Posts by DecomposingMan

Mike has said that he thought this was the only track on AVS that really worked. I disagree... I don't think any track on the album really worked.

I find this one to be a bit reminiscent of "At the End of the Day," and so for me it's the only thing on AVS that calls SMALLCREEP'S DAY to mind at all.

Vocally, Mike manages sort of a Joe Cocker vibe on the verses, but on the choruses he just sounds whiny to me. There are definitely other tracks on the album I like better (Who's Fooling Who) and ones that are sung better (A Day to Remember).

Will Jennings, 80. Apparently he wrote lyrics for a lot of commercial songs that I wouldn't care about, but what put him on my radar was his being the main lyricist on five consecutive Steve Winwood albums (ARC OF A DIVER thru REFUGEES OF THE HEART).

Quote from foxfeeder

Prefer the original running order, and the original mix of "Matilda......."

Agreed.

I first encountered the album when it was new and side 2 started playing in the record store I was visiting. It intrigued me even before I realized it was Steve. I bought it on the spot and have liked it ever since. Favorites are "Let Me Count the Ways" (am I the only one who thinks the drumming on this track is awesome?) and "Taking the Easy Way Out."

I'm not a fan of the Kim Poor cover, though. It's ugly and doesn't fit with the music.

When I first listened to PLEASE DON'T TOUCH, my initial reaction to "How Can I?" was that it sounded familiar, as if I'd heard it on the radio before. In retrospect, though, I really doubt that I would have.

I agree that it has a Beatles-ish feel to it.

I'm kind of hard on this one because the lyrics are so lazy and nonsensical, to the point (IMO) of harming the song. I personally consider the lyrics as not being worth Mr. Havens's time. It probably wouldn't have taken much work to improve them either.

Quote from Micklemus

Steve has a nasty habit of adding too much and overcomplicating his music. When it's pared back and has more room to breathe, like here, the results can be really special. Spectral Mornings, despite being centred on the electric guitar, would be another example. Just holding and building a certain mood instead of throwing 15 conflicting moods at a single track.

Boy, does that sum up the difference between classic Steve & recent Steve...

Quote from Backdrifter

I interpret it as meaning that PG had no input in creating it, although that applies to earlier ones too eg Can Utility.

Surely the songs that "Light Dies Down" is based on (Lamb Lies Down, Lamia) could involve vocal melodies by PG?

Quote

This makes our current Song of the Week the first track by the four-piece line-up of Genesis, so to speak.

???

I don't get it.

Quote from Rising Sun

Well, on the jpg pic, the Knight should definitely have been Moonlit

Ahh...

What are the errors exactly?

My personal favorite is Queen of Darkness.

I have to say, I've been familiar with the song "How Long" since long before I knew who Paul Carrack was, and until seeing this thread I never knew he wrote and sang it! (Side note: I always thought the line "I ain't quite as dumb as I seem" was kind of interesting.)

While this is not one of my favorites from STRICTLY INC. -- I much prefer "Something to Live For" and "Don't Turn Your Back on Me," among others -- I like it better than anyone else does who has commented so far.

The AllMusic review of the album makes an interesting comment about the song: "'"The Serpent Said' especially shows some courage on the part of Banks." I've never quite understood what's meant by that, but I guess it means that Tony was daring to be unconventional on this track?

Phil's good intentions in the lyrics aside, I really don't think of this as a "long" (or "progressive") song. It's actually two pieces -- connected lyrically but not musically -- joined by an instrumental link that's not really related to either (although it does get referenced at the end of the second).

It's almost as if Peter started out with the kind of thing fans might have expected from him -- weird & witty, with lots of character voices -- before moving on to other things.

As a fan who came to the group via DUKE and ended up with TRICK & WIND as my favorites, I'm a bit less fond of the post-DUKE material than of what came before it. Basically, I consider the later works to be "good" rather than "great," and the "Shapes" album is certainly no exception. "That's All" is a well-crafted pop song, to be sure, but it doesn't represent what I hoped to hear when buying Genesis albums.

As a side note, I like how the song's last repetition of the title phrase seems to be saying, "Well, that's the end of the song."

Definitely one of the best Genesis "leftovers." Would have been a fine inclusion on ABACAB.

Gave the album a second listen this week and enjoyed it more, even the "demo-like" tracks towards the end.

Quote from FeelItComing

He's waiting for her to show up for a date, and she hasn't. So he's trying to put the best interpretation he can on it. Surely she wouldn't dump me! There must be some misunderstanding - hope against reality.

Thanks, but my comment was in reference to "Hold the Line," not "Misunderstanding."

Quote from dodo

Toto's "Hold the Line"

Speaking of which, I recently heard this and it's been (annoyingly) stuck in my head. Anyway, am I the only one who doesn't see any logical connection between the lyrics of its chorus and those of its verses?

Quote from Backdrifter

As to its meaning, no doubt there was some intended but it doesn't come across much.

I often find that to be the case with Banks lyrics.

A good "deep cut" from what I consider a very even album. The "old man" is, to me, one of the more interesting characters to be found in Genesis songs.