The sprawling BBC Broadcasts, 53 songs in all, is an “alternative greatest hits” collection by Genesis. Curated by the band’s keyboardist Tony Banks, along with engineer and producer Nick Davies, the material covers the span of 27 years (1970 – 1997) with some spectacular performances and unusual picks indeed.
Early BBC, the first disc, includes the 1970 program Night Ride with tunes like “Shepherd,” “Pacidy,” and “Let Us Now Make Love,” all non-album tracks. There’s a couple from when the band played at Paris Studios in London, then two years later, a few tracks from BBC Radio One’s infamous John Peel Sessions. A killer encore of “Watcher Of The Skies,” from when Genesis played the Wembley Empire Pool in 1975, finishes the disc. Peter Gabriel’s unique vocal make quite the impression in the last year of his time with the band. And one can certainly hear what an amazing drummer Phil Collins was.
The second disc is separated between four songs from the band’s 1978 Knebworth performance and songs from a 1980 Lyceum Theatre show. The Lyceum performance features mostly tunes from Duke, the album the band was touring behind at the time with Collins the vocal and focal point on “Behind the Lines,” “Duchess,” “Guide Vocal,” “Turn It On Again,” and “Duke’s Travels.”
The Lyceum performance flows over into the third disc. “Mama,” and “Domino,” from Wembley Stadium in 1987, follow. The fourth disc continues with the 1987 Wembley show. It’s slightly jarring how these shows are split up over the CDs. Overall, however, the sound quality is pretty fantastic. The band and crowd are especially rockin’ on the Lyceum shows. Songs like “Raven,” “Follow You, Follow Me,” and “I Know What I Like” are loaded with audience participation, especially when Collins goes into tambourine solo, revealing Genesis as the live monster they had become.
The fourth disc features eight more from Wembley 87. “Not About Us,” and “The Dividing Line” come from a show at Birmingham N.E.C. in 1998, featuring vocalist Ray Wilson who appeared on one Genesis studio album, Calling All Stations. Including Wilson makes BBC Broadcasts unique if, for no other reason, it’s become the only Genesis release to feature all three of the band’s lead singers.
Live At Knebworth Festival 1992 comprises six songs that fill the fifth disc. Featuring mainly numbers from the band’s 1991 album, We Can’t Dance, we also get “Old Medley” with snippets of the 70s — “The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway,” “The Musical Box,” “Firth Of A Fifth,” all of which really gets the crowd shouting. When I saw the band on this tour, I was especially thrilled this particular tip of the hat to the past from Collins, Banks and guitarist Mike Rutherford. Other goodies include a 40-page book and notes by author Michael Hann.
The Last Domino tour in 2022 was ostensibly the last time for Genesis on the concert stage. That makes BBC Broadcasts a real treat and great reminder of what an incredible live band they once were. One has got to wonder what else might be out there that we still haven’t heard from Genesis.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
