Sorry this will probably be boring but I saw an interview once where I believe Rutherford and Banks were discussing wind and wuthering and they referred to it as their feminine album.
That always rubbed me the wrong way. That’s like saying romantic classical is feminine like it is less worthy and not manly enough.
Dark and gray, an English film
Mike Rutherford in 2021: "It's Tony's favourite album and not mine. I think it's a more female album. There's some good stuff, but I think a few bits didn't work."
I saw an interview once where I believe Rutherford and Banks were discussing wind and wuthering and they referred to it as their feminine album.
That always rubbed me the wrong way. That’s like saying romantic classical is feminine like it is less worthy and not manly enough.
It is a bit of a silly thing for them to say but not because they'd be implying a more 'feminine' album is "less worthy". Despite disagreeing with the notion of that or any album being "feminine" I wouldn't read into that analysis that it meant lesser worthiness.
If you can break music down into masculinity and femininity I'd say both those qualities exist in pretty much all their work, sometimes within the same song. Ultimately though I think it's too simplistic a way of looking at it.
If Steve says yes, Mike says no, if Steve says white, Mike says black... 
Is feminine less worthy than masculine? How are things back in 1850?
Maybe this video can explain why... 
Mike has called Wind and Wuthering on several occasions the "most feminine" or "a female" album. In this forum as well as in its predecessor forums this has been discussed several times. Seems nobody has a clue what Mike actually means, at least I never got behind it. Mike never elaborates on this statement despite sticking to it. It would help if we knew what exactly he understands as feminine qualities.
I never thought too much about that comment, but now that it has been raised, it is a little odd. I would assume he's implying that the gentler, more pastoral vibe of the album is somehow feminine as opposed to something louder and more aggressive. I don't really know though. And I wouldn't really agree if that is what he meant. To my ears it sounds badly produced leading to a fuzzy sound that lacks edges. The songs themselves have plenty of dynamics (some more than others...).
I don't really get the idea of feminine music though. Would he say that an album by Hole is masculine? What does it mean?
If Steve says yes, Mike says no, if Steve says white, Mike says black...
That sounds like a song lyric to me...
Being female, I have a vague sense of what is meant by 'feminine' (is that word even used any more)? Maybe 'sensitive' ?
That sounds like a song lyric to me...
For me 'femmine' maybe there are many references to Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë (Unquiet Slumbers, In that Quiet Earth, Afterglow, Your On Special Way).
SH says the initial lyrics of Blood on The Rooftops was romantic, but he change it because there are too many in the album.
SH says the initial lyrics of Blood on The Rooftops was romantic, but he change it because there are too many in the album.
I thought Phil wrote the lyrics for that song.
I thought Phil wrote the lyrics for that song.
No, Steve has said he wrote the majority of the lyrics, but credited Phil with the title phrase. (BTW, as I previously mentioned here, my personal guess is that Phil contributed the next few phrases as well.)
I don't speak English well, but I think Steve says Phil only composed the chorus.
No, Steve has said he wrote the majority of the lyrics, but credited Phil with the title phrase. (BTW, as I previously mentioned here, my personal guess is that Phil contributed the next few phrases as well.)
I'm 58% sure I read an interview, or something, which said PC was largely responsible for the 'chorus' section but whether music, lyrics or a bit of both I can't recall.
I'm 58% sure
😆 I'll be borrowing that!
Anyway interesting stuff in the above posts re the attribution for this song. I always found it to be an unusual pairing, much less Genesis-y than Banks/Rutherford for example.
For me 'femmine' maybe there are many references to Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë (Unquiet Slumbers, In that Quiet Earth, Afterglow, Your On Special Way).
SH says the initial lyrics of Blood on The Rooftops was romantic, but he change it because there are too many in the album.
So why are the references to Wuthering Heights 'feminine'? This is the first I've heard of Afterglow & Your Own Special Way containing references to that book. I can see it, but I'm still not sure about this. Is 'romance' only associated with us poor simpering females?!
I have just noticed that the line from BOTR 'the grime on the Tyne is mine, all mine' must be a a reference to Lindisfarne's 'the fog on the Tyne is all mine, all mine'. My husband is a Geordie so it's nice to have it.
To explain what MR meant by 'femmine', it would need the subtitles from the Genesis Boxset 1976-82 (the second video I posted).
Afterglow's references to Wuthering Hights, (the first video I posted) it descrives Heathcliff final despair for Catherine
YOSW remember me the romantic story of the novel.
All my opinions, of course. 
Afterglow's references to Wuthering Hights, (the first video I posted) it descrives Heathcliff final despair for Catherine
YOSW remember me the romantic story of the novel.
Always fair enough to put one's own interpretation on songs, but in the case of these ones Rutherford has said YOSW is a love song to his wife, while Banks described Afterglow as being about someone who's experienced a catastrophe in which they've lost everything, yet they retain a sense of hope that they will survive and recover.
Finally I found the subtitles.
It seems that by 'femmine' Mike means an album without 'ballsy', which I translate with less 'character'
For a start the word is 'feminine' and if that is really the interpretation, I won't comment any further.
