but I very much enjoy those. The "lazy" medleys that just stitch one song after another without transitions I find far less appealing though.
I think "Hairless Heart" is where the album picks up again after flagging slightly on the previous two tracks - which are OK, just not particularly fantastic by Genesis standards.
Musically it's perfect. The story is often maligned but I enjoy the story and the the themes that it portrays.
I actually never heard the story being maligned before coming to this forum, there's lots of strange opinions I've never heard of before coming to this forum, I wonder if it's a cultural thing, I don't know.