1. Genesis formed in 1967 in Go… Read Full Bio ↴There are three bands named Genesis.
1. Genesis formed in 1967 in Godalming, Surrey (United Kingdom) and was one of the most popular progressive rock bands in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. During the 1970s, Peter Gabriel was the lead singer until his departure, when drummer Phil Collins stepped up to the mic and replaced him.
Starting as an amalgam of two bands formed by schoolboys attending Charterhouse School in Godalming, England, the original lineup consisted of Peter Gabriel, Anthony Phillips, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford, and Chris Stewart, though Stewart was soon replaced as drummer by John Silver and then John Mayhew. By the end of 1970, Phillips and Mayhew had left the band, with Collins joining as drummer, and by early 1971, guitarist Steve Hackett had filled the gap left by Phillips. The lineup of Gabriel, Banks, Hackett, Rutherford, and Collins remained in place until Gabriel's departure in 1975.
During the period of 1970-1975, the band produced some of the most widely-acclaimed albums of the progressive rock era, including "Nursery Cryme", "Foxtrot" (featuring the side-long epic "Supper's Ready") and the seminal album "Selling England by the Pound", which generated Genesis' first foray into the charts with "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)". This lineup culminated with the band's magnum opus "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" in 1974. Following the tour promoting the album, frontman Peter Gabriel left the group in mid 1975.
Genesis decided to continue on as a four-piece, producing two albums, "A Trick of the Tail" and "Wind & Wuthering", which found the band proving to themselves and to the world that they could move on after Gabriel's departure. Collins stepped up to fill the role of lead vocalist after countless auditions for a new singer proved fruitless by the completion of recording for "A Trick of the Tail". Hackett quietly departed after the "Wind & Wuthering" tour in 1977, feeling that his creative input for the band was being repressed.
In 1978, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford contributed music to a British movie called "The Shout" based on a short story by Robert Graves, directed by Jerzy Skomilowski and produced by Jeremy Thomas. (More credits and info here http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078259/combined)
Genesis then became a trio which began to move away from the dying embers of progressive rock. They established themselves as a more commercially-friendly outfit with the release of their 1978 album "...And Then There Were Three...", finding their first US hit with the single "Follow You Follow Me".
Banks, Rutherford, and Collins became more adept at writing radio-friendly songs in the 1980s. This reached a peak with the release of 1986's "Invisible Touch", in which more than half of the album's eight songs made it to the singles chart, including the title track, "Land of Confusion" and "In Too Deep". All three band members produced solo albums during Genesis' downtime in the 80s and 90s - most notably Collins' increasingly successful solo work, and Rutherford's sideline group "Mike and the Mechanics" which found moderate success - with evolving styles reflected both when going solo and when recording together as Genesis.
Collins left the group in 1996, and was replaced vocally by Ray Wilson, the former lead singer of Scottish band "Stiltskin". Israeli born drummer Nir Zidkyahu and "Spock's Beard" drummer Nick D'Virgilio stepped in to fill the drumming role. Their 1997 album "Calling All Stations" was unable to find worldwide success, and despite scoring a minor U.K. hit with "Congo", the group slowly faded out of public consciousness. In 1998, after the "Calling All Stations" tour (the US leg of which was cut short due to poor album sales), Wilson was released from the band, and Zidkyahu and D'Virgilio, having never been "official" band members, went their separate ways. The band, now down to only Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford, took a break from performing and recording.
In 1999 Banks, Rutherford, Collins, Gabriel, and Hackett collaborated to re-record "The Carpet Crawlers" for greatest hits compilation "Turn It on Again: The Hits".
During the latter part of 2005, rumors spread that the band would reform again in its most famous five-man configuration. Genesis management stated that there were no current plans at that time, and that nothing would change in the following twelve months. Phil Collins then said in a radio interview in April 2006 that the classic Genesis line-up was considering a new live-staging of "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway", but it was not to be. On 7th November 2006, Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford announced they would be doing a twenty-date tour of Europe in the summer of 2007, with a North American tour to follow.
A Live DVD of the final European concert in Rome, where the band performed free for 500,000 fans, was released May 26th 2008: "When In Rome - Live 2007".
In April of 2011, Phil Collins, after completing a reunion tour with Genesis, said in a newspaper interview that he has no plans to tour or make another album, effectively retiring after over 40 years in the music business.
Official website: www.genesis-music.com
2. In 1967-8, there was an American band that was also named Genesis. It was a psychedelic rock group based in Los Angeles which released one album In the Beginning in 1968. The name conflict was known to the record label of UK Genesis, which is why their debut album From Genesis to Revelation coyly omitted the band's name except in the album title. While both bands suffered poor sales for their debuts, the US band broke up in late 1968 not long after one of their members was drafted into the army. This more or less ended any significant confusion except in situations like Last.fm or lazy Googling.
3. A Colombian group called Génesis also exists. If you are scrobbling songs by that group and have ended up on this page, please fix your tags to Génesis with the first "e" accented.
Way of the World
Genesis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Will the hurt just disappear
Put a weapon in the hand of a frightened man
Will he show no fear
So we stand and we watch while the city lights go out one by one
Mother Nature sits on the other side with a loaded gun
Why is there blue sky
Now's the time to ask the reason
Should the blue sky
Meet the red sky
Should the rules have to change at all
We all know whatever they say
Time is on our side
This world has been here before just going round and round and round
We all agree as far as we can see
It's just the way of the world
That's how it's meant to be
There's right and there's wrong
There's weak and there's strong
It's just the way of the world
And that's how it's meant to be
Take the motion from a spinning wheel and watch it stop
Take the danger out of a naked flame and what have you got
If you take the anger out of a broken heart, you feel no pain
Could you swear if you had that second chance you wouldn't do it again
Why is there blue sky
Why is there red sky
Now's the time to ask the reason
Should the blue sky
Meet the red sky
Should the rules have to change at all
We all know whatever they say
Time is on our side
This world has been here before just going round and round and round
We all agree as far as we can see
It's just the way of the world
That's how it's meant to be
There's right and there's wrong
There's weak and there's strong
It's just the way of the world
And that's how it's meant to be
The song "Way of the World" by Genesis addresses the tragic and often senseless nature of life. The opening lines present two opposing scenarios, one where tears are taken from crying eyes and the other, where a weapon is placed in the hand of a frightened man. Both situations reflect pain and fear, yet the outcomes vary. The song goes on to ask existential questions. The sky is blue and red, the world goes round and round, and time is on our side. Yet, why do things happen the way they do? Should rules or circumstances change? The chorus emphasizes the inevitability of the way the world works, with its dichotomy of right and wrong, weak and strong.
The song's message is one of acceptance, that we must recognize the reality of the world around us, even if we may not like it. We can't control certain circumstances and events, but we can control our reactions to them. The song suggests that sometimes letting go of anger and accepting things as they are can bring relief from the pain.
Line by Line Meaning
If you take the tears from crying eyes
If you remove the pain and sadness from a person's heart
Will the hurt just disappear
Will the emotional pain vanish without a trace
Put a weapon in the hand of a frightened man
Give power to someone who is scared and unsure
Will he show no fear
Will he be able to overcome his emotions and act bravely
So we stand and we watch while the city lights go out one by one
We observe the destruction of our world without taking action
Mother Nature sits on the other side with a loaded gun
The natural world has the potential to cause great harm to us, and we are not in control
Why is there blue sky
What is the meaning behind each aspect of nature or life
Why is there red sky
What is the significance of each event or phenomenon
Now's the time to ask the reason
Let's pause and find out the root cause of things
Should the blue sky meet the red sky
Should contradictory or conflicting things ever coexist
Should the rules have to change at all
Is it necessary to adapt to changes or should things remain the same
We all know whatever they say
We understand that there are different opinions and viewpoints
Time is on our side
There is always enough time to find answers and solutions
This world has been here before just going round and round and round
The world has gone through cycles of change, but still moves in a circular pattern
We all agree as far as we can see
We all have different understandings based on our own perception
It's just the way of the world
Things happen in a certain way without our control or intervention
That's how it's meant to be
This is the natural order of things that we cannot change
There's right and there's wrong
There are ethical and moral distinctions in the world
There's weak and there's strong
There are differences in strength and ability among individuals
Take the motion from a spinning wheel and watch it stop
If you remove energy and momentum from a system, it will cease to function
Take the danger out of a naked flame and what have you got
If you remove the risk from a dangerous situation or object, it loses its true nature
If you take the anger out of a broken heart, you feel no pain
If you remove the negative emotions from a traumatic experience, it loses its impact
Could you swear if you had that second chance you wouldn't do it again
If you were given the opportunity to redo something, would you make the same mistake twice
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: Anthony George Banks, Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Pieriv
fabulous song that deserves to be known and listened again and again by billions of people
Aurora Giovannini
Definitely .
krissyrose14
Rutherford's backbeat bass grooves, Banks brandishes with brilliance on the boards, and Phil's drum pattern makes this track uber chill.
William Jacobs
I really love this song and the lyrics to it. If you just sit and listen to the words it's so awesome how everything in this situation is in this world. It's just the way of the world and there's right and there's wrong. It's like having god helping him write these songs because there right on point.
Martinho Lutero Oliveira
You are very very correct! I agree with you: God inspired this letter.
Clayton Pascoe
Genesis. Wow. What an amazing band!!! I’ve known these guys from the early 90’s. Tony Banks was the founder. With him, Phil Collins and Mike Rutherford , just made the band so wonderful.
William Jacobs
I have so many of Phil Collins and Genesis songs and love every one of them. The only thing that I can't figure out is witch song is my favorite because like I said I truly love them all. I'm a huge fan and went to several concerts and had a great time at every one of them. I'm also glad that they have a hall of fame plus a Star at Hollywood.
Klaus Bergmaier
Easy for me: most favourite is always Abacab.
Marley Probst
God, I love this album.
Larry Chris Floyd
This is when you know you are listening to good music and it has a meaning to just about everyone of his songs. We have seen a blue sky and the red sky plus it's the way of the world. I'm grateful to be in my 50s and still moving forward.