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Genesis: Chapter and Verse by Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutheford, Steve Hackett
Book Summary InformationAuthor: Mike Rutheford, Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Steve Hackett, Tony Banks Edition: Paperback Audio: English (Published) Format: Bargain Price Published: 2007-09-18 ISBN: N/A Number of pages: 360 Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Book Reviews of Genesis: Chapter and VerseBook Review: Great for the casual to intense Genesis fan Summary: 5 Stars
I am somewhere between that casual and intense Genesis fan. I have most of their albums, but I respect all of their work. I enjoyed both the Peter-fronted Genesis as well as the wide range of albums that followed. Even though I don't own Calling All Stations, I purchased a song or two from it and can appreciate it as well. That said, I've been on a Genesis kick lately with all the remastered releases, and I saw this book recommended somewhere. I agree with the typographical errors, although in a book this size, I think a few are forgivable. The most distracting, to me, were the instances where punctuation was missed because it sometimes altered how I'd read the sentence.
In any case, this is a great book. I didn't really get into the extremely early era of Genesis so it was great to read so much about their background and how they formed. I grew up in a world where Peter Gabriel was a solo artist so it was fascinating to read about him interacting within the context of a band. He seems so individualistic that I found that part of the book alone just a treat. What's great about the book is that they spared nothing -- they got everyone's viewpoint. Another reviewer commented that some things were edited out and I would have to imagine that with any book of this type, one would have to do some editing. Still, unless there are rumors out there or information in the other books mentioned that was left out of here, I can't imagine how someone would know otherwise. (This was the first book about the musical group Genesis that I have read.) Even if there was stuff mentioned in other books, perhaps that would be a good reason not to rehash old information.
In the long run, I thought that the editing was fairly clever. I don't know the order in which they interviewed each person and if they went back for multiple interviews, but each person's commentary is strung together so well that it appeared as if they were all in the same room commenting on the same topic. The photos do make up half the book and they are just fantastic. They are of high quality, fully annotated, and relate explicitly to the story being told. For example, there is a section on how Genesis innovated their light show and then the photos that follow specifically show the various lighting techniques being talked about. In another case, the various interviewees are talking about the importance of family and then there are family photos. I got the impression that everyone really opened up for this book. It's not what I'd call gossip-y, but it felt like privacy was not at the forefront, either. There is a definite bit of vagueness at the various points when band members left, but come on, they can't tell us everything, and I was pretty impressed with the memory people had.
There are interludes where you get "the manager's story" or "the former drummer's story" and these two-page excerpts are usually worth reading. They summarize what's been stated leading up to their involvement in the Genesis story but they add in an additional viewpoint and then the viewpoint ends with the editor summarizing the person's career and what they are doing now. It was a nice way of closing out each person's "chapter". Another reviewer said that the albums only received two or three pages each. I can understand that viewpoint because the albums are how we initially came to know Genesis and that's what we want to read about. I actually thought that the early part of the book dove deeply into each of the early albums. It felt that way because there were more band members commenting on the album (until the number of musical contributors dwindled down). It may have also seemed that way because some of those really early albums had 6 or 7 songs on them, and the later albums had 9 or 10 songs on them, so it was easier to describe an album song-by-song for those earlier songs.
Overall, I thought this was ridiculously enjoyable for someone who is fairly into Genesis. I put on my iPod with each set of songs or each album that was being talked about and listened while I was reading just to enhance the experience. If it's an album-by-album commentary you are looking for, I think this is still satisfying because while they do not dissect each track, they instead tell you about what is going on in their lives and in the music world which is what helped influence each album. They could probably make a tiny fortune putting all of their song lyrics into a book and having the main authors comment on each song. I think a few other artists have done this and I could see that being a great companion piece because it could act more as a reference book.
Summary of Genesis: Chapter and VerseThe long-awaited, definitive story of one of the most creative and commercial rock groups of all time, Genesis One of the most imaginative, courageous, and unpredictable music acts ever, Genesis evolved from pioneers of progressive music in the 1970s to a global phenomenon, topping charts and selling over 150 million albums worldwide. The story of their band spans thirty years and thirty albums, and through all the changes in the band?s line-up and musical direction, the spirit of Genesis has remained constant and undimmed. Genesis: Chapter & Verse is the ultimate addition to any fan?s collection, setting the record straight as the band?s members tell their story their way. Remarkably, the band survived the high-profile departure of not one lead vocalist, but two (Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins), two influential guitarists (Anthony Phillips and Steve Hackett), and its best-known drummer (Phil Collins). Genesis simply got stronger and bigger ? matching the huge solo success of Gabriel, Collins, and Mike + The Mechanics. A collaboration between all the members of Genesis, past and present, Genesis: Chapter and Verse is the band?s definitive autobiography: an intimate, no-holds-barred, no-stone-unturned history that allows character and personality to come to the forefront. Covering the band?s story as well as the writing and performance of significant songs from each period, this treasure trove of text and photographs provides long-awaited insight into the way this exceptional group of songwriters worked together, allowing the band to dispatch more than a few sacred cows along the way. It is a book like none other, and an exclusive look into the life and times of one of rock?s most influential and lasting groups.
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