For this Tuesday Tunes post, I thought  I would enlighten you somewhat regarding my musical interests and maybe introduce you to something you might not be familiar with.

I am a music lover. I don’t consider myself a connoisseur, as I am nowhere near an expert on the subject, but my interests are wide and varied. Like my brother, Jann, I think classical music is some of the most beautiful written. My tastes run from Mozart, to Bach, to Beethoven. I prefer anything by Tchaikovsky, with Swan Lake my favorite by him, and Claude Debussy. Clair de Lune sends chills running up and down my spine.

When it comes to more recent music, however, I confess I haven’t paid much attention to anything written in this century. I’m sorry, but talking (or yelling) over music in the background is not something I can appreciate, especially when I consider the subject matter and language in most of these “songs”.

In that vein, I thought I would introduce you to, or remind you as the case may be, of an album that, in my mind, is an underrated accomplishment by the British band Genesis. I won’t bore you with the history of the group, but I want to give you some pertinent information regarding this particular album.

It was released in February, 1976, and marked the debut of Phil Collins as the lead singer following the departure of Peter Gabriel. It was not a role he wanted, as he was not convinced he had the talent. Efforts to find a replacement, however, were unsuccessful and Mr. Collins was persuaded to sing “Squonk” , track three on the album. His performance was so powerful that he sang lead on the remainder of the album.

I love every song and, in my opinion, there is not a weak track on the entire album. Of the eight cuts, my favorites are number five, “Robbery, Assault and Battery, and the title track, which is the second last track at number seven.

https://youtu.be/ZXqSEw3H_PI

Each of these songs is a story in and of itself and I find them interesting.

The album was well received in Britain and the resulting tour in support raised their profile in the US, where they had been relatively unknown until then.

My brother-in-law introduced me to this album and it’s been a staple in my house ever since. I pull it out and give it a listen two or three times a year. If I’ve piqued your interest, the complete album can be heard on YouTube and the CD or Vinyl, if you prefer, is still available on Amazon. If you prefer streaming your music, you can purchase it from Apple.