TODAY'S ALBUM: No.1 (26th October 2011)

'Trespass' 

by Genesis
(1970)

'Trespass' marked the debut of Genesis, the quintessentially-English outfit who had formed at the exclusive Charterhouse boarding school during the late-sixties. Upon the album's release the group featured Peter Gabriel(vocals), Mike Rutherford(bass), Tony Banks(keyboards, piano, organ), Anthony Phillips(guitar) and John Mayhew(drums), a line-up that been limping through the college circuit for the last couple of years without much success. However, 'Trespass' would come about after the group were spotted gigging by enigmatic label boss Tony Stratton-Smith, who, unlike many others, genuinely liked what he saw and immediately handed the group a deal with his Charisma Records imprint, a progressively-minded label that was also home to acts such as Rare Bird and Van Der Graaf Generator. Paired with producer David Hitchcock, Genesis entered Advision studios during the early half of 1970 and exited several months later with this elegant, carefully-crafted and slightly medieval-sounding mixture of classical, folk and rock influences. The album was not a roaring success yet it would lay the foundations for the long and highly-successful career Genesis would enjoy over the next twenty-odd years. Thanks to a punishing live schedule and exposure throughout Europe 'Trespass' would place Genesis as one of the major forebearers of the new progressive rock genre that was emerging in the place of the now defunct psychedelic movement that was so popular during the latter half of the 1960's. In Peter Gabriel, the group had a distinct and charismatic vocal presence who also did his damn best to add an entertaining - and sometimes rather surreal - visual element to the group's live shows, whilst the overall Genesis sound would be directed by the classically-trained pianist Tony Banks whose various keyboards and piano's would replace the lead-guitar as the main instrument, thus giving Genesis their lush, symphonic and oft-copied style. Augmenting Gabriel and Banks were guitarist Anthony Phillips, a quiet, restrained but very talented player who would leave the group within a year of 'Trespass' being released, drummer John Mayhew(who, like Phillips, would leave soon after the completion of the album) and Mike Rutherford, a tall, softly-spoken bass-player who could also double on lead-guitar if need be. It would prove to be an interesting early version of Genesis, and 'Trespass' would prove to be one of the group's quieter and more introspective efforts. Many of the songs focused on mythical or fantastical themes, such as the mysterious 'White Mountain', a song seemingly told from the viewpoint of a wolf named 'Fang'. Other tracks, such as the elegant opener 'Looking For Someone' would showcase Gabriel's grainy vocal style, whilst the beautifully-orchestrated 'Stagnation' would find twittering mellotron and keyboard effects embedded with softly-strung acoustic guitars. The album's stand-out track, however, proves to be the heaviest. An organ-and-guitar dominated rocker featuring yet more blistering organ work from Banks, 'The Knife' would be Genesis' first proper anthem, a powerful, nine-minute opus that showed off a muscular edge perfectly-at-odds with the bulk of the album. Live shows from the period would usually end with an all-out attack of 'The Knife'.
As 'Trespass' was released in 1970 it was therefore one of the earliest versions of what would very soon be popularly referred to as 'progressive' music. The group's use of multiple instruments, including acoustic and electric guitars, mellotrons, moogs, keyboards, pianos and various classical instruments such as cello, accordion and flute, would forge a rich sonic tapestry that sounded a million miles away from the basic blues, pop and R'n'B rock 'n' roll that traditionally dominated the airwaves at the time. The album would prove successful in it's own right, as it would allow Genesis to re-group after the loss of two members and concentrate on quickly producing a follow-up which emerged less than a year later in the shape of the superb 'Nursery Cryme'. From then on Genesis would evolve into one of the key progressive rock groups, producing a series of hit albums throughout the decade. 'Trespass' shows a very young group finding their ambitious feet and producing a classically-tinted ode to the fantastical. It wouldn't be their best album or even their most successful, yet it still ranks as one of the finest examples of early-seventies experimentation and has proved a hugely-influential album in it's own right. Those who have yet to explore the Genesis discography are urged to start here, right at the beginning, and enjoy a beautifully-played album that could only have been made in early-seventies England.


Key songs: White Mountain, Stagnation, The Knife