Saw it on the TV...

It has been a while since TWR had a trawl through some of the recent additions to the video archive and so I thought it might prove interesting to catch up on some of the material which has provided your editor with some of his viewing pleasure recently.

Surprisingly no footage from Peter’s most recent series of shows has surfaced yet although that is more than compensated for by the official DVD release reviewed elsewhere in this edition. There is also a dearth of offerings from Mike & The Mechanics despite their recent series of shows and ongoing tour itinerary. No such problems with Mr Hackett however, and several items from his current Genesis Extended tour have made their way to TWR HQ recently and it is these that we shall focus on this time round.

First of these is a rather nifty compilation of footage from both of Steve’s 2013 and 2014 appearances on the “Cruise To The Edge” marine extravaganza. Taking in both years’ performances along with an entertaining TV interview with Mr H about the album and the tour, this package has been put together extremely well and the resulting footage is better than your usual privately filmed efforts and makes for an excellent compare and contrast between the two years’ shows. It is also nice to see some of the other artists on the roster including an excellent set from young Mr Simon Collins and his band Sound Of Contact as well as footage of the legendary Tony Levin and his Sticksmen, making this an extremely enjoyable effort all round.

Steve’s “Italian Jobs” are becoming an annual event these days and we have two of these next. Both of these are open air gigs and as such, feature a somewhat truncated set from that which has been performed at indoor gigs. First of these is from the Nuovo Teatro Carisport in Cesena which took place on 23rd May 2014. Shot from the right hand side of the stage, the resulting film is very clear and the sound generally is very good although it does have the usual element of audience participation that you would expect from a privately filmed shot. Here we get another excellent selection from the show with a band evidently at the top of their game and featuring a rather restrained (sartorially speaking) Mr Nick Beggs who makes up for that by the sheer power of his bass playing throughout. Another extremely enjoyable effort all round.

Moving on a little forward and we are back in Italy again, this time at the Piazza Signorelli in Cortona. Another truncated performance this time and shot from the front row of the auditorium which mist have given the cameraman (or woman!) a very sore neck! Visually this one is every bit as enjoyable as its predecessor and also has a guest appearance from Bernardo Lanzetti on The Return Of The Giant Hogweed to the evident relish of the audience.

Our final item this time round is something of a rarity and all the more enjoyable for that! Anthony Phillips is not renowned for TV appearances but to mark the forthcoming release of his Harvest Of The Heart 5 disc package and the subsequent re-issues programme, his new label: Esoteric gave his air time on their Cherry Red TV network. Effectively an EPK (Electronic Press Kit) for the albums, this almost two hour broadcast features Ant talking at length to label organiser Mark Powell. The result is a fascinating look not only at Ant’s time in Genesis but also Ant’s incredible career since then. Ant comes across as a fascinating interview subject although it has to be said he is far better behaved here than he ever has been when either TWR or The Pavilion have been interviewing him I can tell you! A marvellous offering and one which is essential to any fan of Ant’s music.