Customer Reviews

Invisible Touch

5 star:		(66)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(22)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

It's easy to kick Phil Collins around, Lord knows, making him out to be a sap-meister, or worse yet, a corporate shill. But "Invisible Touch" is the moment in between the end of Genesis as prog-rock pioneeers and the ascendancy of Collins as soft-rock staple (and all the baggage that brings) where Collins actually truly shines. Having listened to this album for the first time in nearly a decade, I am eerily surprised at how good this album still sounds. "Land of Confusion", which at time of release could be deemed a bit over-the-top, sounds far more relevant today than ever. The men of steel, the men of power, are losing control by the hour, indeed.

But the real highlight, apart from "Land of Confusion" and "Domino", is actually the balladeering, which - after this album for Collins - just becomes overly saccharine. There's some transcendent quality to both "In Too Deep" and "Throwing it All Away" that save them from the schlock factor of that horrific Tarzan song. When Collins sings "Who will light up the darkness/Who will hold your hand/Who will find you the answers/When you don't understand", it's done in a way that is simple and effective, and not the amp-the-hystrionics-up-to-level-11 way. And it's actually quite lovely, really.

Chalk it up to the playing power of Banks and Rutherford - and to the perfect amount of restraint. It succeeds quite amply, and for the AOR genre, this is clearly best-of-breed.

Genesis released "Invisible Touch" in mid-1986, and what an incredible album it is, once again putting their one-of-a-kind knack for powerful, intelligent music on full display.

Phil Collins was a full-blown superstar at this point. His 1985 solo album "No Jacket Required" had been a huge smash, and in addition to the hit singles from that album, he scored smash hits with the 1984 soundtrack song "Against All Odds", as well as his 1984 Philip Bailey duet "Easy Lover". However, the superstardom didn't throw Phil off track in the slightest as far as continuing to make great music was concerned. I want to add also that Phil Collins is NOT running the show alone on here--keyboardist Tony Banks is a genius, and his distinctive compositional brilliance and masterful keyboard layers are all over such tracks as "Tonight Tonight Tonight" and "The Brazilian".

Again, this album was produced by Genesis & Hugh Padgham, and without a doubt, the production is slick, but to excellent effect--the album packs a load of punch, & their compositional creativity is still in full force, which is saying a lot. It's simply hard to get away from using words such as "dramatic" and "arresting" when talking about this album. No one should be ashamed to like this music.

Yes, the album opening title track is a somewhat sugary pop song, but it's still a lot of fun with its tunefulness & catchy riff. The album's next track, the epic rock ballad "Tonight Tonight Tonight", is an arrestingly dramatic masterpiece of a track that plays like a sequence of movie scenes, with its ominous drum machine loop, the variety of sections and dynamics including the creepy instrumental bridge, the ultra-crafty siren imitations by Tony Banks & Mike Rutherford on keyboard & guitar respectively, & the soaring, powerful vocals from Collins (and by the way, hell with the buthered radio edit of this song). "In the Glow of the Night" is wistful & gorgeous with a couple of dramatic, pleading sections seamlessly incorporated. There are two masterful, splendidly melodic ballads--the tender, soothing "In To Deep"; and the sighing "Throwing It All Away". The driving "Anything She Does" is an incredibly fun, unbelievably catchy uptempo pop-rock song with amusing supermodel-oriented lyrics that are right on the money, and the synth horns on it sound remarkably like the real thing. The album closing instrumental "The Brazilian" is a packed with arresting, dramatic hooks and a chilling atmosphere.

The mid '80s have in retrospect become notorious for overproduction in music; even Mike Rutherford's 'side project' band Mike + the Mechanics very much fell prey to this. "Invisible Touch" on the other hand manages to seriously steer clear of this problem. "Anything She Does" for instance, with its crisp pristine sound, will make a stereo salesperson drool.

I realize that this album was a huge international hit, quickly selling in the multi-millions and spinning off FIVE top 10 US hits. Even non-singles like "Anything She Does" got a considerable amount of rock radio airplay. I think the huge commercial success plays a large part in why certain people feel such a need to put "Invisible Touch" down, whether it's out of hostility, or just because they're sick of most of the songs.

Looking past all the radio play and beer commercials, "Invisible Touch" is an album that's so brilliant, it's quite hard for me to see how any serious listener could seriously trash it. I mean, even if you hate the title track for its sugariness, what about the rest of the album? The hooks are consistently deathless, & the group's incredible musicality is on full display. To say this is a must-have album would be an understatement--"Invisible Touch" is a brilliant album from one of the greatest bands ever, Genesis.

(P.S. Seemingly unstoppable, Genesis left three essential tracks from the "Invisible Touch" sessions off the album, all of which are now available on the "Archive #2" box set--the powerful, dynamic "Feeding The Fire"; the high-speed, riff-crazy instrumental "Do The Neurotic"; and the bouncy, insanely catchy pop-rocker "I'd Rather Be You". "Feeding The Fire" and "Do The Neurotic" were also released on a CD single for "Land Of Confusion".)

Alright, I admit I'm not a huge fan of latter day Genesis. As a relative youngin', I started getting into Genesis between Abacab and their 1983 self-titled release. I got into them by breaking my teeth on their progressive masterpieces from the '70s -- Foxtrot, Selling England by the Pound and The Lamb. That era marked the imaginative, creative peak of Genesis as master songwriters and musicians whose capabilities transcended music and delved into areas of experimentation few dared to travel.

When the '80s rolled around and Peter Gabriel and Steve Hackett had left, Genesis decided it was time to shed their past and move into the future. At that time, that consisted of synthesizers, electric drums and the like.

With a past the likes of what Genesis had, the brilliant, complex compositions and flowery lyrical tales, who was better suited to create catchy hooks that translate into top 40 hits? These guys had years of experience at this.

If Invisible Touch had been released by any pop-group du-jour, it probably would have been lauded as one of the greatest pop albums of all time. Since this particular album was released by a band called "Genesis" that had an extremely loyal and long time audience, many dismissed it as trash. The fact is, though, that all the incredible artistry that defined Genesis was in full play here. These guys are true masters of their art. Their art is music. Not progressive monster masterpieces, not pop prowess, but music, plain and simple. And Genesis is right up there with the best, regardless of the genre they are working within at the time.

In some other reviews, I saw some bashing Invisible Touch as selling out (recall the beer commercials?). You know what? If you had toiled under the labor of your record company contracts and been in the red for almost a decade like these guys were, would you want to capitalize on your new found fame and popularity almost 20 years after you started writing music? I bet you would. These guys deserve every deal they got. They worked their behinds off for it.

I think it's one of the very best pop records ever made! Not only considering the musicians involved, but also the ideas that was appearing in the decade it was made! Phil, Mike and Tony, the Genesis, did an incredible work on this one. There's no one person who lived in the 80's and don't remember classics like Invisible Touch or Land of Confusion. But the one I really like in here is Throwing it All Away, a very beautiful slow song! Domino is more an old Genesis approach, it's like progressive pop, and it's also a winner song. Check it out!

Man, I never gets tired of listen this album. By the way, I have it in vynil, and now I bought the CD release!! This is nothing less than good music made by very good musicians. Invisible Touch and Land of Confusion makes me go out of the chair and dance!! Breathtaking! there are awesome music for the whole release, like the excellent Throwing It All Away and the slow In Too Deep! I also consider Tonight, Tonight, Tonight, besides it's a little longer, but very good! Domino are Genesis back to prog with a pop mix, a very good one and The Brazillian is great too, instead of have nothing to do with the country of the title. If I would make a list of the best pop albums made in the last century, I would put Invisible Touch between the top 10 ones, for sure!! Buy this one, and get amazed by the beat of Genesis! Too bad we don't have too much pop albums like this, these days, but at least they decided to remaster and release these ones from Genesis.

"Invisible Touch" was the album that sent Genesis into the pop stratosphere. It remains the most commercially sucessful album they ever released, selling millions of copies and giving the band FIVE Top Five singles, including the #1 title track. It is also the album that many old Genesis purists love to hate, saying that the band completely sold out with this release. With "Invisible Touch," Genesis became a HUGELY successful band overnight, and some fans didn't like it.Personally, I think the old Genesis purists are being way too harsh on the group for this one. Consider the facts: it was the MTV-heavy mid-80's, Peter Gabriel & Steve Hackett were long gone, both Phil Collins & Mike Rutherford had recently had huge solo successes prior to the album's release, and "keyboard & drum machine" pop music was *everywhere* at this point in time. How could Collins, Rutherford, and Tony Banks NOT be influenced by all of this? "Invisible Touch" was the result of all of these influences surrounding the band in 1986. You couldn't expect them to do "Selling England By The Pound 2." Times had changed--and so had the band---and Genesis had to do something different. So they did. Granted, "Invisible Touch" is the most polished album Genesis have ever done, but that certainly doesn't make it BAD. Underneath all the polished production lies an album that still contains pure, intelligent Genesis music, albeit Genesis music fashioned for the mid-80's. Nevermind the massive sales---it's a very good, very credible Genesis album.Besides, the band didn't *completely* abandon their prog roots on this one. What about the fabulously inventive, full-length version of "Tonight Tonight Tonight" (without those annoying radio edits), or the breathtaking adventure that is "Domino," or the exuberant instrumental, "The Brazilian"? Even with a mid-80's sparkle, those tracks are pure progressive Genesis. And the hits? I have no complaints about them---I like a good pop song just as much as the heavier stuff. The title song is very catchy (and it's even better live). "Land Of Confusion" rocks. "In Too Deep" & "Throwing It All Away" are beautiful songs. And the lone "surefire hit that wasn't" track, "Anything She Does," is great fun. All in all, this is a fine Genesis album straight across the board.My only real gripe about "Invisible Touch" is that it's become the album that Genesis are forever judged by, which I think is totally inaccurate & unfair. Hey, I remain thrilled to this day that 1986 was such a great year for Genesis (AND Peter Gabriel & Steve Hackett, for that matter), but I can't stress enough to anyone who bought "Invisible Touch" to PLEASE check out the band's other albums, especially the earlier stuff! As much as I like "Invisible Touch," there is SO much more to this great band than just this one album. Trust me.

I loved this album when it came out, and I still like it. There is not one song on this album that I would not listen too. And 'Tonight, Tonight, Tonight' IMHO is simply a great song.
Maybe because I 'grew' up in the 80s, I didn't really know about their earlier stuff. I really don't care either. 'Mama' is nice though. I bought 'Turn it on Again' mostly for that song.

One reviewer wrote this, 'Why do people even like this cd. It is stupid machine driven overplayed junk. DO NOT GET THIS CD.'
The guy must be strictly into live bands, MTV unplugged, and vinyl records.
In my mind, good music is good music, no matter where it comes from or what instruments are used or how they are used.

This CD is good music.

Cleary, this is the G-Men's finest hour. Free from the progressive clasps of Peter Gabriel and Steve Hackett, they are able to turn out pop perfection. Wait a minute, there is no progressive: Let's see, The Brazilian:complex chord-sequence based insturmental, heavy on the keyboards. Domino:10-Minute drama with dramatic lyrics. Oh yes on the previous album Mama and Home by the Sea, oh no they're not progressive. NOT! Ok, now that I'm done with my rant of the Progressive fans, here's my review.

1. Invisible Touch: 5/5 stars. Great, upbeat ,pop song with a catchy course. The bass line gets a little annoying after a while.(Main lyricist: Collins)

2. Tonight, Tonight, Tonight: 5/5 stars. Yet another progressive song. Love the insturmental!(Main Lyricist: Collins)

3. Land of Confusion: 5/5 stars. A protest song that served as a great concert opener on the We Can't Dance tour.(Main Lyricist: Rutherford)

4. In Too Deep: 1/5 Stars. Hmm, I don't like this one. Should've given it to the Backstink Boys or Bratney Spears. Oh well.(Main Lyricist: Collins)

5. Anything She Does: 4/5 Stars. Ah, much better. It's a fun song, with some great synthesizers(Main lyricist: Banks)

6. Domino:5/5 Stars More prog. This was my first favorite Genesis song. The most powerful part is the course in Part 1.(Main Lyricist: Banks.)

7. Throwing It All Away: 2/5 Stars. Oooooooooo, mediocre song here. Avoid, this is not Genesis genius.(Main Lyricist:Rutherford.)

8. The Brazilain: 5/5 Stars. Perfect closer. Strong, powerful, synthesizers. Need I say more.(Main composer: Banks.)

There you have it. I hope this will persuade you to buy this album. ENJOY!

I hated this album! When it first came out in 1986, I hated this album with a passion. It had thrown away the fantastic sound of "Three Sides Live" and "Genesis" in favor of synthesizer blips and bleeps, way-too-glossy synth strings, and drums that sounded like drum machines even when it was Phil Collins playing up a storm (rather than playing real drums, he's playing pads that trigger electronic drum sounds), and all in the service of a bunch of songs that sounded like pure sellouts.

From today's vantage point, I have to give this album its due. It made Genesis, for a moment, one of the most popular bands in the world, something I'd always hoped for. Some of the singles, especially "Land of Confusion" and "Throwing It All Away" ARE very good. The former is probably Genesis' best social comment song. And "Domino" is the last of the great Genesis long songs; "Driving the Last Spike" and "Fading Lights" are jokes by comparison. I still have trouble listening to the title track -- while it has an impossibly catchy riff, it's coupled to one of the most insufferable lyrics this side of "Who Dunnit?". The lyric is a rehash of Collins and Philip Bailey's single "Easy Lover". "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" is a good song about addiction, even if it is a couple of minutes too long and comes with the Michelob commercial association. "Throwing It All Away" is a melodic ballad centered on a great Mike Rutherford guitar riff. The slow ballad "In Too Deep" is one song I think MUCH more highly of today than when it was new (by the way, it was the opening theme in the movie "Mona Lisa"). "Anything She Does" is a catchy nothing of a song, with a lively horn part and a lyric about a man who falls in love with a painting. "The Brazilian" is a slight instrumental, with Rutherford's bass and Collins' drumming much more interesting than Tony Banks' synth leads. Its highlight comes at the end, when Rutherford dares to use Steve Hackett's trademark wailing guitar sound for an all-too-brief solo. This type of guitar wail is great for cutting through the Genesis wall-of-keyboards sound, and it's a shame Rutherford didn't feel comfortable using this more often in the post-Hackett period...

(1=poor 2=mediocre 3=pretty good 4=very good 5=phenomenal)

I am appalled at the negative reviews I've been reading on here lately. I know I might come into conflict with a fair number of reviewers but I find this CD to be one of my favorites from one of my all-time favorite bands Genesis. I don't know why there have been so many negative reviews about this and the We Can't Dance and the Calling All Stations album because they are all incredible albums. This CD is kind of like Phils solo album No Jacket Required but the music on this CD in my opinion is more complex and mechanical in sound but even with the drum machines the music is intelligent and creative and is miles above almost anything from 1986 except Peter Gabriels SO and maybe a couple of albums. Just listening to this CD I must almost say that Invisible Touch is many many years ahead of its time, almost like something from the future. The title track is absolutely fabulous with a treatment of some of the Minneapolis sound from the 80s. Tonight Tonight Tonight is another song that makes Invisible Touch top-notch with its semi-techno feel with high pitched sounds with Phil Collins amplified voice and the awesome drum machines. The radio ruined this track by shortening it to only 4 minutes. Doing so takes away a lot of this tracks power. I much prefer the 9 minute version thank you very much with the slightly creepier bridge that runs from 3:17 to 6:01. Land Of Confusion is a frightening track with a disturbing atmosphere and heavy rock sounds and pulsating beats to go along with it. Land Of Confusion judging from the lyrics tells of a story of a danger that still lurks in the world even when it appears and it causes confusion. One of my favorite tracks off Invisible Touch. In Too Deep most of us have already heard. I personally love this song alot. Anything She Does is probably the most upbeat song on this CD with a more rock oriented sound and faster beats. Domino is a 10 minute two part track. The song is mainly two songs in one and could almost be considered a prog rock track even with the New Wave influences of the time. The first part is a bit haunting with disturbing( not like bad but kind of chilling) lyrics in my opinion. The first part ends with an airy chilly bridge until at the 4:24 mark Domino blasts into a heavy fast paced song with pounding beats, disturbing sound effects, an ominous atmosphere and a chilling atmosphere. Domino is another one of my favorites. Throwing It All The Way is another ballad but TIAA while great sort of feels more like a solo recording. Great song though anyway but it feels more like a solo track. The final track The Brazilian is a quirky instrumental with a strong industrial atmosphere. It closes out this wonderful album. I don't know why so many dislike this album. I personally thinks it's a great album. I can't say it's their best album because I have yet to get access to the Peter Gabriel era LPs but I just purchased the 1976 Trick Of The Tail and I love that one too. UUpon enjoying Trick Of The Tail, Invisible Touch, We Can't Dance & Calling All Station I I feel like I must be the only one on here who enjoys all of the Genesis eras from the PG era to the PC era and finally the Ray Wilson era with Calling All Stations. If you find this CD buy it and buy it new. Genesis music will live forever. For someone who is in the age of the hip-hop generation I can't think of a single band who is worthy of succeeding Genesis because Genesis made some of the best music in modern times IMO. If Genesis is truly defunct who will I be able to look to now?