A Trick Of The Tail - GENESIS*****

Dance On A Volcano/Entangled/Squonk/Mad Man Moon/Robbery Assault & Battery/Ripples/A Trick Of The Tail/ Los Endos

When front man Peter Gabriel left the band critics and fans alike assumed that Genesis were finished without their flamboyant leader. But to everyone’s surprise the excellent A Trick Of The Tail retained their distinctive sound. (US:31 UK:3)

“Genesis were the best song-writers of the progressive rock era. This album is often praised for striking a good balance between the earlier, more experimental work and the more melodic and hooky later releases. It's still very much a prog album and when it sticks to that genre it works best.”

“A Trick Of The Tail was the first Genesis album without Peter Gabriel and the first with Phil Collins on lead vocals. His singing might annoy some people but musically this LP is classic Genesis all the way through.”

“With Peter Gabriel's departure, the band tightened up and there were less whimsical and meandering songs and self-indulgence which was always something of a problem with Gabriel. Trick Of The Tail retains all of the compositional qualities of a Genesis record and doesn't sound out of place with the earlier albums.”

“Phil really comes into his own as a singer on songs such as the comedic and whimsical Robbery Assault & Battery (which like the best Gabriel era material manages to be whimsical without being embarrassing), and the emotionally moving Ripples. In presenting an updated vision of the pastoral prog of Genesis' earliest days, A Trick Of The Tail goes a long way in preserving the band's illustrious past.”

“I believe this is one of the best Genesis albums. The remaining members felt they needed to make a statement after Peter Gabriel left. The musicianship is especially tight and more reflective compositions like Entangled offer Phil Collins a chance to really showcase his voice. But the jams like Dance On A Volcano are progressive rock at its best. Peter Gabriel cast a huge shadow over Genesis; but the album is extremely well done all the way through, and avoids the excessively long, rambling compositions of earlier albums.”

“Every song on this album is great. There are fairly heavy pieces of rock and some pretty ballads. Some passages are vocal, others are just instrumental. It is a credit that these guys as composers and poets equal their abilities as performers.”