Genesis gig guide 1973

Genesis played the following gigs during the autumn of 1973 as part of the Selling England By The Pound tour…

(This is the original guide as printed in #12 for more up to date information refer to: Genesis Revisited).

The band’s Rainbow Theatre concert on 20th October was recorded for later radio broadcast. Ron Geesin was the lucky man to support the band on the UK leg of the tour. By the time Genesis reached America in November 1973 to begin their second US tour, the songs that comprised the live set were generally as follows:

Watcher Of The Skies/Dancing With The Moonlit Knight/Cinema Show/I Know What I Like/Firth Of Fifth/Musical Box/More Fool Me/The Battle Of Epping Forest/Supper’s Ready/The Knife.

During some of the shows in 1974, Horizons and Harold The Barrel were played.

One of the strangest things that Peter tried to do on stage was at the Thanksgiving Day show at New York’s Felt Forum on 22nd November. Towards the end of Supper’s Ready he was hoisted from the stage to give the effect that he was flying above the band. This was not a success as he was nearly strangled by the guide rope at one of the shows and this effect was subsequently dropped.

Even such bands as Wishbone Ash supported Genesis on their US tour circuit at their show in Philadelphia in December 1973. But perhaps the highlight of this leg of the tour was the six shows they performed over three days at the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood from 17th to 19th December. One of the shows from the 18th was recorded for radio broadcast.

It wasn’t just the European audiences that were being fascinated by the band’s outstanding music and theatrics, but their American fans who had never seen anything quite like this before, and were becoming more and more intrigued by this band of English musicians.

Peter’s costumes on stage had become increasingly bizarre. The bat wings, cape and glowing eyes were still prevalent on Watcher Of The Skies. The old man mask used on Musical Box was still there as were the flower head and square red box during Supper’s Ready. But there were now new costumes to delight the audience. He dressed up as Britannia during Dancing With The Moonlit Knight and wore an ecclesiastical “dog” collar and stocking over his head during The Battle Of Epping Forest. Even Supper’s Ready had an added highlight when he appeared during the “New Jerusalem” section holding up a blue fluorescent tube to symbolise the power of good over evil.

After a Christmas break, Genesis were soon back on the road again starting their next leg of the tour at London’s Theatre Royal. Five sell-out shows and outstanding reviews now firmly placed Genesis among the finest bands of that period.