A TRICK OF THE TAIL

	A Trick of the Tail
	Produced by David Hentschel and Genesis
	Released on February 2, 1976
	UK CHART POSITION #3 . . . US CHART POSITION #31 . . . GOLD RECORD (4/20/90)
	Find it at GEMM
82688-2 cover

F ollowing the departure of Peter Gabriel, and letting more than a year pass for the other shoe to drop, the remaining quartet returned with A Trick of the Tail, conceding nothing. The album begins with the explosive “Dance on a Volcano,” a tour de force that conceals one of Steve Hackett’s more riveting musical nightmares. The remaining tracks, credited here to individual members for the first time, form a series of vignettes rather than a unifying concept. It’s a less ambitious effort than Lamb, but in that regard there was nowhere to go but down. Trick is still a treat for Genesis fans, including such classics as the title track and “Robbery, Assault & Battery.” The songs written by the trio of Banks, Collins and Rutherford foreshadow the music to come, fuzzy and large-sounding creations like “Squonk” and “Mad Man Moon.” In between are two very pretty numbers, the mischievous “Entangled” typical of Hackett’s warped tunes and the gentle “Ripples.” It all comes to a close with “Los Endos,” reprising the opening theme in the same way that Selling England did. Some fans are quite fond of this record, though I’d give their next the distinction of best post-Gabriel album. If it’s not classic Genesis, it’s not far removed from it either, a somehow intimate antidote to the political/social statements of past efforts.


SD 36-129 gatefold cover	SD 36-129 inner gatefold

TRACK LISTING

DANCE ON A VOLCANO (Tony Banks/Phil Collins/Mike Rutherford/Steve Hackett)
ENTANGLED (Tony Banks/Steve Hackett)
SQUONK (Mike Rutherford/Tony Banks)
MAD MAN MOON (Tony Banks)
ROBBERY, ASSAULT AND BATTERY (Tony Banks)
RIPPLES... (Tony Banks/Phil Collins)
A TRICK OF THE TAIL (Tony Banks/Mike Rutherford)
LOS ENDOS (Phil Collins/Steve Hackett/Mike Rutherford/Tony Banks)

All material arranged by Genesis

CREDITS

TONY BANKS -- pianos, synthesizers,organ, Mellotron, 12 string guitar, backing vocals
PHIL COLLINS -- drums, percussion, lead & backing vocals
STEVE HACKETT -- electric guitar, 12 string guitars
MIKE RUTHERFORD -- 12 string guitar, basses, bass pedals
David Hentschel -- engineer
Nick "Haddock" Bradford -- engineer
Hipgnosis, Colin Elgie -- sleeve design

return to GENESIS discography

REGION	RELEASE DATE	LABEL	MEDIA	ID NUMBER	FEATURES
UK	February 2, 1976	Charisma	LP/CS	CDS/CDSMC 4001	gatefold cover
US/CAN	February 2, 1976	Atco	LP	SD36-129	gatefold cover, picture sleeve
ARG	1976?	Charisma	LP	27312	gatefold cover
GER		Charisma	LP	206 921 610	gatefold cover, inner sleeve
ISR	1976	Litratone	LP	13105
JPN		Matrix	LP	RJ-7305	lyric insert
FRA/NET	1976	Charisma	LP	6369 974	gatefold cover
US	1981	Mobile Fidelity	LP	MFSL-1-062	original master recording, gatefold
US		Atco	CD/CS	SD38-101
BRA	1988	Virgin	LP	140.8013	gatefold cover, insert
UK	1994	Virgin	CD/CS	CDSCDX 4001	digital remaster
US	November 29, 1994	Atco	CD/CS	82688	definitive edition remaster
GER/NET	1994	Virgin	CD	839 885	digital remaster

SUGGESTED BROWSING

In pursuit of the elusive Squonk, I happened upon a brilliant page entitled In Search of the Squonk. Kudos to Chris Tweed for his entire Ancient Sites Directory, which should be required reading if you're planning a visit to the United Kingdom.

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