Turn It On Again: The Hits

Performer: Genesis
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Genesis: Peter Gabriel (vocals, flute); Phil Collins (vocals, drums); Ray Wilson (vocals); Mike Rutherford (guitar, bass); Steve Hackett (guitar); Tony Banks (keyboards); Nir Zidkyahu (drums). Additional personnel: Andy Richard, Gerry Hughes, Jamie Muhoberac. Producers include: Trevor Horn, David Hentschel, Genesis, Hugh Padgham, Nick Davis. Engineers include: David Hentschel, Hugh Padgham, Nick Davis. Genesis: Peter Gabriel, Ray Wilson (vocals); Steve Hackett (guitars); Tony Banks (keyboards); Mike Rutherford (bass instrument); Phil Collins, Nir Zidkiyahu (drums). This 2007 limited edition release expands the original 1999 greatest-hits compilation into a two-disc, 34-track, digitally remastered extravaganza. Bonus tracks include "Counting Out Time," from the Peter Gabriel era, and "Pigeons" from the rare-ish SPOT THE PIGEON EP. Originally, there were plans for two Genesis box sets -- one covering the classic Peter Gabriel era, the other chronicling the band's development into hit-makers under the direction of Phil Collins. The Gabriel set was released in 1998, but instead of a second box following it in 1999, the single-disc Turn It on Again: The Hits appeared. Truth be told, it was a wise move, because even if the Collins set appears, there will be a market for a concise collection of hits, which Turn It on Again more or less is. Since Genesis had such a prolific career and had so many hits, it should come as no surprise that the compilation isn't complete, but it's a little disappointing to discover that such latter-day non-entities as "Hold on My Heart" (from the last Collins album, We Can't Dance) and "Congo" (from the post-Collins album, Calling All Stations) are included in favor of such fine singles as "Paperlate" or "Man on the Corner." But that's nitpicking, since all the big hits are here: "Turn It on Again," "Invisible Touch," "Follow You, Follow Me," "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight," "In Too Deep," "That's All," "Misunderstanding," "Throwing It All Away," and the list goes on and on. True, the sublime Gabriel number "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)" sounds completely out of place sandwiched between "Abacab" and "No Son of Mine," but it's nice to have it here. Similarly, "The Carpet Crawlers 1999," reworked as a duet between Collins and Gabriel, is a surprisingly effective re-recording, and a nice inclusion. It may not be enough to convince hardcore fans that they need Turn It on Again, but this album is really for listeners who've thought of Genesis as a singles act, and they're not going to be disappointed by this. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Q (11/99, p.154) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...proves that behind the musical grandiloquence there were often great tunes....Collins remains the linchpin throughout....it's hard not to admire the singing drummer and wonder how he ever turned this ship around." Mojo (Publisher) (11/99, p.129) - "...efficient pop-rock on which a thousand AOR radio stations built market share since 1981....[Genesis] do mid-tempo ballads, mid-tempo rockers....They do white funk, scary...and lighter in the air...all in the same closely defined soundworld....never [repeating] themselves..."

One of the seminal progressive rock bands, Genesis began in the late-'60s as post-Beatles visionaries with a taste for orchestrated pop melodrama, but quickly mutated into purveyors of ambitious, classical-tinged art rock. After flamboyantly theatrical vocalist Peter Gabriel left (eventually followed by guitarist Steve Hackett), the group gradually turned toward more accessible material under the stewardship of singing drummer Phil Collins. By the '80s, Genesis had become an unstoppable hit-singles machine. Meanwhile, both Gabriel and Collins went on to lucrative solo careers. The band called it a day in 1997, shortly following Collins's departure, but reunited a decade later for a major world tour.

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