Tag: Tony Banks

audio review : Fading Lights ( song ) … Genesis

This is the coda of We Can’t Dance. What a hell of a way to end an album. Conceptually it’s one of the most epic I’ve ever come across. Phil Collins sounds spectacular on the vocals. It’s the extended bridge, where the band breaks for what sounds like an impromptu jam session, the song would do better without.

It should’ve been limited or edited down to the final eight bars; the best part. As is, it takes up nearly half the song, which, as a result, times out at over ten minutes. Still Collins shines. “Days of life that seemed so unimportant,” an old man ponders, “they seem to matter and to count much later on.” Poignant stuff.

my rating : 4 of 5

1991

audio review : We Can't Dance ( album ) ... Genesis

video review : Jesus He Knows Me ( song ) … Genesis

video review : Jesus He Knows Me ( song ) ... Genesis

Casual listeners probably thought this was a typical Christian praise song; the chorus sure sounds like it; but the video makes the message crystal clear. It’s a parody in which frontman Phil Collins plays the role of a television evangelist; the Robert Tilton type who, the band suggests, are mostly in it for the money.

The video, their best yet, is thoroughly entertaining in all the funny/clever ways it plays with the concept. My favorite bit is the paparazzi photos of Mike Rutherford cheating on his wife. It’s also a damn good song, though the most endearing part is an organ prelude you won’t hear on the regular audio version.

my rating : 5 of 5

1992

audio review : We Can’t Dance ( album ) … Genesis

audio review : We Can't Dance ( album ) ... Genesis

It’s quite alright that Phil Collins and his unsung band members can’t dance. They make music and they do it well. They also do it without relying on the conceptual comforts of traditional romance, which can’t be said for most artists of the pop-rock genre. There is one such song on this set; a tranquil ballad entitled Hold On My Heart; and there are hints of allure splattered about, but the compassion of Genesis goes deeper than that.

No Son Of Mine is about a broken father and son relationship. Dreaming While You Sleep deals with the psychological woes of hit-and-run road accidents. Way Of The World anthems global peace. By the time you reach the beauty of Fading Lights, you realize you’ve been taken on an epic journey. If there’s an epic flaw, it’s that the majestic melodies of Phil’s verses often outshine his choruses when it should be the other way around.

my rating : 4 of 5

1991