Genesis, The #60 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Early Genesis can be found in Part One Above!)

 

The group followed with the album Abacab in 1983, which rose to #1 in the U.K. and gave them their first Top 10 album in the U.S. at #7.  The title song hit #8 in Norway and #9 in the U.K.

 

"No Reply At All" featured the Phenix Horns, the horn section from supergroup Earth, Wind & Fire.  But it seemed Canadians were the only ones with good ears, taking the song to #7.

 

"Man On The Corner" also got little attention but is a solid track.

 Genesis released the EP 3 X 3, which contained another great song, "Paperlate", ignored by music directors everywhere except England, where it reached #10.

The double live album Three Sides Live included material from Genesis' performances to promote Abacab.  It has been certified Gold.

In 1983, Genesis released their self-titled album, which made it three #1 albums in a row in the U.K.  It also hit #6 in the United States.  The song "Mama" landed in the Top 10 in several European countries, but success was contained there.

 "That's All" proved to be a much better song, going to #6 in the United States.

 "Taking It All Too Hard" received some airplay, but it too is underrated.

The group was nominated for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Rock Instrumental Performance (for "Second Home By The Sea") at the Grammy Awards.

A tour of North America and five shows in Birmingham, England extended into 1984.  Afterwards, the Genesis members worked on their own projects, with Rutherford forming the successful group Mike + the Mechanics.  

 

In 1986, Genesis released the album of their career, Invisible Touch.  The title song rose to #1 in the U.S., #3 in Australia and #6 in Canada.

 

The single "Throwing It All Away" continued the strong momentum at #4.

 

"Land Of Confusion" was another smash--#4 in the United States, #7 in West Germany, #8 in Canada and Switzerland and #10 in Sweden.

Peter Fluck and Roger Law, creators of the British television show Spitting Image, made puppets of the members of Genesis for use in the video to "Land Of Confusion".  The landmark video won seven MTV Video Music Awards, including Video of the Year, Best Concept Video and Viewer's Choice and a Grammy Award for Best Concept Music Video.

 

The single "In Too Deep" gave the group another big hit at #3.

The album continued the group's string of #1's in the U.K. and rose to #3 in the United States.  It has now sold over six million copies.  

 "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" also soared to #3.

Genesis became the first group in history to score five hit songs from an album.  Genesis was nominated for Best Pop Instrumental Performance for "The Brazilian".  They also were nominated for Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo or Group at the American Music Awards.

Genesis performed 112 dates on tour, the most successful of their career, wrapping it up with four sold out shows at Wembley Stadium in London.  Afterwards, Genesis went on a five-year hiatus, with Banks, Collins and Rutherford again working on solo albums.

 

In 1991, the group released the album We Can't Dance, another #1 album in the U.K. which peaked at #4 in the United States.  "No Son Of Mine" jumped to #1 in Canada, #4 in Norway, #6 in the U.K., #7 in Australia and #8 in Switzerland.  With a peak of #12 in the U.S., it's an easy choice for one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs*.

 

"Hold On My Heart" vaulted to #1 in Canada and was a big Adult Contemporary hit in the U.S. 

Genesis was nominated for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for "I Can't Dance" at the Grammy Awards.  They won an American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo or Group and were nominated for Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist and Favorite Adult Contemporary Album.  The album has sold over four million copies.

In 1992, Genesis achieved another Gold live album with The Way We Walk, Vol. 1:  The Shorts, followed by the Gold album The Way We Walk, Vol. 2:  The Longs.

Genesis toured North America and Europe and then went on another break.  In 1996, Collins, who had been mixing solo projects with his work with Genesis, left the group.  Banks and Rutherford brought in Ray Wilson to record the album Calling All Stations in 1997.  But the album paled in comparison to past Genesis releases.

The group released the box set Genesis Archive 1967-75 and followed that up with the compilation albums Turn It On Again:  The Hits and another box set, Platinum Collection.

Collins reunited with Banks and Rutherford for a worldwide tour in 2007.  Genesis sold nearly 400,000 tickets in 40 minutes for shows in Germany and the Netherlands.  They played for the Live Earth concert in London and ended the European leg of the tour with a free concert at the historic Circus Maximus in Rome before an estimated 500,000 people.

Genesis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

The group has landed 20 career hits, seven of which made the Top 10, with one #1 song.

Genesis' worldwide sales are estimated between 100 and 150 million.  They have won three American Music Awards out of four nominations, one Grammy Award from six nominations and four MTV Video Music Awards.