Review: Selling England by the pound
Politically and economically bankrupt? Yes, that’s us. I’m surprised this country hasn’t been given a price tag and been bought by a foreign businessman for a knock-down price. I can just imagine Mr Brown talking glowingly of ‘investment’ and ‘opportunities for all’, as he steps down to take a well remunerated ‘consultancy’ job…
Anyway, the problems of my once great country is not the main subject of this blog post. Instead, I’ll be harping on about ‘Selling England by the pound’, the 1973 opus from Genesis. Recorded in the days when Mr Collins was the drummer and Mr Gabriel sang whilst wearing odd costumes, ‘Selling England by the pound’ is a full-on prog-rock album of top quality.
Sophisticated, whimsical and very English, ‘Selling England by the pound’ may not rock hard, but it’s a great example of progressive music that doesn’t outstay its welcome. The album features the bands first ‘hit’, ‘I know what I like (in your wardrobe)’. This short, catchy tune that contrasts with the weightier compositions on the LP, not the least ‘Firth of fifth’, a long multi-sectioned workout that no doubt influenced Sham 69 (I’m joking!).
One thing that strikes me on repeated listens is the richness of the instrumentation, relying on English classical traditions and constructions, rather than studio effects. Phil Collins’ excellent free-flowing drumming knits together the wide and varying soundscape conjured up by his colleagues. Steve Hackett weaves in and out of Mike Rutherford’s nimble bass lines, and fights Tony Bank’s keyboards for dominance in the mix, throwing in some two handed tapping five years before Van Halen.
Peter Gabriel’s voice is a source of constant interest to me, as in an era where singers were basing their performance on Robert Plant or aping American singers, Gabriel’s characterful voice is very English and very quirky. Although the multiple voices and impressions he uses on ‘Battle of Epping Forest’ is quite frankly annoying to say the least. However, on other songs he delivers his vocals superbly with that unmistakeable timbre of his.
Sewing up the whole album is ‘Aisle of plenty’, a reprise on the theme originally laid down by ‘Dancing with the Moonlit Knight’. It’s so theatrical, you can almost see the curtain coming down at the end…
