Play me my song!

Of all the genesis lp's threw out the years, only this lp and the first & last track can send the shivers up the old spine and truly harken back to victorian days gone by! Its been 10 years since this cd was remastered, you think they would do it again. Virgin in the spring of 2005 will be mastereing the VDGG cds. .VDGG are doing 2 more gigs in italy this summer. go to www.sofasound.com

Greatness has thus begun.

1971 was a wonderful year for music. Van Der Graaf Generator's dark and frankly twisted masterpiece "Pawn Hearts" and Emerson Lake Palmer's brilliant Tarkus opus was on the tip of everyone's tongues, King Crimson were solidifying themselves with Island and Lizard, and Yes were beginning their short lived glory years. And then, almost out of nowhere, we had 5 young young young men, just straight out of Charterhouse College, aiming towards greatness.



This is where things really began to click for Genesis. Trespass was a valid and valiant attempt to better their fortunes after the dismally twee "From Genesis to Revelations", but Nursery Cryme was literally a brisk kick in the ears, just to say "we have finally arrived".



Steve Hackett had arrived on lead guitars and Phil Collins had been drafted in on drums in order to bring some more life into the bands sound, and their contributions must not go un-noted. Collins (say what you like about the man's solo work) is an extremely competant drummer, and Hackett's guitar work can rage hard and heavy in a Fripp stylee, whilst being able to offer a more reflective form of playing at the same time.



The line up was and is the classic line-up



Peter Gabriel: vocals, flute, bass drum

Tony Banks: hammond organ, piano, mellotron

Phil Collins: drums, vocals

Mike Rutherford: bass guitar, 12 string guitar

Steve Hackett: lead guitar, 12 string guitar



Here lieth a breakdown of the brilliance that is Nursery Cryme...



1. The Musical Box: An extremely powerful and somewhat disturbing piece about a boy who was re-incarnated after a rather ahem, nasty accident in the croquet field. Starts off a wonderful harpsichord sound keyboard and gentle acoustic guitar, before hitting into some of their harsher and harshest moments. If anyone ever doubted that Genesis could rock hard and heavy, then play this one for them. Gabriel's vocals are excellent here.



2. For Absent Friends: A calmer tune, sung by Phil Collins of all people, and a slightly distressing tale of suburbia and the distance between people. Short and not at all unpleasant to hear.



3. The return of the giant hogweed: Genesis' playful insanity really comes to the fore in this rather violent number. If the hard rock elements of The Knife on Trespass or The Musical Box appealed to you, then you shall no doubts enjoy this one. An outlandish tale about a giant plant that is taking over Britain, this is far and away the most aggressive song that the boys ever wrote. Gabriel's vocals are harsher and much more jarring on this one, much like Peter Hammill from VDGG in a way. Again, the last two minutes of this track are heavy enough to get any paid up headbanger to bash their heads as Hackett's detuned guitar rips out some dramatic powerchords. A note must be added here also concerning Phil Collins' drumming. Those last two minutes see the good man pretty much sealing his career and his drumming reputation with the band as he bashes the crud out of his kit as the music comes to an explosive climax.



4. Seven Stones: Very King Crimson-ish this mainly nautical number is, dominated to a large degree by Hackett's powerful guitar solos and Tony Banks' Mellotron mastery. The last few moments at the end of this song where Banks' mellotron becomes the dominant factor are truly chilling.



5. Harold the barrel: A catchy and oddly danceable black humoured number dealing with a man who was about to throw himself off a window ledge. Not the most humourous subjects that you could tackle in such a song admittedly, but regardless of all of that, this song is quite amusingly funny. Gabriel's lyrics here are disturbingly silly (i.e. harold the barrel cut off his toes...) and he takes on several roles throughout the song, playing the narrator, town folk, the lord mayor, and Harold himself. Definately a sign post for things to come, and far from a throwaway number.



6. Harlequin. A folky medieval number, probably the weakest song on the album, but not at all terrible by any stretch of the imagination. Very much acoustic based and dominated by some medieval whimsy-cum-lyrics.



7. Fountain of Salmacis: Mellotron ahoy. Tony Banks in my opinion was the principal interpreter of all things mellotronish, and this song really shows his skill on this notoriously difficult instrument off to the fore. The story is quite powerful, dealing with Hermaphroditus (son of Hermes and Aphrodite in Greek mythology) and Salmacis, a water nymph. Gabriel's powerful vocals are purely magical here, to the stage where I really could not imagine anyone else singing this song.



To finish this review, although Genesis were to go on to even greater things with Foxtrot and The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway, this was a definate sign that this band, at least for a few years, were going to be untouchable.



Recommended? Oh hell yes. Purchase, a.s.a.p.

Hey! It's the first with Phil and Steve

It's an interesting album. Gabriel's lyrics are very dark here. I think they're just fantasy, but I think all fantasy carries overtones that reflect the person writing them. That's what I find with this album. I'm not saying he is, but I do often wonder if Gabriel is a mysogenist. The first song is a dark song that you wil either find dark and horrible or downright hilarious. I'm in the former group but it really is quite amusing. A young woman working in a child-care centre 'gracefully removes' a boys head. Two weeks later she plays with his 'music box' and he re-appears as an old man begging her to fulfil his romantic desires, but an old nurse comes in, throws the music box at him and he dies. It's very dark humour. The fountain of Salmacis is a fable that stems from a flower. I think it's metaphorical about the destructive path led by children of torn apart families, but it's hard to say. Those two songs are the best songs on the album for prog fans, though my personal favourite is a sweet little folk song called 'Harlequin'. It's a kind of duet between Phil and Peter.



The album does suffer from poor production/mixing, as the vocals are often buried in the mix behind things like percussion instruments and the bass. Actually, one song called 'Harold the Barrel' sounds very 80's, it sounds like 'The Show' from Steve Hacketts 'defector' album. Seven stones sounds a bit King Crimson-ish.



The album is not a personal favourite of mine, but prog and Genesis fans will obviously really like this one. Most people will think it's a solid album, as I do.