Your 'best of Genesis' compilation

  • Well, we've all done one haven't we? Mine is across 6 discs. As you can see I go for the complete mix-it-all-up approach, I can't bear chronological compilations:


    Genesis 1


    Do The Neurotic (edit)

    Silver Rainbow

    The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway

    You Might Recall

    It's Gonna Get Better

    Alien Afternoon (intro)/The Dividing Line

    Keep It Dark

    Vancouver

    Firth Of Fifth

    Follow You Follow Me

    No Son Of Mine

    No Reply At All

    Entangled

    Pigeons

    The Colony of Slippermen (intro)


    Genesis 2


    The Fountain Of Salmacis

    Misunderstanding

    On The Shoreline

    In Too Deep

    Naminanu

    Dodo/Lurker

    Submarine

    Can Utility And The Coastliners

    Uncertain Weather

    Looking For Someone

    Undertow

    That's All

    It

    Watcher Of The Skies


    Genesis 3


    Cul De Sac

    The Brazilian

    A Trick Of The Tail

    Dancing With The Moonlit Knight

    The Knife

    Squonk

    Shipwrecked

    Abacab

    I Can't Dance

    Paperlate

    Harlequin

    Home By The Sea/Second Home By The Sea

    The Lamia


    Genesis 4


    Man Of Our Times

    Throwing It All Away

    There Must Be Some Other Way

    Horizons

    Mama

    After The Ordeal

    Supper's Ready

    Blood On The Rooftops

    Congo

    Ripples

    In The Cage


    Genesis 5


    Happy The Man

    Back In NYC

    Me & Sarah Jane

    More Fool Me

    Domino

    Silent Sorrow In Empty Boats

    The Cinema Show

    Hold On My Heart

    Behind The Lines

    Duchess

    Guide Vocal

    Duke's Travels

    Duke's End

    Lilywhite Lilith

    The Waiting Room


    Genesis 6


    Tonight Tonight Tonight

    Riding The Scree

    Inside & Out

    Many Too Many

    The Musical Box

    Down & Out

    It's Yourself (part 1)

    Los Endos

    Fading Lights

    Turn It On Again

    Invisible Touch

    Afterglow

    The Carpet Crawlers

    I Know What I Like

    Abandon all reason

    Edited once, last by Backdrifter ().

  • Quote

    As you can see I go for the complete mix-it-all-up approach, I can't bear chronological compilations:

    Well, you must love A Chord Too Far, then!


    I don't have ideas for a "best of" Genesis compilation, but if I did it would be a "history of" Genesis, and totally chronological. But, hey, that's how I operate.


    You've made some interesting, and even potentially controversial, selections. The one I find most intriguing (especially as the last track on a disc) is:

    Quote

    The Colony of Slippermen (intro)

    That one might beat even "Who Dunnit" for sheer unpopularity! ( Although I'm a fan of both myself.)

  • ^ Ha ha ha! I didn't realise the Slippermen opening was as divisive as that. I was considering including the whole track, but I like doing my compilations on 80-minute discs and even across 6 discs you hit time limitations, and I just couldn't find room for it. But it's not fixed, even now I'm thinking about changing one or two tracks. I was even considering Who Dunnit when I put the compilation together. However, as it stands I'm pleased with it being a good enough spread of stuff I like.


    Out of curiosity, I'd be interested to know what you thought were the potentially controversial choices. I do like the idea that some of the sequencing might annoy some people - Salmacis immediately followed by Misunderstanding, for instance. I know some old rock-heads who'd be incensed by that. It's a little nod to when I saw Genesis in 1982 (in a cattleshed in the English westcountry) and early on in the show they did the complete Supper's Ready, and the song had barely ended and the ecstatic cheers and shouts were still in full flow when they launched straight into Misunderstanding and brought everyone back down to earth.


    One of my main problems with doing e.g. this compilation chronologically is that for example, I really like Duke and have about 9 tracks from it. In a chron sequence, all 9 of those would be together, which is practically the whole album. That just doesn't make sense to me. I like it good and mixed-up. Plus when people do chron ones they tend to be very limited in what they select from each album, maybe for that very reason that they don't want too big a chunk of stuff from just one album all in one go. So you drop songs you might have otherwise included. (That all said, I do of course have a big chunk of Duke stuff on disc 5, but I couldn't resist running all those ones together).


    My approach means I can pick up any one of those discs and hear a fairly good spread of eras. I'm never going to want to listen to a mix of, say, early-80s stuff only. Plus I really enjoy thinking about the track sequencing, something that wouldn't work in the same way on a chron version. But I do accept lots of people seem to like the chron method.


    I want others to list their compilations here as well. I can't be the only one!

    Abandon all reason

  • Quote

    Out of curiosity, I'd be interested to know what you thought were the potentially controversial choices.

    Maybe "controversial" isn't the best word, but various of the B-sides and album tracks may seem like outright odd choices for a "best of." Some songs are kind of divisive (Misunderstanding, Man Of Our Times), or not terribly popular among Genesis fans in general (It, Hold On My Heart, most stuff from CAS), or just really strange-sounding choices (Submarine).


    If I were to come up with a compilation, based more on personal preference than on which would be the objective "most important" songs, it would probably look something like this:


    Disc 1 (1968-74)

    A Winter's Tale

    Where The Sour Turns To Sweet

    Stagnation

    Dusk

    Harold The Barrel

    The Fountain Of Salmacis

    Supper's Ready

    Dancing With The Moonlit Knight

    The Cinema Show / Aisle Of Plenty

    The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway

    Lilywhite Lilith

    Riding The Scree


    Disc 2 (1976-80)

    Entangled

    Mad Man Moon

    Eleventh Earl Of Mar

    Blood On The Rooftops

    Inside & Out

    Deep In The Motherlode

    Many Too Many

    Behind The Lines

    Duchess

    Man Of Our Times

    Turn It On Again


    Disc 3 (1981-97)

    Abacab

    Dodo / Lurker

    You Might Recall

    Mama (long version)

    Tonight, Tonight, Tonight

    Anything She Does

    Driving The Last Spike

    Way Of The World

    On The Shoreline

    Congo (single edit)

    Alien Afternoon


  • The only Genesis compilation I've made, and it's one I'm quite pleased with, was a non-album track compilation from the post-Gabriel era extracting all the studio tracks from Archive Vol. 2 (minus the edited version of It's Yourself), adding the three from Spot The Pigeon plus the longer version of It's Yourself which ends with that nod to Mad Man Moon.


    Some people don't like compilations that run chronologically - but I do, so it starts with It's Yourself and continues from there.

  • I've never done a compilation and I've never been tempted to but it's always interesting to read other fans' preferred lists. Regarding the intro to The Colony Of Slippermen, are we talking about Arrival (ie "Boppity-bop I wandered lonely as a cloud...") or the so-called Chinese jam that appears at the start of Side Four of the album? Either way, I love both and regard neither as being especially controversial.

  • @Decomposing Man - leaving aside my dislike of the chronological approach yours isn't too bad, but for the seemingly odd choices we're always going to think about others' selections. As you say, it's got to be personal favourites and never mind what everyone thinks are the "important" ones. But oh my word, it's so brief! (In my view)

    I've never done a compilation and I've never been tempted to but it's always interesting to read other fans' preferred lists. Regarding the intro to The Colony Of Slippermen, are we talking about Arrival (ie "Boppity-bop I wandered lonely as a cloud...") or the so-called Chinese jam that appears at the start of Side Four of the album? Either way, I love both and regard neither as being especially controversial.

    It's just the 'Chinese Jam'.

    Abandon all reason

  • Quote

    The only Genesis compilation I've made, and it's one I'm quite pleased with, was a non-album track compilation from the post-Gabriel era

    As I mentioned a few times on the old board, I've done a non-album track compilation covering the band's whole career from 1967 to 1998, using tracks from ARCHIVE 1, ARCHIVE 2, and whatever other source was necessary. I wouldn't call it a "best of" Genesis, but it is one of my favorite "albums"!

  • As The Platinum Collection is what REALLY got me into investigating the band properly (coming around 15 years after IT), it's always sufficed as my playlist. But maybe I'll give this a go....

  • Did it cross anyone else's mind to say "the 5 boxsets" upon seeing this question, or am I the only cheeky poster here? ;)


    More seriously though, back in the day when people (including me) made mixtapes, I did this kind of thing all the time - although never with Genesis. I was always just happy with the albums as they were. I did think about making what I liked the best from the Archive sets, but never got around to it.


    I like reading the versions here, though.

    Stepping out the back way, hoping nobody sees...

  • i made a four cd complilation. each cd is based on each of the official live albums: the way we walk, three sides live, seconds out and genesis live. when i like a live album by any artist or band, i enjoy putting together the studio versions of those songs in the same order, with only a few replacements.


    i know that the running order of the genesis live albums was very questionable, and that "longs and shorts" thing was a bad idea, but... those live albums bring me back good memories from my teen days, so they have a special charm for me even though they weren't perfect.


    cd 1:

    land of confusion

    no son of mine

    jesus he knows me

    throwing it all away

    i can't dance

    mama

    hold on my heart

    that's all

    in too deep

    illegal alien

    tonight, tonight, tonight

    invisible touch

    home by the sea / second home by the sea


    cd 2:

    turn it on again

    keep it dark

    abacab

    behind the lines

    duchess

    no reply at all

    follow you, follow me

    misunderstanding

    a trick of the tail

    your own special way

    paperlate

    man on the corner

    many too many

    ripples


    cd 3:

    squonk

    the carpet crawlers

    in the cage

    afterglow

    firth of fifth

    i know what i like

    the lamb lies down on broadway

    it

    the cinema show

    dance on a volcano

    los endos


    cd4:

    watcher of the skies

    supper's ready

    the musical box

    the knife

    Edited once, last by chema ().

  • There was some talk earlier in this thread of chron vs non-chron compilations. I recall in about 1979 there was a Japanese compilation called The Story of Genesis, released as a double vinyl LP. From its title you'll probably guess it was chronological. It was also terrible. The sequencing was poor, as so often unavoidably happens with chron compilations, and created sides way too long for vinyl. The selections were also very skewed - their one double album represented by just one track, SEBTP by just IKWIL, other albums getting two or even three. And as usual, FGTR was ignored. As I recall, the tracklisting was:


    SIDE 1 - The Knife/The Musical Box/Watcher of the Skies

    SIDE 2 - Supper's Ready/I Know What I Like

    SIDE 3 - The Lamb Lies Down/Dance on a Volcano/Squonk/Ripples

    SIDE 4 - Eleventh Earl of Mar/Your Own Special Way/Burning Rope/Follow You Follow Me


    (I'm thinking, f**k me, side 4's pretty depressing, while no doubt others here are thinking, side 4 - excellent!)


    My question is, now their career is complete, what would your soup-to-nuts chron compilation be? The main rule is, one track from each studio album but with the option to use two from The Lamb as long as it's one each from the first and second half. No b-sides or live album/bootleg etc cuts.


    Despite my dislike of the chron model, I've mapped one out. I've tried to imagine it as a commercial release as a 2-cd set, and to strike a balance of well-known and less so, while not going too 'obscure'. The aim would be to satisfy those who want some 'obvious' stuff, while also going slightly off the beaten track to show aspects of the band more casual listeners might not know, and keeping it as 'representative' as possible. But I accept that I've included at least one or two that are particular favourites of mine.


    I reckon these would be 2 x 65-ish mins discs, dividing nicely between PG and post-PG.


    CD1


    The Conqueror

    Stagnation

    The Fountain of Salmacis

    Supper's Ready

    Dancing with the Moonlit Knight

    The Carpet Crawlers

    The Lamia


    CD2


    Ripples

    Blood on the Rooftops

    Down & Out

    Duchess

    Dodo/Lurker

    Mama

    Tonight Tonight Tonight

    Fading Lights

    The Dividing Line

    Abandon all reason

  • I have done this, too, but for other people either giving them songs they already like or trying to get them into Genesis a little bit. It all depends on their tastes. But it often works because I believe there is enough variety in Genesis that anybody can find something they like from the catalog.


    For example, for someone who liked Zeppelin and Sabbath I tried to compile some heavier, rhythmic, and guitar-centric stuff (I try not to go over 1 hour or else it could be overkill):


    Down and Out

    Can Utility and the Coastliners

    Dancing with the Moonlit Knight

    Mama

    Squonk

    Firth of Fifth

    In that Quiet Earth

    Afterglow


    I think The Knife would be a good part of this but again, I kept it under an hour.


    I quite liked this mix and sequence so I made a copy for myself.


  • These are both really good compilations.


    I'll have to think about an assortment.

    Stepping out the back way, hoping nobody sees...

  • My collection (Part 1) 8)


    Disc 1:

    Behind the Lines

    Down & Out

    Dancing with the Moonlit Knight

    Mama

    Unquiet slumbers for the sleepers/In that Quiet earth

    Afterglow

    Mad Man Moon

    Can utility & the Coastliners

    Burning Rope

    The Knife


    Disc 2

    Watcher of the skies

    Dance on a volcano

    Firth of Fifth

    Seven Stones

    Undertow

    Ripples

    Silver Rainbow

    Horizons

    Suppers Ready


    Disc 3

    Eleventh Earl of Mar

    White Mountain

    Fly on a windshield/Broadway Melody of 1974

    Blood on the rooftops

    Deep in the motherlode

    Home by the sea/Second home by the sea

    The cinema show

    The Musical Box

    Me & Sarah Jane

    The Brazilian


    Disc 4

    Turn it on again

    One for the Vine

    Entangled

    Squonk

    In the Cage

    That's all

    Fading Lights

    Los Endos

    Silent sorrow in empty boats

  • I tend to like to keep my lists short. That said, this list is my personal "the songs that best represent Genesis' catalogue comprehensively" I guess. Like something I'd show someone who doesn't know the band, what Genesis is all about:


    1. The Knife

    2. The Musical Box

    3. Can Utility and the Coastliners

    4. The Cinema Show

    5. In The Cage

    6. Dance on a Volcano

    7. Afterglow

    8. Follow You Follow Me

    9. Turn It On Again

    10. Me and Sarah Jane

    11. Mama

    12. Land of Confusion

    13. No Son Of Mine

    14. Congo


    But for my personal favorites ranking, it would look very different, like this:


    1. Tonight Tonight Tonight

    2. No Son Of Mine

    3. Dance On A Volcano

    4. Throwing It All Away

    5. Home By The Sea/2nd Home

    6. Me and Sarah Jane

    7. Duke's Travels/End

    8. Dancing With the Moonlit Knight

    9. Supper's Ready

    10. Hold On My Heart

    11. Turn It On Again

    12. It's Gonna Get Better

    13. Robbery, Assault and Battery