Behind The Lines (track) by Genesis

From Squonk007 10/04/2021 16:03

A stunning opener right from the opening chord, full of power.

The introduction to Duke proves that Genesis was more than ready to transition to pop music with great success, though there are heavy elements of prog in here, including Banks' keyboards that drive much of the track as well as a bombastic two-minute instrumental introduction. But the pop feel takes center stage with Collins' rhythmic drumming, Rutherford's grooving bass, and the lyrics about our hero Albert (Duke) and his superficial relationship with Duchess. When all this is added with Banks' piano-like keyboard, it makes for some really tasty verses. Rutherford also gets the chance to shine on the guitar later on in the track, and the explosions after each "It is written in the book" are just pure musical bliss. One track in and we may already have the highlight of the album.

From M42K0 02/10/2016 00:26

One of the greatest openers ever. Makes me laugh every time I see the average of this song is 73 while Watcher Of The Skies' is 88-89. Not that big of a difference in quality, I'd say.

From Mdemauri 08/21/2014 16:37

Great song to kick off an album. Love the segue into Duchess. I remember reading at the time this album came out they were trying to get Michael Jackson to cover this. They thought it would be a big hit if he sang it. Phil must've really liked it as well since he put it on his first solo album.