AT THE SHRINE
GENESIS GIVES THE GENRE ITS DUE

In its new show (presented at the Shrine Friday), Genesis, due largely to its rapidly expanding musical prowess, has created an exciting and cohesive example of theatrical rock, a production with the excitement and imagination that the genre demands but so rarely receives.

The moments of bombastic spectacle are fewer and are more judiciously utilized than in last year's concert (though when they do come along the impact is startling), but the relationship of sound and visuals and the sustaining of continuity and energy provide even more satisfaction than would constant but disconnected pieces of stagery.

The story of "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" is a vivid, dreamlike fantasy whose sometimes tortured, sometimes whimsical course involves some thick plotting and a good deal of detail, both of which, along with some fine puns and verbal subtleties, were lost in the sound system.

But the thrust of the mini-epic was always sustained, through the music, notable for its diversity and remarkable sense of movement, by a triptych of quick-changing, extremely well-coordinated slides, and by the performance of Peter Gabriel.

Previously noted for his rapid shifts of persona, he now spends the bulk of the show in the role of "Lamb's" hero, the leather-jacketed New York graffiti-scrawler who finds himself plunged into some dizzying subterranean/subconscious adventures.

These include an encounter with the grotesque, bloated Slipper Men (the only elaborate costume, and worth a thousand lesser ones), some mysteriously erotic episodes and finally a stunning climax.

Transcribed for The Path by Joe Harden

Joe's story:

The Lamb Tour at the Shrine

For Genesis' next visit to town for a show at The Shrine Auditorium where they were to perform "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway," I was determined to go. I was a little older, I had a part-time job which meant I also had money, and I didn't want to miss Genesis a third time. On the morning the tickets went on sale, I went with my best friend, Jon, to our local Sears department store where a Ticketron outlet was located. We got there well before the store opened at 10 am in order to be the first ones in line at Ticketron. This was out in the suberbs, though, and the only other people waiting for the store to open were a few older folks who looked like they had nothing better to do. I thought that we had it made. We'd get in there first and get front row seats. As the store's doors opened, Jon and I rushed in, quickly making our way to Ticketron in the store's basement level. With a great deal of enthusiasm, I told the Ticketron clerk what we wanted, and then waited patiently a few moments while he punched up the request into the Ticketron machine. My enthusiasm faded quickly, though, as he informed the two of us that there were only a few seats left in the very back row of the balcony. "You don't want those seats," he cautioned. "You won't be able to see anything." My heart sank. I felt confused, disappointed, uncertain of what to do. "How could that be?" I wanted to know. "How could there only be a few seats left and the tickets just went on sale?" I couldn't hide my disappointment. "Tickets went on sale at the box office at eight this morning," the clerk informed us. Again he persuaded us to hold off on buying these tickets, I guess because he saw that we were young and didn't want to see us waste our money on bad seats. Jon and I decided to follow the clerk's advice, convincing ourselves that another show would probably be added. Unfortunately, by the time we realized that another show would not be added, it was too late to buy even those supposedly bad tickets for the back row balcony seats. Little did I realize, as I vowed to see Genesis the next time they came to LA, that I had just missed the last opportunity to see Genesis with Peter Gabriel, as well as the historical performance of "The Lamb" that would later be selected for the Genesis Box Set. As a side note, years later, when I had an opportunity to visit the Shrine, I discovered that those 'bad seats' were better than most seats I had paid lots of money for in other concert facilities.

Joe Harden

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