Genesis and the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway

by Holm-Hudson,Kevin

• ISBN13: 9780754661474
• ISBN10: 0754661474
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2008-11-28
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

In 1974 the British progressive rock group Genesis released their double concept album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. The story was described by Genesis's then front-man Peter Gabriel as a 'moral fable' about Rael, a half-Puerto-Rican New York City street tough who is engulfed by a solid cloud into a series of strange adventures in a metaphysical realm. The album is a surreal allegory drawing its material from religious, literary and psychological themes. More than thirty years after its release, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway still enthralls listeners, earning the distinction of being Genesis's most consistently selling back-catalogue release.Kevin Holm-Hudson analyses The Lamb within the context of Genesis's recorded output, within the progressive rock genre as a whole, and within the context of social and political changes of the mid 1970s. The Lamb marked a conscious shift in their story setting to America, and for the first time the songs were oriented to the present rather than the past or future. Significantly, while 1974 marked the peak of music industry growth and consolidation through corporate mergers, it was also the year in which America was confronted with its limits: through the first of the OPEC energy crises, the resignation of Richard Nixon, the withdrawal from Vietnam, and the effects of runaway inflation. Genesis's native Britain was also to feel the effects of the energy crisis, intensified by a period of economic slowdown that ultimately led to the rise of Thatcherism. The Lamb is set in New York City during this time of uncertainty. Within a few years the economic constraints would affect the industry as a whole and as a result progressive rock would suffer a precipitous drop in industry support. The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway thus makes a particularly rich subject for detailed study, providing compelling intersections between the musical, textual and socioeconomic aspects of an album.

Table of Contents

Introduction:'This is the story of Rael'

'It's the last great adventure left to mankind': situating The Lamb

'There's something solid forming in the air': recording The Lamb

'Counting out time': The Lamb, song by song

'The Lamb seems right out of place': in the press and on tour

'it': interpreting The Lamb

'And the light dies down on Broadway': Genesis and Gabriel after The Lamb and The Lamb after Genesis

Appendix: 'Once again the stage is set for you': The Lamb tour itinerary

Bibliography: 'searching printed word'

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

In 1974 the British progressive rock group Genesis released their double concept album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, now widely regarded as a classic album of 1970s progressive rock. As the book's title implies, this study will analyse The Lamb both within the context of progressive rock, examining its special place in Genesis's recorded output and in the progressive rock genre as a whole, and within the context of social and political changes of the mid 1970s.