"Poll On The Rooftops" - The "Wind And Wuthering" Poll

The last mega-classic Genesis album. In spite of a strong side 2, the highlight remains the epic track on side 1, "One For The Vine". One of Tony Banks' best ever moments as a composer.

In spite of a strong side 2, "All in a Mouse's Night" is horrible and you know it Mistah.

"One for the Vine" is so far above and beyond that only well-considered arguments for the introductory riff to "Afterglow" can beat it here. Having said that, based on the results of the last Genesis poll, I'm assuming Phil Collins farting in a tin can will walk this.

Considering this album was Steve Hackett's last work with Genesis I feel the emotional core of the record, if not quite the best song on it, is Blood on the Rooftops - a song seemingly about the experience of aging and clinging to the past, subjects I dare say most Genesis fans will sympathize with all too well. It's where the guitarist really shines as player and composer. One For The Vine is stunning, agreed.

I think One for the Vine will walk this and yes I love it, but I voted for Blood on the Rooftops just to give it a bit of a leg-up. I adore the
words to this song and only a Brit such as I will understand the line "and they're out for 23".

I like "Blood on the Rooftops" a lot but I'm not sure there isn't a certain amount of contempt for the narrator going on. The lyrics are pretty good, but one of the things lately that impresses me about "One for the Vine" is the way it tells its story partly thru the music, especially the section with the silly percussion noises that disrupts the mood two thirds thru. And "One for the Vine" nails its sense of futility and emotional emptiness much more successfully I think.

"Afterglow" is still v. interesting as a sign post to what was coming next, as well as a supremely pretty cop of George Harrison's "Something" riff.

First Genesis album I ever heard. I was a junior in high school and my next door neighbor in the dorms brought it over. Angry punker me didn't get along with it too well, but I thought that "One For The Vine" was pretty terrific and that Banks' gets some tremendous synth sounds (was he still using ARPs around then?)

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

blood

Yeah - "Blood On The Rooftops". Love the way it just opens up on the choruses. Good album overall.

i don't really like this album. it seems stuck between old genesis and 80s genesis in a bad way.

like there's a line in "rabbit, run" by updike where he says rabbit is at the age where he had "lost one life but had not yet gained another" or something like that...anyway that's how this album sounds to me....

matt otm. also, 'blood on the rooftops' is hells of gloomy.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

ooh, that's an upset. way to go, botr.

one for the vine is an alright song but I'm surprised it was a contender here with the instrumentals and afterglow being options; that final trilogy of tracks is one of the band's best moments on any album.