Customer Reviews

Opening The Musical Box: A Genesis Chronicle

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I agree with the first posting. This is just page after page of stats. Genesis played here, Genesis played there, here are the dates etc. And then all the solo projects. Steve Hacket played here, Steve Hacket played there and here are the dates. And now we move on to Phil Collins, and "Mike and the Mechanics" dates and locations, dates and locations, dates and locations, and so on and so on. And then all the TV appearences for the band and solo appearences etc. Perhaps it's "new" in that no author ever provided these comprehensive lists before but it's really boring stuff!!! I AM A HUGE GENESIS FAN but listing every venue played on a given tour is not very interesting to me. I love their music far too much to be obsessed with their stats. As far as Armando Gallo's book is concerned all I can say is stopping it at 1980 is a good thing not a bad thing. Long live the Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man!!!!!

Though it calls itself "A Genesis Chronicle" it is really more of a Genesis collectors resource guide and statistical abstract than a chronicle of the band. I recommend you try and obtain a copy of Armando Gallo's "I know What I like" if your looking for a "A Genesis Chronicle". unfortunatly It contains only a few photos the best of which is on the cover. The interviews are not what I'd hoped as they are really just quotes within the text rather than actual recorded interviews. If your a collector and/or trader of Genesis memorabelia than this is a good 'tool' to have handy. If, however, you're seeking real insight into the remarkable compositions, musicianship, and artistic expression of Genesis you are likely to go away empty handed from this book.

Hewitt's book is a dense, detailed compilation of tourdates, LP and singles releases, with some extra resources (e.g fanclub info, bootlegs) thrown in. Very thorough and interesting for fanatics, but if you expect a biography, forget it. The whole history of the band (1966-1999) is compressed into about 80 pages, much of it bearing very clear similarity to Gallo's and Platt's books. Each album is given only about 2 pages of print. I found a few new tidbits, but other books do a much better job with the bio.
My main complaints with the book would be the scarcity of photos, and a section purported to discuss the more collectible releases, which doesn't do more than list a few select (and not all that rare) records.
In all, the compilation of tourdates and discography is excellent. A good collection, but thin on shedding light on the band's incedible career.

This book accomplishes a rare feat. It is difficult to find anything new these days about Genesis. The popularity of the band in the last 15 years has inspired numerous books, none of which truly provide anything new or newsworthy to the dedicated Genesis fan. The definitive book on Genesis was written by Armando Gallo. Gallo's "I Know What I Like" is acknowledged by all Genesis fans as THE Book on Genesis. Gallo's book, however, stops at 1980, just before the band was about to breakthrough to their highest levels of popularity. Others have attempted to write about this popular era of Genesis but have missed the boat, simply covering the obvious elements of their success. The real story of Genesis lies in the details, and in their history. Hewitt's "Opening the Musical Box" does something that no book on Genesis has attempted to do....it covers the smaller details of the band's history that are left untouched by other authors. It offers a comprehensive gigography, something never attempted in print before, and a monumental undertaking for a band that has been playing live shows for four decades. And as if that wasn't enough, Hewitt also manages to provide complete gig listings for all solo tours of Genesis members, past and present. The author covers the history of the band in a way that gives the reader a good overview of their past, but without getting bogged down in the obvious. And every era of the band's history is given equal treatment - a rarity among most books on Genesis which inevitably concentrate on the 1980s and 1990s. Plus within the text of each era, tidbits of new information can be found, and this exercise is carried into the chapters that focus on each of the individual members of the group. Even the most knowledgeable Genesis fan will learn something by reading "Opening the Musical Box". A must have for anyone serious about learning about Genesis.

I've read everything on Genesis that I've been able to find since 1984 and I am thoroughly enjoying this book. It contains many little tidbits (quotes from the members themselves) that are delightful and that I haven't seen anywhere else. The discologies and gigologies are detailed to a fault (I tend to skip over these) but I'm sure they're helpful to the hard core followers. (I do peek at them once in a while) The book has rekindled my wish to have been around at the band's early stages. I would have enjoyed standing in the mud at one of their outdoor gigs in the 70's. The only thing I don't like is that sentences that begin with...."Sadly, (whatever) has never been published or made available to the public....(so on)" This of course is no fault of the author....if anything it shows the author's thorough research. I can't believe it's out of print already.