History Main / Genesis

* Game/GeNeSis: The webgame.

'''For the video game console, see SegaGenesis. For the [[WebGames Web Game]], see ''[[{{Ptitleecp7pmhz}} Ge.Ne.Sis.]]'''''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/genesis_gallery_2.jpg]]
Genesis, formed in 1967, is one of the most successful rock bands in history, spanning five decades and selling over one hundred million albums. It has had several member changes during its existence. the band now consists of (founding members bolded):

* PhilCollins - drummer, lead vocals (and former backup vocals)
* '''Mike Rutherford''' - guitar and bass
* '''TonyBanks''' - keyboards

Former members:

* '''PeterGabriel''' - former lead vocals
* Steve Hackett - former guitarist
* '''Anthony Phillips'''
* John Mayhew
* John Silver
* '''Chris Stewart'''
* Ray Wilson

Other Personnel:

* [[{{Yes}} Bill Bruford]]
* Daryl Steurmer
* Chester Thompson

Genesis has several distinct eras. The first album has some slight Christian themes and has a more relaxed and poppy sound which might be jarring for fans who got interested in the band during their later years. The second era starts with the introduction of guitarist Steve Hackett and drummer Phil Collins into the band. The first album this new line up produced was ''Nursery Cryme'' as Genesis much like other British bands at the time dived head first into progressive rock. The albums made during this time are arguably the strongest, the band being at their peak of musical talent and creativity. [[YourMileageMayVary Opinions differ]] on whether the definitive album of this era is ''Foxtrot'', ''Selling England By The Pound'' or the enormous '' TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway''. In 1974 Peter Gabriel left Genesis over creative differences, and after two more albums, Steve Hackett also left, further reducing the quartet to a trio, with Phil Collins slowly taking the role of the FaceOfTheBand.

After fumbling to find a new direction, Genesis released ''Duke'', which marked the start of a new era as the they broke into the mainstream. The band gradually recreated itself as one of the most successful pop/rock bands of the era, performing to massive audiences, topping the charts several times and selling albums by the truckload. Most people were introduced to Genesis during this time and most likely remembered for a string of sleek poppy radio hits released between 1983 and 1986 like "That's All", "Invisible Touch", "In Too Deep" and "Land of Confusion". Phil Collins also had a successful solo career during the time that Genesis was having hits, and his continued solo success eventually led to him leaving Genesis in good terms in 1996 as he wanted more free time to work on his own projects. Unfortunately Genesis took a nosedive in quality following Collins' departure, only releasing one rather disappointing album and going on hiatus as the result.

In 2006, Collins, Banks and Rutherford held a massive reunion tour called "Turn It On Again", where they were joined by longtime auxillary members Chester Thompson and Daryl Stuermer as replacements for Gabriel and Hackett who were sadly unavailable.

It's impossible to describe Genesis in general terms since the band has always been constantly evolving, but they have a gentle, emotional sense to their music present regardless of era. Genesis has also pioneered several musical techniques during its existence and is often cited as inspiration by other musicians. There are also many Genesis tribute bands, such as The Slippermen, Dusk and The Musical Box, the latter of which faithfully reproduces early Genesis performances, and is the only Genesis tribute act endorsed by Genesis members.

!!The Genesis studio discography:
* [[strike:''From Genesis to Revelation'' 1969]] See CanonDiscontinuity, FanonDiscontinuity.
* ''Trespass'' 1970
* ''Nursery Cryme'' 1971
* ''Foxtrot'' 1972
* ''Selling England by the Pound'' 1973
* ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'' 1974 (2-Disc release)
* ''A Trick of the Tail'' 1976
* ''Wind & Wuthering'' 1976
* ''...And Then There Were Three...'' 1978
* ''Duke'' 1980
* ''Abacab'' 1981
* ''Genesis'' 1983
* ''Invisible Touch'' 1986
* ''We Can't Dance'' 1991
* [[strike: ''Calling All Stations'' 1997]] See: CanonDiscontinuity and FanonDiscontinuity below.

Live Albums:
* ''Genesis Live'' 1973
* ''Seconds Out'' 1977
* ''Three Sides Live'' 1982
* ''The Way We Walk, Vol I: The Shorts'' 1992
* ''The Way We Walk, Vol I: The Longs'' 1993
* ''Live Over Europe 2007'' [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin 2007]]

Compilations:
* ''Genesis Archive 1967-75'' 1998
* ''Turn It On Again: The Hits'' 1999
* ''Genesis Archive 2: 1976-1992'' 2000
* ''Platinum Collection'' 2004
* ''Turn It on Again: The Hits - The Tour Edition'' 2007

Box Sets:
* ''Genesis 1976-1982'' 2007
* ''Genesis 1983-1998'' 2007
* ''Genesis 1970-1975'' 2008
* ''Genesis Live 1973-2007'' 2008

[=EPs=]:
* ''Spot The Pigeon'' 1977
* ''3 X 3'' 1982
----
!!Genesis contains examples of:
* AlbumTitleDrop: The song "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdD6L4cKKU8 Dancing With The Moonlit Knight]]" contains the lyric,''Old man dies/The note he left was signed "Old Father Thames"/It seems he's drowned/Selling England by the pound.''
** "[[TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway And the laaaaamb... lies doooown... on Broadwaaaaay]]!"
* AllThereInTheManual: The story Gabriel wrote for the liner notes of ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway''. [[YourMileageMayVary Some people]] think that it only serves to [[MindScrewdriver confuse matters even further]].
* {{Anvilicious}}: Phil Collins' attempts at setting himself up as an artist with a social conscience were less than impressive - "Tell Me Why" was especially embarassing. Rutherford didn't fare much better - "LandOfConfusion" was only saved by its sheer energy and the popular SpittingImage video.
* ApocalypseHow: "Domino" from ''Invisible Touch'' is an example of Class 0.
* ArchivePanic: With over forty years' worth of material plus [[strike: [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes all kinds of bootlegs and]]]] each member's solo material, new fans can find it all a bit daunting.
* TheArtfulDodger: Phil Collins, literally. As a kid, he played the Artful Dodger on stage. See: FormerChildStar below.
* BadassLongcoat: Phil Collins appears to be channeling this trope in the very BladeRunner-esque music video for the song [[http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1zzdh_genesis-tonight-tonight-tonight_music "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight"]], which were both filmed [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradbury_Building at the same location]]. Later, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks [[IncrediblyLamePun tried it on]] for the "Congo" music video. Whether or not any of them were actually successful at pulling it off is [[YourMileageMayVary open for debate]].
* BalladOfX: "Ballad of Big" from ''And Then There Were Three...''.
* TheBandMinusTheFace: Genesis survived without Peter Gabriel just fine. Not so much without [[FaceOfTheBand Phil Collins]].
* BewareTheNiceOnes: PhilCollins.
* BigApplesauce: ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'' takes place in NYC. Well, [[MundaneFantastic parts of the story]] do, anyway.
* {{Bishonen}}: Peter Gabriel, pre-Lamb, full stop.
** Which has [[NoJustNo unfortunately]] led to lots and lots of Gabriel era SlashFic.
* BlueEyes: Pretty much everyone in the band.
** "SuppersReady" from ''Foxtrot'': "Hey my baby with your guardian eyes so blue/Hey my baby, don't you know our love is true?"
** "Ripples" from the album ''A Trick Of The Tail'': "Bluegirls come in every size/Some are wise and some otherwise/They have pretty blue eyes."
* BreakTheCutie: The [[YourCheatingHeart disintegration of Phil Collins' first marriage]] was the inspiration for all of the sad love songs that made him so famous back in TheEighties.
** And as the above trope notes, one should "[[BewareTheNiceOnes be careful about tormenting sweet little things]]", especially when they have an international platform for [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dEz2aBAx6I dishing]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-Vk6COp6kY out]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdPlSZs6swU retribution]].
* BrokenBase: Oh God, and how! Gabriel vs. Collins, Collins vs. Wilson, etc. etc. etc.
* BrokenRecord: "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R6qu62xekE Whodunnit]]" from the album ''Abacab''.
* BodyHorror: The Slippermen from ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway''.
* CanonDiscontinuity: During/ever since [[PuttingTheBandBackTogether the 2006-2007 reunion tour]], even the band themselves pretend that ''Calling All Stations'' just [[CanonDiscontinuity never happened]].
** ''From Genesis To Revelation'' also qualifies.
* CargoCult: The primitive people that the protagonist of ''Wind And Wuthering'''s "One For The Vine" encounters mistake him for "[[TheChosenOne God's Chosen One]] who's come to save us from all our oppressors/[[{{Pride}} We shall be kings on this world]]", [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone with predictable results]]. See also: TomatoInTheMirror.
* CloudCuckooLander: Peter Gabriel frequently came across as one. [[YourMileageMayVary Still does, actually]].
* ConceptAlbum: ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'', and to a lesser extent, ''Duke''.
** To be more precise, ''Duke'' is half a concept album. It was actually originally intended to be divided into an A-side consisting of a suite of related tracks ("Behind the Lines," "Duchess," "Guide Vocal," "Turn It on Again," "Duke's Travels," "Duke's End") and a B-side of unrelated tracks. The band, after listening to this track order, decided it would leave the album with an unnecessarily weak B-side, and also decided they didn't want the A-side suite to be compared to "[[SuppersReady Supper's Ready]]", so they split it up. However, the suite of songs was often performed in its entirety live.
* ContinuityNod: At the very end of the otherwise instrumental song "Los Endos", one can very faintly hear Phil Collins sing, "There's an angel standing in the sun/Free to get back home". These are lyrics from "SuppersReady", one of the epic songs of the Peter Gabriel era. "Los Endos" is the last song on the album ''A Trick Of The Tail'', which is the first album to feature Collins on lead vocals instead of Gabriel. The band may have also intended it to be a reference to Gabriel himself, as in the ArchangelGabriel.
* CoverVersion: {{Disturbed}} did a cover of "Land of Confusion".
* CrossDresser: PeterGabriel at one point wore a long red dress and a fox's head on stage, [[http://www.multinet.no/~jonarne/Hjemmesia/Favorittartister/peter_gabriel/Genesis_PeterGabriel_Foxtrot_Paris_Januar1973.jpg like so]].
* CrossesTheLineTwice: "Harold The Barrel" from the album ''Nursery Cryme''.
* CrowningMomentOfFunny: The video for "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zb9UND65mto I Can't Dance]]" had many of these, and the video for "Anything She Does" features BennyHill doing his usual shtick.
** "Jesus, He knows me" mixes an absolutely ''hilarious'' [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugZq9hiuCJo video]] with a vicious lampooning of televangelism.
** Another one comes from the live version of "Supper's Ready" on the box set. Peter breaks into his usual pre-song story, which is supposed to be punctuated by Phil's drumming at two points. Phil apparently missed the cue, and the result is hilarious.
--->'''Peter''': "Phil, there's people out there!"
---> '''Phil''': "I'm really sorry, everyone. I wasn't paying attention to what he was saying."
** One bootleg features an audience member shouting something that can't quite be made out. Gabriel's very calm, deadpan reply was, "[[YourMom My mother]] does not suck c**ks.".
** In ''[[TheDocumentary Come Rain Or Shine]]'', there is a very ''SpinalTap''-esque moment with a rather confused GPS system:
-->"You have arrived at your destination."
-->"Have you been drinkin', luv?"
* CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming: in ''[[{{Documentary}} Come Rain Or Shine]]'' (which is about [[PuttingTheBandBackTogether the 2006-2007 reunion tour]]), Phil Collins and Tony Banks hug upon Phil's arrival at their rehearsal space. Phil asks, "Have you been waiting [for me] long?" and Tony replies, "Only fifteen years."
* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: Oh, so many. "Watcher Of The Skies" from ''Foxtrot'' immediately springs to mind.
** Also, "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight", "Dance On A Volcano", "Firth Of Fifth", "Los Endos" and the ending sections of "The Musical Box", "SuppersReady" and "Cinema Show".
* DeadBabyComedy: "Harold The Barrel" again.
--> Such a horrible thing to do
--> Harold the Barrel cut off his toes and he served them all for tea
--> He can't go far. He can't go far.
--> (Hasn't got a leg to stand on!)
--> He can't go far.
* DeadpanSnarker: Everyone, but Phil Collins (no, seriously!) especially.
* DesignStudentsOrgasm: Some of the early album art definitely qualifies.
* DoubleEntendre: Pretty much all of "Counting Out Time" from ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway''. Also, some people think "Silver Rainbow" from the 1983 self-titled album ''Genesis'' fits this trope too.
* DoubleMeaningTitle: "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pxvSxv7O8M Snowbound]]" from ''And Then There Were Three...''. "Snowbound" refers to being snowed in on a winter day, and to... [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel what that song is really about]]. See: LyricalDissonance below.
* EarWorm: Many of their songs, especially the Phil Collins-led era.
* EarlyBirdCameo: ''Nursery Crime'' features the first Genesis track sung entirely by Phil Collins, "For Absent Friends". And it was [[HilariousInHindsight the second track on the album]].
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness
* TheEighties: And how!
* EightiesHair: Phil Collins' overly permed mullet should have been taken out and shot.
* EldritchAbomination: The Giant Hogweed in "Return Of The Giant Hogweed" on the album ''Nursery Cryme''.
* EnsembleDarkHorse: Phil Collins came out from behind his drum kit to take over as lead singer of the band, and then went on to have an astronomical solo career. Mike Rutherford has also found solo success with his band Mike + The Mechanics.
* EpicRiff: Dance On A Volcano. So epic, they reprise it during Los Endos.
* EpicRocking: Experts in it, biggest example being "SuppersReady", which is nearly 23 minutes long and takes nearly a side of ''Foxtrot''.
* EstrogenBrigadeBait: Tony Banks for sure. Peter Gabriel back in the '80s, and oddly enough Phil Collins to some extent as well.
* EveryoneIsJesusInPurgatory: Some fans have come up with some rather ''interesting'' interpretations for various songs, including the theory that the [[TheEighties Eighties]] pop album ''Invisible Touch'' is a [[EpilepticTrees concept album about nuclear war]].
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: ''Three Sides Live'', but only in the US edition; the UK edition is entirely live. In any case, the US CD is actually "1½ Sides Live". Also, from "SuppersReady," "Apocalypse in 9/8"; it's apocalyptic in sound, and (even to a non-musician) it's very noticeably in 9/8.
* FaceOfTheBand: Phil Collins was definitely this during TheEighties, to the extent that radio DJs would announce Genesis songs as either Phil Collins songs or "Phil Collins and Genesis", as though Genesis were merely Collins's backing band.
* FakeAmerican: Rael, the protagonist in ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway''. A half-Puerto Rican street kid from [[BigApplesauce New York City]] would be unlikely to refer to money as "[[DidNotDoTheResearch notes and coins]]". [[WallBanger But he does anyway]].
* FanonDiscontinuity: [[YourMileageMayVary Depending upon who you ask]], the following people (either individually or in any combination) never left/joined the band: Anthony Phillips, John Mayhew, Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett, Phil Collins, and Ray Wilson. Also, no albums were ever recorded with/without some/any/all of these people.
** Similarly, the band's fanbase is split in half: Those who prefer their Peter Gabriel led albums and those who like Phil Collins-led records. What albums exist usually depend on which side you're on.
*** See: BrokenBase above.
** Many people, [[CanonDiscontinuity including the band themselves]] tend to pretend that the album ''Calling All Stations'' never happened. None of the songs from that album were performed on [[PuttingTheBandBackTogether the recent reunion tour]].
** Their first album also qualifies. Not only were Phil and Steve not on it, but the band does not own the rights to it, and it is distributed to the few who want to hear it by another company. Thus, most official discographies and catalogues make no mention of it. It's also pretty different from even their second album.
* {{Fanservice}}: The video for "Anything She Does" features BennyHill and his usual collection of scantily-clad girls.
* {{Filler}}: Some of their early PhilCollins-sung tracks, like "For Absent Friends", fulfilled this role in live performances, allowing PeterGabriel a respite to change outfits.
* FiveManBand:
** TheHero: PhilCollins
** TheLancer: Steve Hacket
** TheSmartGuy: TonyBanks
** TheBigGuy: Mike Rutherford
** TheChick: PeterGabriel
* FormerChildStar: Phil Collins, averted. Though he was a child model/actor who played TheArtfulDodger in a West End production of ''[[OliverTwist Oliver!]]'' and had teeny tiny blink-and-you'll-miss-him roles in ''AHardDaysNight'' and ''ChittyChittyBangBang'', his success as an adult far eclipsed his success as a child actor/model.
* FreudWasRight: The Slippermen, and Doktor Dyper's "[[HighOctaneNightmareFuel cure]]" for same.
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: Not that they wren't big anywhere else, but they were ''huge'' in Italy, and pretty much from day one.
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: The band's huge hit "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" is about a drug addict trying to score. It was then used in a beer commercial, which could be interpreted as sending the message that beer drinkers were drug addicts (although I'm not sure whether that was intended on the band's part or not).
* GreatestHitsAlbum: A couple of them.
* GroundhogDayLoop / NoEnding: "One for the Vine".
* GuiltyPleasures: The albums ''Invisible Touch'' and ''We Can't Dance'' are considered this by some fans.
* HappilyMarried: Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks. To their wives. Not [[HoYay to each other]]. NotThatTheresAnyThingWrongWithThat.
* HeroicBSOD: Phil Collins admitted to having one of these during the breakup of his first marriage.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: At this point, Banks, Collins, and Rutherford seem to be this for one another.
* HeyItsThatPlace: The video for the Phil Collins solo hit "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRY1NG1P_kw Take Me Home]]" is the absolute embodiment of this trope.
** The video for "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" from ''Invisible Touch'' was shot at the Bradbury Building.
* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: From ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'', the Lamia, the Slippermen (again!), and Doktor Dyper.
** "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o02v0hkq3IA The Day The Light Went Out]]" from ''Genesis: 1976-1982''. See also: TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.
** "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pxvSxv7O8M Snowbound]]" certainly qualifies for this trope. A method of "waste management" that would have done [[TheSopranos Tony Soprano]] proud. (See: LyricalDissonance below).
** "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_OzuXh_n3E Mama]]". Mechanical drum machine? Check. Ominous music? Check. Big drumming finale, like in "In The Air Tonight"? Check. Phil almost doing a MetalScream? Check. Phil's EvilLaugh? Check. StalkerWithACrush [[ClingyJealousGirl Clingy Jealous Guy]] lyrics that would make [[ThePolice Sting]] proud? Check. Is there a HONF bingo?
** There's also the thief trapped forever in a disembodied state in "Home By the Sea", the global disaster and "beautiful river of blood" from "Domino" - for a band so many people think of as pretty light and fluffy, the Collins-era Genesis had a ''shitload'' of really chilling lyrics.
* IndecipherableLyrics: More often in the Gabriel era than the Collins era.
* IHaveNoSon: "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSwpW_QKz_I No Son Of Mine]]" from the album ''We Can't Dance''.
* IntercourseWithYou: The Phil Collins solo song "Like China".
* InTheStyleOf: In the 2007 interview on the DVD version of ''A Trick Of The Tail'', PhilCollins says that "The Squonk" is basically Genesis doing a Led Zeppelin song. "Vindaloo" by Fat Les is in the same kind of style as Genesis doing "Match of the Day". "Driving the Last Spike" from ''We Can't Dance'' has some people wondering "what is this Gabriel-era song doing on their last-but-one album?". "Misunderstanding" is a BeachBoys type song, and "Hold On My Heart" is an attempt at imitating Burt Bacharach.
* JerkAss: Phil Collins spent part of ''Duke'' and [[strike:three]] four solo albums whining about how his first wife had [[YourCheatingHeart done him wrong]], while his second wife stood by him patiently and steadfastly. How did he repay her for her years of emotional support? If you guessed by [[MoralEventHorizon cheating on her]], you'd [[WallBanger be right]].
** [[strike: Oh yeah, and he informed her that he was leaving her by sending her a fax.]] WordOfGod says that this is an UrbanLegend.
*** So wait? How can he be a {{Jerkass}}, a {{Woobie}} and {{Break the Cutie}} at the same time?
**** It's [[ItsALongStory really complicated]]. He started out as BreakTheCutie which resulted in him becoming TheWoobie, but he later mutated into a {{Jerkass}}. Sadly, this sometimes happens in RealLife.
** Peter Gabriel (see: TakeThat below).
* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: The one-off reunion with Peter Gabriel back in the early '80s was never officially recorded or filmed. The only record that exists are bootleg recordings.
* LargeHam: Peter Gabriel (complete with theatrical costumes) and Phil Collins.
* LittleNemo: "Scenes From A Night's Dream" from ''And Then There Were Three...'' tells the story of Little Nemo.
* LongRunners: Formed in 1967, touring in 2006 and 2007.
* LyricalDissonance: "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pxvSxv7O8M Snowbound]]" from ''And Then There Were Three...''. A gorgeously orchestrated song about [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel hiding a dismembered body in a snowman]].
--> ''Here, in a ball that they made,''
--> ''From the snow on the ground''
--> ''See it rolling away, wild eyes to the sky.''
--> ''They'll never, never know...''
* MindScrew: Much of the Gabriel-era material, particularly "SuppersReady" and ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway''.
* MindScrewdriver: The story that Gabriel wrote for the liner notes of ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway''.
* MinimalisticCoverArt: ''From Genesis to Revelation''
* {{Mondegreen}}: Lots of them, but probably the most famous one among fans is from "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TB6e4IbPZQ Dodo/Lurker]]" on ''Abacab'': "[[StarWars Darth Vader]], agitator" instead of the actual lyric, which is "Dog baiter, agitator". Many fans [[YourMileageMayVary actually prefer the misheard version]]. The lyric appears at about :47 in the linked video.
** Apparently Phil Collins agrees with the fans, as he has been known to sing "Darth Vader" rather than "Dog baiter" in concert on occasion.
** From "SuppersReady": "Oooh, can't you feel arseholes ignite...". The actual lyric is of course "Can't you feel our souls ignite...".
* {{MST}}: ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'' got the MST treatment [[http://www.solsburyhill.org/pre2010files/Lambopener.html here]].
* NewbieBoom: Following the success of ''Duke'' and ''Abacab''.
* NewSoundAlbum: ''Duke'', where they almost entirely abandoned their prog roots and went pop.
** Except for the concept suite spread throughout the album (see "Concept Album" above), which still had pretty strong prog elements (especially the final two, mostly instrumental tracks). The prog sound was more fully abandoned on the next album, ''Abacab'', although the title track and "Dodo/Lurker" still had trace elements of the band's prog roots. Indeed, a few tracks on each "pop" album still display elements of progressive rock (''Genesis'': "Home by the Sea"/"Second Home by the Sea"; ''Invisible Touch'': "Domino"/"The Brazilian"; ''We Can't Dance'': "Driving the Last Spike"/"Dreaming While You Sleep"/"Living Forever"/"Fading Lights").
* NonAppearingTitle: "Squonk", "A Trick Of The Tail", "Undertow", "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pxvSxv7O8M Snowbound]]".
* NonIndicativeName: Those unfamiliar with the songs in question are unlikely to guess that "One for the Vine" is about [[spoiler:warfare]] or that "Blood on the Rooftops" is about [[spoiler:TV watching]].
* TheNounOfAdjective: Land of Confusion.
* ObsessionSong: "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLVrB3FXbPA Misunderstanding]]" from ''Duke'' is arguably about a StalkerWithACrush.
** It's actually an attempt by Collins to make a BeachBoys-type song.
** The Phil Collins solo songs "It Don't Matter To Me" and "Do You Know, Do You Care?" zoom past this trope and straight into {{Yandere}} territory.
* OneOfUs: Phil Collins is a self-confessed video game fan and even [[PromotedFanboy played himself]] in ''GrandTheftAutoViceCityStories'', Tony Banks is a fan of ''TheLordOfTheRings'', and Mike Rutherford referenced ''DoctorWho'' in ''[[TheDocumentary Come Rain Or Shine]]''.
* OurMonstersAreDifferent: "The Return of the Giant Hogweed" and the title track of "A Trick of the Tail".
** The Slippermen, again.
* ThePeteBest: Anthony Phillips, who was replaced by Steve Hackett, and John Mayhew, who was replaced by Phil Collins.
* ProgressiveRock: One of the big ones.
* PunBasedTitle: ''Selling England By The Pound''.
* PuttingTheBandBackTogether: The 2006-2007 reunion tour.
* RealLifeWritesThePlot: "The Battle of Epping Forest" from the album ''Selling England By The Pound''.
** Sadly, "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSwpW_QKz_I No Son Of Mine]]" evidently fits this trope as well.
* RecordOfLoudnessWar: The 2008/2009 Atlantic remasters are ATROCIOUS, some of the worst offenders I have ever heard, to the extent that there has been backlash on the internet even from non-audiophiles. Everything is brickwalled even on songs like "Entangled" that are supposed to be quiet throughout. (This is luckily less the case with the albums from ''Trespass'' to ''The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway'', but it is completely the case with everything afterward). Get the 1994 "Definitive Edition Remasters"; better still, the original Charisma [=CDs=]; or, best of all, the original vinyls - all of them are far superior to the pieces of crap Atlantic released a few years ago. There's a thread about the best versions of the [=CDs=] to get [[http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=149728 here]].
* ReplacementScrappy: Phil Collins was initially seen as this when he replaced Peter Gabriel. Ray Wilson was seen as this by many fans when he replaced Collins.
* [[RichIdiotWithNoDayJob Rich Idiots With No Day Job]]: Though the founding members came from wealthy/upper class backgrounds and met at the prestigious public school they all attended, this is an averted trope.
* RiddleMeThis: In "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TB6e4IbPZQ Dodo/Lurker]]" from ''Abacab'' (In the linked video, the riddle is heard at about 5:13, and unlike the album version, it is not repeated.):
--> ''Clothes of brass and hair of brown''
--> ''Seldom need to breathe, don't need no wings to fly''
--> ''Ooo, and a heart of stone''
--> ''And a fear of fire and water, who am I?''
** Answer: [[spoiler: A nuclear submarine]]. "Hair of brown" = [[spoiler: seaweed]]. "Seldom need to breathe" = [[spoiler:unlike a diesel-engined sub, a nuclear one doesn't need oxygen as part of its power]]. "Don't need no wings to fly" = [[spoiler:submarine crews refer to its motion through the water as "flying"]]. "And a heart of stone" = [[spoiler:the fuel rods which power the reactor]]. "A fear of fire and water" because [[spoiler: leaks and fire are both feared on a submarine. Leaks for obvious reasons, and fire because there's nowhere to go to escape]].
* RockOpera: "[[SuppersReady Supper's Ready]]," ''The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway'', and the suite from ''Duke'' (see "Concept Album" above) are the band's most extended forays into this trope, but they never really stopped doing it - see "Driving the Last Spike" and "Dreaming While You Sleep" on ''We Can't Dance'' for latter-day examples of mini-rock operas.
* SexChangesEverything: [[BodyHorror The Slippermen]] are an extremely literal example of this trope.
* ShirtlessScene: Peter Gabriel during the ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'' tour.
** After taking on lead vocal duties after Gabriel's departure, Phil Collins did this a few times too.
* ShoutOut: "Dancing With the Moonlit Knight" begins in a folk style, probably as a tribute to Genesis' then label-mates Lindisfarne.
*** Another ShoutOut comes in the song "Blood On The Rooftops" with the line, "The grime on the Tyne is mine all mine all mine", referencing Lindisfarne's famous ''Fog On The Tyne''.
** The video for "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" is one long ShoutOut to ''BladeRunner''.
* ShownTheirWork: Most of the facts about the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_Hogweed Giant Hogweed]] are accurate. Well, apart from its invulnerability, sentience and desire for revenge...
** [[ThisIsSparta GIANT HOGWEED LIVES!!!!!!!!!!!!!]]
* [[TheSixthRanger The Sixth And Seventh Ranger]]: Chester Thompson and Daryl Steurmer
* SmokingIsCool: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_OzuXh_n3E Oh]], [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yd83iu-tAR0 Phil]], WhatWereYouThinking?
* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: The Phil Collins solo song [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt2mbGP6vFI "Another Day In Paradise"]].
* StableTimeLoop: the plot of "One For the Vine", from ''Wind and Wuthering''.
* TakeThat: The Peter Gabriel solo song "Solsbury Hill" is [[strike:generally agreed to be]] about his departure from Genesis. WordOfGod confirms this.
** Peter Gabriel, again. He refused to attend the group's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and referred to them disparagingly as "[[JerkAss my old band from school]]".
*** I wonder what he would say if WOMAD went broke again. Not that it ever did, or that Genesis bailed it out with a reunion concert.
*** Given that all the bandmembers are very subtle humor-wise, we may be missing something here. When he declined to be a part of the reunion tour, Collins made a quip that Gabriel wouldn't do something just for the fun of it.
* TastesLikeDiabetes: For [[YourMileageMayVary some fans]], "Hold On My Heart" from ''We Can't Dance''.
* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: The older fans of Genesis feel this way about the band's output during the 1980's.
** Many fans also feel that way about Ray Wilson following Phil Collins as lead singer.
* ThisIsSPARTA: "[[TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway I'M RAAAAAEL!!!!]]"
* TomatoInTheMirror: We discover at the very end of ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'' that [[spoiler: Rael and his brother John whom he's spent the entire album chasing]] are actually the same person.
--> Hang on, [[spoiler: John]]! We're out of this at last
--> Something's changed, it's not your face
--> It's ''[[TomatoInTheMirror mine]]''!
** See also: TwistEnding and ItWasHisSled.
* TookALevelInJerkass: Phil Collins.
* ToughActToFollow: What happened after ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'', until the band switched genres.
** Also, Ray Wilson following Phil Collins as lead singer.
** [[YourMileageMayVary Arguably]], Collins following Gabriel into a solo career; This Troper believes it was Johnny Carson who once introduced him as "The man who made a career out of being not as good as Peter Gabriel."
* TrueArtIsIncomprehensible: ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'', arguably. Also, Peter Gabriel's elaborate stage costumes and the bizarre stories he told between songs.
** The costumes also helped Gabriel with his stage fright too.
* TwoPersonPoolParty: Or in this case, Rael and three Lamia.
* UglyGuyHotWife: Phil Collins and second wife Jill Tavelman and third wife Orianne Cevey.
* UncommonTime: "Turn It On Again" is in 13/8 time. Beyond that, bizarre meters were used liberally during their prog rock days.
* UnfortunateImplications: "Illegal Alien", a comedy song about an opportunistic Mexican immigrant. Not only does Phil Collins perform it with an awful, fake Spanish accent, but he also wears a sombrero in the video. It hasn't aged well.
* UnreliableNarrator: Rael is practically made of this trope.
* UpToEleven: "Whodunnit", again. Phil Collins dials his Cockney accent up to eleven for that song. Oh yeah, and he does the same for his solo song "Like China" from the album ''Hello, I Must Be Going''.
* VaudevilleHook: Almost. At the end of both the "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zb9UND65mto I Can't Dance]]" and the "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugZq9hiuCJo Jesus He Knows Me]]" music videos, Mike and Tony come in from offscreen to drag [[LargeHam Phil]] away.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen: Celebrated indie songwriter/musician Kevin Gilbert, who had much respect and love for the "classic" Genesis ([[CrowningMomentOfAwesome he performed the entire "Lamb Lies Down" album live on stage]]), was invited to an audition to replace Phil Collins in 1996. Unfortunately, he (Gilbert, not Collins) had died just a few weeks earlier. There's not telling what a talent like Gilbert could've done to invigorate the band.
** Genesis were suggesting writing a concept album based on Antoine De Saint-Exupery's TheLittlePrince as a follow-up to ''Selling England''. Gabriel opted for an [[DarkerAndEdgier edgier]], more Americanized concept album instead (''The Lamb'').
** Casual considerations to replace Steve Hackett as guitarist in 1978 were rumored to include Jeff Beck, [[KingCrimson Robert Fripp]] and SteelyDan veteran Elliott Randall. It was later agreed to keep it a three-piece in the studio.
** Among the people being considered to replace Phil Collins as lead singer was [[{{Marillion}} Fish]], who had previously done vocals for some of Tony Banks' solo material. "Generillion" [[YourMileageMayVary might very well have been]] CrowningMusicOfAwesome.
* WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs: ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'', and the surreal, fantastical stage show that resulted.
** Possibly a subversion; they may very well have been on drugs. That certainly would explain a lot.
** WordOfGod claims the band were among the ''least'' drug-affected of bands in their era.
* [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse What Happened To The Lamb]]: The Lamb of ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'' is mentioned only once, and then...
* WhyDoYouKeepChangingJobs: The [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMiDhmL_zFo video for "Invisible Touch"]] is practically made of this trope.
* TheWoobie: Phil Collins (see: BreakTheCutie above).
* WordSaladLyrics: "Willow Farm", which is part of "SuppersReady".
* YouFailGeographyForever: On ''TheLambLiesDownOnBroadway'', the protagonist Rael comes "out of the subway" at Broadway which is evidently "just like Twenty-Second Street". The New York subway system [[DidNotDoTheResearch does not work that way]]. Averted when performed live, as Phil Collins sometimes sings "just like Forty-Second Street" instead.
** The "Twenty-Second Street" referenced in "In the Cage" is actually the location of a mental hospital in which Rael had previously been incarcerated ("where they got me by my neck and feet"). The line does not refer to a subway stop.
** There used to be (probably still is) available online, an essay about ''The Battle Of Epping Forest'' that has so many inaccuracies and false assumptions as to be unintentionally hilarious. In particular, the author failed to realise that if a song by an English group, about an event just outside London in England, has the lyric "not since the Civil War", it's almost certainly referencing the '''''English''''' Civil War, not the American one.
<<|{{Musicians}}|>>

** [[TheSixthRanger The Sixth And Seventh Ranger]]: Chester Thompson and Daryl Steurmer

* [[strike:''From Genesis to Revelation'' 1969]] See CanonDiscontinuity, FanonDiscontinuity and SoBadItsHorrible below.

* SoBadItsHorrible: Arguably, their first album ''From Genesis To Revelation''. Unsurprisingly, [[YourMileageMayVary not everyone agrees with this assessment]].
** It's said that this might have been quite a good album, were the band not "helped" by fellow Old Carthusian Jonathan King producing it (in between sessions of "[[IfYouKnowWhatIMean market research]]" with teenage boys).
** As the numbers indicate, the box set ''Genesis: 1970–1975'' doesn't include this album. Looks like it's been [[CanonDiscontinuity officially deleted from the canon]].
*** According to an Allmusic review, it wasn't included due to licensing reasons rather than CanonDiscontinuity.
** On the other hand, a lot of the songs from it were included minus the strings in the ''Genesis Archive 1967-75'' box set. Those versions are a lot better.

-->'''Peter''': "Phil, there's people out there!"
--> '''Phil''': "I'm really sorry, everyone. I wasn't paying attention to what he was saying."

--> '''Phil''': "I'm sorry, everyone. I wasn't paying attention to what he was saying."

** Another one comes from the live version of "Supper's Ready" on the box set. Peter breaks into his usual pre-song story, which is supposed to be punctuated by Phil's drumming at two points. Phil apparently missed the cue, and the result is hilarious. "I'm sorry, everyone. I wasn't paying attention to what he was saying."

** Another one comes from the live version of "Supper's Ready" on the box set. Peter breaks into his usual pre-song story, which is supposed to be punctuated by Phil's drumming at two points. Phil apparently missed the cue, and the result is hilarious.
-->"I'm sorry, everyone. I wasn't paying attention to what he was saying."

* InTheStyleOf: In the 2007 interview on the DVD version of ''A Trick Of The Tail'', PhilCollins says that "The Squonk" is basically Genesis doing a Led Zeppelin song. "Vindaloo" by Fat Les is in the same kind of style as Genesis doing "Match of the Day". "Driving the Last Spike" from ''We Can't Dance'' has some people wondering "what is this Gabriel-era song doing on their last-but-one album?".

** The ''Three Sides Live'' (US release) double album ''was'' [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Exactly What It Said On The Tin]]: Both sides of the first record were live, as was the first side of the second record. The second side of the second record was studio tracks.

* RecordOfLoudnessWar: The 2008/2009 Atlantic remasters are ATROCIOUS, some of the worst offenders I have ever heard, to the extent that there has been backlash on the internet even from non-audiophiles. Everything is brickwalled even on songs like "Entangled" that are supposed to be quiet throughout. (This is luckily less the case with the albums from ''Trespass'' to ''The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway'', but it is completely the case with everything afterward). Get the 1994 "Definitive Edition Remasters"; better still, the original Charisma [=CDs=]; or, best of all, the original vinyls - all of them are far superior to the pieces of crap Atlantic released a few years ago. There's a thread about the best versions of the [=CDs=] to get [[http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=131883 here]].

* RecordOfLoudnessWar: The 2008/2009 Atlantic remasters are ATROCIOUS, some of the worst offenders I have ever heard, to the extent that there has been backlash on the internet even from non-audiophiles. Everything is brickwalled even on songs like "Entangled" that are supposed to be quiet throughout. (The 1970-1975 [=CDs=] are marginally less atrocious than the remasters of everything else, but they're still the worst version of those records available). Get the 1994 "Definitive Edition Remasters"; better still, the original Charisma [=CDs=]; or, best of all, the original vinyls - all of them are far superior to the pieces of crap Atlantic released a few years ago.

* RecordOfLoudnessWar: The 2008/2009 Atlantic remasters are ATROCIOUS, some of the worst offenders I have ever heard, to the extent that there has been backlash on the internet even from non-audiophiles. Everything is brickwalled even on songs like "Entangled" that are supposed to be quiet throughout. (The 1970-1975 [=CDs=] are marginally less atrocious than the later-era ones). Get the 1994 "Definitive Edition Remasters", better still the original Charisma [=CDs=], or best of all the original vinyls - all of them are far superior to the pieces of crap Atlantic released a few years ago.

* RecordOfLoudnessWar: The 2008/2009 Atlantic remasters are ATROCIOUS, some of the worst offenders I have ever heard, to the extent that there has been backlash on the internet even from non-audiophiles. Everything is brickwalled even on songs like "Entangled" that are supposed to be quiet throughout. (The 1970-1975 [=CDs=] are marginally less atrocious than the later-era ones). Get the 1994 "Definitive Edition Remasters", or better still the original Charisma [=CDs=] or original vinyls - all of them are far superior to the pieces of crap Atlantic released a few years ago.

* PhilCollins - drummer, lead vocals (and former backup vocals)F

* PhilCollins - drummer, lead vocals (and former backup vocals)

* RecordOfLoudnessWar: The 2008/2009 Atlantic remasters are ATROCIOUS, some of the worst offenders I have ever heard, to the extent that there has been backlash on the internet even from non-audiophiles. Everything is brickwalled even on songs like "Entangled" that are supposed to be quiet throughout. (The 1970-1975 CDs are marginally less atrocious than the later-era ones). Get the 1994 "Definitive Edition Remasters", or better still the original Charisma CDs or original vinyls - all of them are far superior to the pieces of crap Atlantic released a few years ago.