Nursery Cryme

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Nursery Cryme

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Rating:
Date: 2008-06-09
'Nursery Cryme' is one of Genesis' best
1971's 'Nursery Cryme' brought an end to Genesis' early years on the Decca and ABC (now MCA, or Geffen) labels and the beginning to their long partnership with Atlantic Records. Guitarist Anthony Phillips and drummer John Mayhew both left Genesis to experiment; replacing them would be Steve Hackett on guitar and Phil Collins on the drums.

The result of the moving around and lineup changes was better music. The group was no longer a '60s Bee-Gees esque group but now a progressive band, similar to peers like King Crimson and Yes.

Here is the review: track by track.

1. The Musical Box (10:29)-What a way to kick off a record. Peter's voice is incredible here, maybe better than on any other Genesis song that features him on vocals. Steve's guitar is incredible, and Phil's drumming and backing vocals are great. Listen for Tony's 12-string guitar at the beginning.

2. For Absent Friends (1:50)-The first song to feature Phil on lead vocals. The song is very traditional; Phil sings, while Steve plays a very quiet guitar in the background. A must listen.

3. The Return of the Giant Hogweed (8:13)-One of Banks' best keyboard solos comes on this song. And Steve's guitar? Awesome! The lyrics are about a weird type of plant, but Pete's vocals are as good as always. A real highlight--great musicianship all around.

4. Seven Stones (5:10)-The lyrics, the words, the awesome organ intro will leave you in awe. Definitely a highlight here. Any Genesis fan should check this out. A classic.

5. Harold The Barrel (2:59)-One of the stranger songs Genesis recorded. Think of it like this: It's a 3-minute opera. It tells the tale of Harold, who is a disturbed boy who refuses to get help. He is referred to in the song as Harry. I think it may have paved the way for their concept album, 1974's 'The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.'

6. Harlequin (2:56)-A very classical-type of song with peaceful vocals from Mike, Phil and Peter. It's very quiet and calm. Another underrated gem from the Genesis catalog. A must listen for sure.

7. The Fountain Of Salmacis (7:57)-And what a way to close a record! Genesis just rocks on this song. The keyboards are great; Mike's bass is absolutely awesome, and Peter's vocals shine like the light of day. This would become a concert standard for Genesis in the 1970s. It's right up there with one of my favorite Genesis songs. A must listen.

Overall, check out 'Nursery Cryme.' You'll be glad you did. It's awesome in so many ways. It's a jam session, with ditties and short operas in between.

Highly recommended for any Genesis fan. A must-own.

ENJOY!!!

Rating:
Date: 2008-03-01
The first in a string of masterpieces from Genesis
At the time of this album's release (1971), Genesis was still very much in its formative stages. The immediate predecessor of "Nursery Cryme", "Trespass" (1970), featured the first classic Genesis tune ("The Knife"), and showed us a band really starting to find its musical voice. However, several key personnel changes helped this band make the leap to a true prog-rock giant: the addition of Phil Collins on drums, as well as Steve Hackett on guitar. These were significant upgrades (both were master musicians), and the increased quality of the band's musicianship allowed the band to push the limits musically.
Nursery Cryme features several great progressive rock epics: "The Musical Box", "Fountains of Samalcis", and "Return of the Giant Hogweed". All of these songs exhibit what would eventually become the distinctive Genesis sound; long, brilliant chord progressions, layers of Tony Banks' keyboards and Hackett's tasteful guitar lines, classically structured with numerous time changes and modal shifts. Phil Collins and Mike Rutherford provide a locked-in rhythmic foundation, effortlessly handling the changes in time and providing exceptional momentum to these fairly complex structures. And of course, Peter Gabriel adds his brilliantly dramatic, mythical and at times humorous vocals and lyrics to the proceedings to top things off.
This album has a few weaker short tracks on it, and for that reason it is not quite of the same overall quality as the follow-ups "Foxtrot" (1972) and "Selling England by the Pound" (1973). However, the quality of the epics more than makes up for this minor shortcoming.
The recording quality is not up to the level of their later releases. In fact the source tape seems pretty limited. I don't think they had access to the best recording equipment available at this time, However this seems to work with the darker material present on this album, and I don't feel it detracts from the listening experience.
The remastering is good here, as good as it can be I think, and this 1994 Atlantic release also includes liner notes & lyrics. I am curious to see what the new Rhino 5.1 surround mixes will sound like, although I have heard some complaints about some of the other albums that have already been released for this edition(i.e. Trick of the Tail, Wind & Wuthering). I'll be OK with it if these aren't great, as I have enjoyed my current copy for nearly a decade and have no complaints with the relative sound quality.
Genesis was one of the leading bands of the 1970s English Progressive rock scene, along with Yes, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, ELP and King Crimson. Every fan of progressive rock should have a copy of this album (as well as the next 4 or 5 Genesis albums), as these guys were one of the greatest prog-rock acts ever. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Date: 2007-12-10
A Personal Favorite
This is an overlooked gem, but if you love Genesis or Peter Gabriel, search Youtube for "The Musical Box" Genesis live in Belgium. You are in for an amazing treat. I've owned this on 8-Track, Vinyl, Cassette, and Digital versions; it's one I find hard to live without.

Rating:
Date: 2007-11-07
The debut of Genesis' classic lineup almost 35 years later
Genesis' third album Nursery Cryme was released in November of 1971.
By this point, lead singer Peter Gabriel, keyboard player Tony Banks and bass player Mike Rutherford were going through the motions as they lost original guitarist Anthony Phillips and went through drummers as drummer John Mayhew also quit.
The three surviving members of Genesis held auditions for a new drummer and guitarist and settled on then 20 year olds Phil Collins and Steve Hackett (who joined a few months after collins joined). The former also brought some needed humor and a singing voice to off-set Gabriel's theatrics and the latter a superb guitar style.
With a lineup they could be happy with, Genesis went to Trident Studios in London to work on Nursery Cryme, how would the album be, read on.
We begin with the ten minute epic "The Musical Box" which is the reason for buying this album. The beginning is wonderful enough. The overdubbing of 12-strings from Hackett, Banks and Rutherford is quasi-Victorian in its feel with some haunting electric guitar fills from Hackett and joined by Gabriel and Collins' voices and Gabriel's flute. Then it suddenly shifts to an explosive hard rock tune, dominated by the killer soloing of Hackett's guitar and the killer percussion of Collins. Every time I hear this song, I still get a shiver down the spine. The last two minutes of the song are like a religious experience. The virtuoso feel of Banks' organ, cymbal-heavy drumming from Collins, Rutherford's 12-string playing, Gabriel's repeated shouting of the word "now!" and the way Hackett's guitar suddenly bursts from the back to the foreground make for a glorious climax which you don't hear anymore. Next we have "For Absent Friends" which marked the vocal debut of Phil Collins whom would become a key member to this exciting band over the next 25 years. We then end the first half with another epic "The Return of the Giant Hogweed" which tells a haunting but light-hearted tale which is a great song and has an awesome intro with Hackett's guitar and Banks' organ playing a haunting riff.
The next song is "The Seven Stones" which kicks off the second half and is a good tune but not as superb as the first two epics on the album. Next is the comedic "Harold the Barrel" which shows the band were starting to become more light-hearted thanks to Collins' presence. "Harlequin" is next and is the calm before the album's final storm. The final storm is the nearly 8 minute epic entitled "The Fountain of Salmacis" which is a great way to end the album. It starts with Banks' organ and mellotron haunting playing then joined by that awesome bass riff from Rutherford and vocals from Gabriel and guitar from Hackett and drums from Collins. It starts at medium pace then we go fast for the middle section then goes back to the medium pace of most of song then ends slow and majestic. The highlight is the instrumental that occurs about three and a half minutes in. And the way it ends contains some of the most balanced musicianship on the album.
The album may not have sold but who cares about sales, Nursery Cryme is still a classic today despite being recorded in 1971.

Rating:
Date: 2007-08-14
Good to hear again the "Great" Genesis
After hearing that pitiful performance by the band at the Live Earth concert, I ordered and received Nursery Cryme and Foxtrot. What a breath of fresh air!! All I can say is how the mighty have fallen!! Peter Gabriels depature was a major nail in the coffin, and after Steve Hackett left and Phil Collins "pop music" sound took over, that coffin was 6 feet under!"The Musical Box" is still a classic some 36 years later! And can you imagine the band now trying to duplicate "The Return of the Giant Hogweed"? The song would not fit in with Phil Collins next "Disney" Musical!!!!