Genesis- Selling England by the Pound

Coming off of Foxtrot, the classic genesis lineup had high expectations upon them. In 1973, the delivered. Selling England by the Pound, the group's 5th album, is widely considered not only their best but is a candidate for best Prog album of all time. It sports their particular style fantastically, and at close to a hour on one vinyl record, is a value deal.

The record commences with "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight." This is one of many medieval themed pieces that Genesis did, and it is reflected in the harpsichord like keyboards, bombastic grand piano, and subtle acoustic guitars. Though it starts of with quiet instrumentation a Gabriel dominating, it slowly builds up into a very active and intricate second half. It uses many quick musical phrases to keep the excitement going. Afterwards comes the pop-prog oddity "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)". It's very catchy, with some nice keyboard work, and also provided Genesis with a minor hit. Then comes the breathtaking "Firth of Fith", which in my opinion is the best Genesis song, and one of the best all time songs, ever. From the opening piano to the pounding drums to the subtle, barely there guitar for atmosphere, everything works so well. With not a wasted note, it is a bona-fide Progressive Rock masterpiece, showing every thing that is great about the genre. Side A closes with the very quiet and subtle "More Fool Me", with Phil Collins on his first Genesis Lead vocal. He sounds very high pitched and weak though, but not quite in Geddy Lee territory. There's almost no instruments, and although very understated, it's a very nice ballad.

That breather exists as a lull before the next 11 minute epic: "The Battle of Epping Forest". Although its a little bit duller than other parts of the album due to the over-reliance on the same musical patterns for sections of music rather than constant shifts, it's pretty good. Gabriel is the driving force, and Banks' keyboards are in top form. "After the Ordeal" is an instrumental in the same vain as "Battle", but with a guitar solo. Then yet another 11 minute track comes on called "The Cinema Show". Another long form, subtle piece, it ahs a healthy dose of flute over the keyboards, and that makes up a lot of the music. Medieval sounding, but the lyrical themes deal with other things. The work wraps up with "Aisle of Plenty", a reprise of parts of "Moonlit Knight".

Selling England by the Pound just feels right. Through all of the tracks there's so many musical phrases, patterns, measures, and dynamics that you'll find so many parts of it will stick with you. All of the instruments are great (especially keyboards), and Gabriel does his best work with the group here. You'll be hard pressed to find an album that's better than this one.

Symphonic Prog's codifying album, the one which hits all the switches and then makes something wonderful. Grade: A+