My ramblings:
'Congo' - the first single from the new album - was released here in Norway on September 15. The single is released in two editions - one of them including a CD-ROM with the possibility to see a live version of 'Second Home By The Sea' from Genesis' last tour with Phil + some animated segments from the band's forthcoming live set-up. I have only been able to aquire the audio-only release.

And the track list is as follows:

1. 'Congo' (edit) [3:13]
2. 'Papa He Said' [4:07]
3. 'Banjo Man' [4:20]

Genesis did it different this time. Unlike earlier album releases, the first single was now released two weeks after the album. The "new" Genesis wanted to focus on their album rather than on one single single - and it seems to me that the strategy has been succesful. Anyway, the album promo distributed to radio stations in July served as an important teaser - something was "going on". I can't remember so much fuzz accociated with any Genesis release before. The Berlin and the Cape Canaveral events - and the official web-site - were important parts of the campaign. The Internet has for the first time served and triggered the interest for a new Genesis album, but we must remember that we are still representing a small portion of the record buying public. To conclude - Hit & Run, Virgin - and Atlantic Records - have done a great job regarding the promotion of 'Calling All Stations'. And - IMHO - it must have been a pleasant challenge...

Anyways - the 'Congo' single: Most people who buy singles knew 'Congo' before this release. This is an edited version - without the percussive intro and without the keyboard solo as well as the somewhat strange repetition of the verse at the end on the album version. Many people have commented on the odd fade-out, but on the single version it sounds a bit more natural. The more I listen to the song the more I understand the band's choice of 'Congo' as the first single. It's very catchy and groovy - and has a kind of attacking feel in the chorus. Loud and powerful. I love the bass and percussive loop running through the chorus. 'Congo' is not my first or second choice from 'Calling All Stations', but it is a nice introduction to the new sound of Genesis.

The second track, 'Papa He Said', is a mid-tempo pop tune based on a riff by Mike. It's probably the least interesting effort by the new Genesis line-up, which not necessarily means that it is a bad song. I think Ray's performance on this one is great - another showcase on his voice's capabilities. But the song never kicks off musically, and I can understand why it wasn't included on the album - it wouldn't fit into the mood at all.

It's different with 'Banjo Man' - the third and last track. It could have represented a nice "break" among the more serious songs on the album - if it had been listed a couple of tracks away from 'Small Talk'. I can't think of any other reason to exclude this one from the album except from the fact that Ray sounds pretty much like Sting, one of Tony and Mike's all time favourites. It is a mid- to up-tempo pop tune with a lot richer sound than 'Papa He Said'. Mike's optimistic "banjo" and Tony's "walking" keyboard-made bass chords make this song - and the CD single - a must-have.

Looking forward to 'Run Out Of Time'...