FEATURED CD - Mike Rutherford : Smallcreep's Day

[MagmaShark]

No one has mentioned that "Man Of Our Times" and "Alone Tonight" could easily be on "Smallcreep's Day" ... just listen to that guitar work - could be outakes from "Smallcreep's Day" that he let Genesis have to counter Phil's songs.

The song side of the LP seems to be taking a beating in most opinions here but really can anyone say with credibility that "Time And Time Again" and "Every Road" are not superior to "Misunderstanding" and "Please Don't Ask"? and "Romani" has to be considered an incredible (well, maybe that's overstating a little) song? ... the vocals, the drums and the ending riff... wow. Even "Overnight Job" has more exciting guitar work than most of "Duke" material.

My version of "Smallcreep's Day" includes adding "Compression" "Man of our Times" "Alone Tonight" "Open Door" plus "Compression" by Moongarden and "Out Into the Daylight" by Elio ele Storie Tese (from youtube). That's about as complete as I can make it.

I would love to say it's my favorite of all the Genesis first solo albums, but that damn pesky "Voyage of the Acolyte" keeps getting in the way !!

[aith01]

can anyone say with credibility that "Time And Time Again" and "Every Road" are not superior to "Misunderstanding" and "Please Don't Ask"?

I'm sorry -- I love Smallcreep's Day, but I still prefer Misunderstanding and Please Don't Ask. It's not about superiority.

I know what I like.

[Rufus]

No one has mentioned that "Man Of Our Times" and "Alone Tonight" could easily be on "Smallcreep's Day" ... just listen to that guitar work - could be outakes from "Smallcreep's Day" that he let Genesis have to counter Phil's songs.

The song side of the LP seems to be taking a beating in most opinions here but really can anyone say with credibility that "Time And Time Again" and "Every Road" are not superior to "Misunderstanding" and "Please Don't Ask"? and "Romani" has to be considered an incredible (well, maybe that's overstating a little) song? ... the vocals, the drums and the ending riff... wow. Even "Overnight Job" has more exciting guitar work than most of "Duke" material.

My version of "Smallcreep's Day" includes adding "Compression" "Man of our Times" "Alone Tonight" "Open Door" plus "Compression" by Moongarden and "Out Into the Daylight" by Elio ele Storie Tese (from youtube). That's about as complete as I can make it.

I would love to say it's my favorite of all the Genesis first solo albums, but that damn pesky "Voyage of the Acolyte" keeps getting in the way !!

Agree! Those two songs are far superior to the dodgy Misunderstanding and Please Dont Ask. Terrible songs !!
Respected merican music journalist and presenter John Beaudin says it's his favourite album of all time. He recently interviewed Paul Carrack who said Ruthrrford approached him to sing on the album but he was too busy with commitments to Madness!

[aith01]

Agree! Those two songs are far superior to the dodgy Misunderstanding and Please Dont Ask. Terrible songs !!

[yesstiles]

I love the Suite Side. One of the best sides of music that anyone involved with Genesis (including Genesis) ever did. But the Song Side, I can barely get thru it. Such boring tunes imo.

[Trane]

Gave it a fresh listen yesterday....

Just like A Curious Feeling and (to a lesser extent) Duke, something is often missing in ASCD, despite all three sounding sonically +/- the same - I think it's the studio.


All three are OK albums (at least the two solo albums have no aurally offensive tracks like Misunderstanding or Turn It Off Again), but no more

Never owned any of those three albums (Last Genesis historical album bought being ATTWT at time of release).

[Firth]

Gave it a fresh listen yesterday....

Just like A Curious Feeling and (to a lesser extent) Duke, something is often missing in ASCD, despite all three sounding sonically +/- the same - I think it's the studio.


All three are OK albums (at least the two solo albums have no aurally offensive tracks like Misunderstanding or Turn It Off Again), but no more

Never owned any of those three albums (Last Genesis historical album bought being ATTWT at time of release).

“Missing in ASCD”, what is a ASCD. I know SACD, but I have not heard this released as such.

[mozo-pg]

Gave it a fresh listen yesterday....


Never owned any of those three albums (Last Genesis historical album bought being ATTWT at time of release).

I would recommend giving Duke a try, at a minimum you'd find Duke's Travels/End classic Genesis prog.

[Monet]

Well, I've been listenin' to Genesis since I was a kid, I know their solo albums, but somehow this concept album actually slipped through my fingers. Rutherford's first solo album... but what one! For those who like to indulge in the moods of "Wind & Wuthering" and "And Then There Were Three", who can dive away from the early Arena, Pendragon, IQ and Marillion without taking a deep breath, "Smallcreep's Day" is a gem for them. Definitely that Noel McCalla is not Peter Gabriel or Fish, but he blends in wonderfully with the dreamy, surreal moods. Actually, the album is the perfect link between "And Then There Were Three" and "Duke" without any yawning fits. And with "At the End of the Day" there is the most beautiful IQ song that IQ have never written. Oh yes, of course the whole thing is perfectly produced by David Hentschel.
The album opens with a ballad with majestic key accompaniment, which merges seamlessly into an up-tempo number "Working in Line". Then Rutherford convinces as an acoustic and electric guitarist. "After Hours" and "Small Creep alone" are soulful, spherical instrumental sketches for electronic keyboards. With "Cats and Rats" comes a mainstream song that is likely to hit and comes up with bombastic keyboard interludes. This is followed by "Out Into the Daylight", a proud instrumental track for electric guitar with full band accompaniment. Then, surprisingly, Rutherford shows that he can also make a passable lead guitarist. Why he is able to prove this exclusively on his first solo record will remain an eternal mystery to me. "At the End of the Day" at the end of the title suite would be a successful ballad in the best Genesis tradition, the same applies to the song "Time and Time Again".
The series of individual songs opens with a powerful "Moonshine" with a simple, yet effective keyboard chords as accompaniment. Anthony Phillips seems to want to sound like Tony Banks here too. "Romani" is followed by a rather trendy song that points more towards Mike and the Mechanics. In my opinion, "Every Road" is nothing more than a banality to sway along with. "Overnight", the last song, offers usable vocal melody and the final instrumental part is also convincing.
Overall, this record would be a nice addition to your Genesis collections. With keyboards tastefully used by the former Genesis guitarist Anthony Phillips, with the best electric guitar from Rutherford that you have ever heard from him, with mostly passable song ideas, with the drummer, who is rightly appreciated by everyone Simon Phillips and not least with a good singer, the record has a lot to offer.

[aith01]

All three are OK albums (at least the two solo albums have no aurally offensive tracks like Misunderstanding or Turn It Off Again)

Offensive? Why, because they aren't "prawg"?

"Misunderstanding" and "Turn It On Again" are great songs. Your loss, dude.

[Steve983]

I would recommend giving Duke a try, at a minimum you'd find Duke's Travels/End classic Genesis prog.

Yep, Duke is worth having despite the two singles which completely put me off buying it at the time. I even love Please Don't Ask even though maybe it belongs on Face Value. Also worth tracking down the two tracks Evidence of Autumn and Open Door which were left out. They can be found on one of the archive sets or purchase download on Qobuz.

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[aith01]

This video likely won't change the mind of anyone who already dislikes the song, but others may find it interesting.

[Splicer]

I remember rugby shirts being popular back then.

[moecurlythanu]

I like the song side better than the suite side, but the whole album is mostly excellent. Bought it on release.

[aith01]

I like the song side better than the suite side, but the whole album is mostly excellent. Bought it on release.

Same here, regarding the song side. It's a little more consistent IMO, but overall it's a great record. I first got it on CD, and then a few years later got a decent vinyl copy on eBay.

[Trane]

I would recommend giving Duke a try, at a minimum you'd find Duke's Travels/End classic Genesis prog.

Duke/Dude , I know that album ever since it came out. Heard it dozens of time and a lot of it is PK. I just never owned it, partly because I hated the two big songs.

Offensive? Why, because they aren't "prawg"?

"Misunderstanding" and "Turn It On Again" are great songs. Your loss, dude.

OK, my loss joieintense.gif

I'd be much more concerned with losing out on the rest of the album

Yep, Duke is worth having despite the two singles which completely put me off buying it at the time. I even love Please Don't Ask even though maybe it belongs on Face Value. Also worth tracking down the two tracks Evidence of Autumn and Open Door which were left out. They can be found on one of the archive sets or purchase download on Qobuz.

Yup, that certainly played a lot in my decision, though we heard also plenty of Behind The Lines, which wasn't the greatest either.

“Missing in ASCD”, what is a ASCD. I know SACD, but I have not heard this released as such.

A Smalls Creep Day, not Small And Creepy Day

[mozo-pg]

I was turned off Duke because of the 2 big tunes for decades. It was a revelation I discovered here that there was in fact more challenging music on the album. I ignore what I don't like and now rank this album much higher than And Then There Were Three.

[Splicer]

Personally, I think "Man of Our Time" is a terrific song. A very aggressive sound for Genesis.

[Steve983]

I was turned off Duke because of the 2 big tunes for decades. It was a revelation I discovered here that there was in fact more challenging music on the album. I ignore what I don't like and now rank this album much higher than And Then There Were Three.

Exactly the same for me, it was about the mid 90's when I finally discovered that Duke is mostly brilliant.

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[aith01]

Personally, I think "Man of Our Time" is a terrific song. A very aggressive sound for Genesis.

I like that one a lot too.

[aith01]

I'd be much more concerned with losing out on the rest of the album

Didn’t you just say that you’ve never owned Duke?

[Firth]

The only Genesis albums which I haven’t listened too much, are the ones after Duke. Even those have some songs that are ok, I had so much other music that I enjoyed more. ABACB crossed a threshold, in the negative direction. I’m still listening to this ASCD.

[yesman1955]

Like some of you out there, I eventually purchased all of the more recent (post-Duke) Genesis albums, to complete my collection. Most were purchased very cheaply at close-out prices. Probably only listened to each one once just to see if they had any hidden redeeming qualities.

[moecurlythanu]

^ And you found out they were well hidden?

[Trane]

Didn’t you just say that you’ve never owned Duke?

Yup, but I borrowed it, along with Abacrap, ATTWT and Shapes and made my ownpPost-Hackett Genesis CDr compilation. Of which ATTWT & Duke occupy 85% of it.

I was turned off Duke because of the 2 big tunes for decades. It was a revelation I discovered here that there was in fact more challenging music on the album. I ignore what I don't like and now rank this album much higher than And Then There Were Three.

I'd rate ATTWT above Duke, but yeak, they're about esqual.