As reported earlier, a classic performance from Genesis has been unearthed and making it’s way to the underground. These are indeed the soundboard recordings from Genesis rehearsing with Peter Gabriel for their one-off, “Six Of The Best” show at Milton Keynes in London, October 1982.
Up until now the only audio document of this rare reunion has been a nice sounding audience recording of the rain soaked event. The event was never professionally recorded and certainly no rehearsal footage has ever been heard - until now.
First, the sound quality is quite amazing. The collector who discovered these recordings took great care in preserving the quality on the master reels. Every now and then you will hear some tape flutter or wear, but it never takes away from overall enjoyment. There’s audible hiss, but the bottom more than makes up for it by boasting nice, warm sound. A good balance of highs, mid and lows, which is frankly better than I was expecting. Boards have a tendency to sound flat, but this one has power.
There is some talking between takes, but it’s usually brief and low in the mix. At one time Peter is heard saying “…all the help I can get” to a bandmate. This also seemed like an appropriate title for the bootleg since the entire show was intended to help Peter’s financial siutation at the time.
For the most part, the band are locked in and playing their parts occasionally taking a break to discuss some changes with Peter, but again, it’s brief. Because of this, I think the band are in the late stages of rehearsal. I really have no idea exactly how much time the band had to rehearse, but I undertand it was only a couple days.
Also, I’m not 100% sure if Steve Hackett is present on this rehearsal footage. He did play with Genesis on the encore (2 songs) but I’m not aware of any other involvement with the concert.
For more info about the show, be sure to check out the Wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_of_the_Best
Over the course of the 2CD “All The Help I Can Get“, the band rehearse nearly every single song they are to play in the one-off event. Only “Turn It On Again” is not included here. The only other non-Genesis song performed is Gabriel’s “Solsbury Hill” (a song he wrote about leaving the band in 1975). Included here are a few takes of that well known classic and the band adapt it to their own style, adding in a nice rhythmic touch by Phil Collins.
The song list here is a wish list for most any Gabriel-era fan, including “Firth Of Fifth”, “In The Cage”, “The Musical Box”, “The Knife”, “Back In NYC”, “Fly On A Windshield”, and their master classic, “Supper’s Ready”. The quality throughout is excellent and the mix is decent. Compared to the drums and vocals, the guitars are considerably low in the mix. However, still a very enjoyable performance and a fascinating listen for any fan of the Gabriel era of Genesis.
“All The Help I Can Get” is currently in production and will be released for free trade soon. Stay tuned to RushTrader.com for updates.
Regular updates will be posted here:
http://www.RushTrader.com/genesis
roll the boots…
ant
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