Your favorite tracks on ... "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway"

the opener is one of their strongest, and the reprise (light dies down) is one of my favorites as well.

obviously The lamia and In the cage, then Counting out time and Carpet crawlers.

I went two thirds the same as Nanunami, but with Chamber and Fly instead of Light and Counting. The four we have in common picked themselves for me, with the live versions of In the Cage and Carpet Crawlers being even better. Chamber really showcases Gabriel at his most soulful and Hackett’s Lamia solo is just the sound of a human soul breaking to my ears accompanied by some of Phil’s finest and most sympathetic drumming.

Selecting individual tracks was a bit of a challenge for me because I love how certain songs flow into each other.

For example, Fly On A Windshield/Broadway Melody of 1974 and the sequence comprised of Anyway/Supernatural Anaesthetist/The Lamia are among the highlights of the album for me.

Yet, when it came down to weighing the merits of each individual track, I chose only two of the five even though collectively I get more pleasure listening to these series of songs than some of the tracks I ended up voting for.

Without Back in NYC there is no Gary Numan/Tubeway Army.

I remember Fish saying it was his fave too

Such an influential album

The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, In The Cage, Back in NYC, Chamber of 32 Doors, The Lamia, and The Colony of Slippermen were my choices.

Having 6 slots to fill made it a little easier to choose without feeling like I was slighting other great songs, but it's still tough.

I think The Lamb's greatest strength is the way the interludes blend things together. The album is truly greater than the sum of the parts, pun intended.

For the purposes of a poll like this they're hard to choose, but I think Ravine and Silent Sorrow in Empty Boats are some of the moodiest and most evocative music Genesis ever recorded, and they're the two tracks I listen to out of context the most.

I prefer Backdrifter's threads which invite members to comment on the albums as a whole. But I voted Back In NYC, Hairless Heart and The Waiting Room.

Lamb, Carpet Crawlers & Back In NYC followed by In The Cage, The Lamia & Counting Out Time.

Tough to settle on just six. I easily clicked on the following:

The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway - an outstanding piano part by Tony, beginning with one of the best intros of their career. Fantastic melodic bassline by Mike. Awesome vocal and melody by Peter. One of their best.

Fly On a Windshield - a pile-driving stomper with great mellotron chords from Tony and aching guitar from Steve. Phil's great drumming anchors it all.

In the Cage - a classic, although it truly came into its own as a live showstopper with Phil at the lead. Still one of my favourite solos by Tony.

Back in NYC - another stomper that just builds and builds. One of Peter's most raw and visceral vocals.

And then I had to pause and hesitate. Which of my favourites would I leave out?

I settled with:

Anyway - a gorgeous rippling piano part from Tony, including a great solo section. A tasteful solo from Steve.

Riding the Scree - one of crazier off-kilter instrumentals, with the guitars in 9/8 and Tony off in some other time signature. Phil again is the glue that holds it together and helps it all make sense.

As a result, I had to leave out:

Lillywhite Lillith - just plain catchy with great co-vocal by Phil.

Here Comes the Supernatural Anesthetist - one of Steve's most playful solos

...and many more.

Recently played Back in NYC to a mate of mine who is NOT a Genesis fan, it was part of a playlist I put together.

He thought it was amazing - when I told him it was Genesis (1974) he was staggered

Quote from Groucho

Without Back in NYC there is no Gary Numan/Tubeway Army.

Oh! Has he mentioned this track?

Quote from StillCan'tDance

I prefer Backdrifter's threads which invite members to comment on the albums as a whole. But I voted Back In NYC, Hairless Heart and The Waiting Room.

Thanks (and well done on starting an IT thread, I hope it gets some lively discussions going). As I said before, it seems members prefer this format though. It's a pity most of the album threads didn't attract much attention. Ah well. But I'll be really hacked off if a '3 Tracks' Nursery Cryme thread is lively. My general album thread only got about 6 responses as I recall. I thought with it being the start of the classic line up, members would be all over it! ☹️

Good Lamb choices by the way. Great to see TWR getting some love.

Quote from Backdrifter

Great to see TWR getting some love.

I used to challenge myself to see if I could listen to it in the dark with headphones. I could never get to the end before turning the light on! Since then I've heard Frankie Teardrop by Suicide which almost makes listening to The Waiting Room a walk in the park.

One of the things I liked most about TWR is that it's an atypical Genesis tune (indeed, The Lamb itself could be described as atypical for Genesis) and I always enjoy bands trying out something new. The thing with Genesis is that so many people - fans and detractors - think they know what the band is about and then they come along with something like The Waiting Room or I Can't Dance or No Reply At All that completely confound expectations and challenge the perception of what Genesis is.

Quote from Backdrifter

Oh! Has he mentioned this track?

Thanks (and well done on starting an IT thread, I hope it gets some lively discussions going). As I said before, it seems members prefer this format though. It's a pity most of the album threads didn't attract much attention. Ah well. But I'll be really hacked off if a '3 Tracks' Nursery Cryme thread is lively. My general album thread only got about 6 responses as I recall. I thought with it being the start of the classic line up, members would be all over it! ☹️

Good Lamb choices by the way. Great to see TWR getting some love.

No, Gary has not mentioned but listen to it and tell me he's not influenced

Fly on a Windshield. Hard to choose one, whole album is fantastic (yes, even the weird stuff from the second album)

Lamb, Fly, Cage, Carpet Crawlers and Riding the Scree (a hidden gem IMHO) were pretty easy pick. The sixth probably changes depending on my mood, but I went with Back in NYC. Slippermen, Waiting Room or Hairless Heart could at times round out the six. I also really enjoy the quirkiness of songs like Grand Parade and Counting Out Time.

Just saw that nobody voted for The grand parade so far. Was listening to that tune the other day and thought it's quite underated and deserves more spotlight. What do you think?

Quote from Nanunami

Just saw that nobody voted for The grand parade so far. Was listening to that tune the other day and thought it's quite underated and deserves more spotlight. What do you think?

Absolutely. There's a lot to it, the lyris warns against conforming and being just another "lifeless package" while Eno goes to town on Peter's vocals to great effect. Phil turns in some tasty fills along the way and the whole thing builds brilliantly before winding down. And the tune is less than three minutes long which is a feat in itself.

I looked it up. I had voted for

Lamb Lies Down

Back in NYC

Carpet Crawlers

Anyway

Lamia

It

Don't remember why.