Selling England By the Pound [Import]

Genesis | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 1, 2008)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Virgin Records
• ASIN: B000024E9M
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #152,001 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Dancing with the Moonlit Knight

2. I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)

3. Firth of Fifth

4. More Fool Me

5. The Battle of Epping Forest

6. After the Ordeal

7. The Cinema Show

8. Aisle of Plenty

Editorial Reviews

If one had to pare the prog-rock story down to a handful ofessential albums, this would undoubtedly be one of them. SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND was the culmination of all that Genesis had been striving for since their late-'60s inception, the refinement of the vision that developed on TRESPASS, NURSERY CRYME, and FOXTROT (somewhere in the world, there's been a second-wave prog outfit named after every one of thesealbums). The fusion of a complex classical mind with an electrified rock heart and pastoral folk spirit defined Genesis' anatomy, and never more effectively than on SELLING ENGLAND. Peter Gabriel's startlingly unpretentious tale-spinning is at its best on "The Battle of Epping Forest". Tony Banks's elegant, sophisticated keyboard work is a vital element of nearly every tune, and the electric/acoustic guitar tapestry woven by Steve Hackett and Mike Rutherford is the perfect icing on the cake. Somewhat anomalous but entirely welcomeis the Gabriel-era band's catchiest, quirkiest song "I KnowWhat I Like (In Your Wardrobe)", the tale of a somewhat daft gardener. Phil Collins's lead vocal on the gorgeous acoustic ballad "More Fool Me" paints the shape of things to come.If you only buy one Genesis album, make it this one.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Re-Mix Not A Remaster--Hearing 'Everything' Not Always Better, February 21, 2010

By 

Brett A. McConnell "brettmc" (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Selling England By the Pound (Audio CD)

I am a bit dismayed with tastes now-a-days... I am not too old, not too young. This album was originally recorded, mixed and mastered a couple years before I was born and I hate to say it, but those efforts were way more sublime and appropriate for this album, an album of delicate and articulate material.

It seems some of the original tracks could not be found for this remix. The most beautiful and endearing vocals ever delivered by Gabriel open the original mixes of this album. But on this version those a capella opening lines are very noticeably different form the original mixes and here on this remix sound more like a patch work of two or three takes. Overall very weak and enough to ruin this re-presentation of Selling England By The Pound for this listener.

As seems to be the case with all of these Nick Davis re-mixes, the stereo mix definitely took the back-seat to the surround mix. Sometimes the mix feels congested, nasal in the mid-range, sometime vocals are in that mid-range jumble and sometimes they jump into you lap. I dare say I think ONLY the 5.1 mixes were created or even cared about in this very ambitious Genesis re-mix project. Most likely an automated, computer decided upon, stereo mix-down is what we are left with, those of us who still prefer 2 (or 2.1).

Nick did a good job on the definitive remasters, especially with The Lamb... I would suggest sticking with those if you want to hear nicely EQed and cleaner versions of the original stereo mixes of any/all Genesis albums. A lot of what was done by the original engineers and producers of those albums really did enhance and solidify Genesis' in-studio presence and overall musical presentation.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Genesis' first American charting studio album gets a sonic makeover for 35th Anniversary, May 12, 2009

By 

Terrence J. Reardon "Classic rock and old sch... (Lake Worth (a west Palm Beach suburb), FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Selling England By the Pound (Audio CD)

Genesis' fifth studio effort Selling England by the Pound was released in October of 1973.
By 1973, Genesis (which comprised of singer Peter Gabriel, bass player Mike Rutherford, keyboard player Tony Banks, drummer Phil Collins and guitarist Steve Hackett) had developed a cult following and respect with rock fans. However, the band's commercial aspects in the US were not great as Buddah Records (who distributed Charisma in the US) did nothing for the band. Charisma changed distributors Stateside from Buddah to Atlantic (which was home to Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Cream and many others) and this gave the band some confidence to record its next album as they were now at the same home as Zeppelin and The Stones. Would Selling England By the Pound be a classic or would the band fall from grace. Read on and find out.
We open the album with Gabriel singing the acapella intro to "Dancing With the Moonlit Knight" which told the tale of the demise of "good old England" and the rise of commercial, modern England. Gabriel's brilliant vocals and lyrics are matched by brilliant guitar work of Steve and Mike and additional musicianship from Tony and Phil as the song becomes a superb climactic rock number after its soft start. Next is the band's first UK Top 20 hit "I Know What I Like". This piece tells the story of a lawnmower sitting on the porch which was one of the band's first tracks to feature a synthesizer and a great piece. Next is the majestic "Firth of Fifth". It begins with a piano solo by Banks and launches into a grand epic. The song features a flute solo, a synthesizer solo and one of Hackett's most memorable guitar solos. The first half closed with "More Fool Me" which was Phil's second lead vocal with Genesis. A nice break-up song written by Mike and Phil.
The album's second half starts with "The Battle of Epping Forest" which is an epic about a gang fight with references back to medieval England and excellent muscianship by the Genesis members. Great piece. Next is one of Hackett's classic guitar pieces "After the Ordeal". Next is the epic "The Cinema Show" which is one of the band's best epics. From the opening 12-string guitar doodle, you are then thrown head first into a beautiful song for six minutes. Then, the song breaks into a superb synthesizer solo section which is hard to describe. We close the album with "Aisle of Plenty" which is somewhat of a reprise to the album's opening track but a nice piece nevertheless.
Selling England By the Pound gave Genesis their first crack in the US Top 100 album charts peaking at #70 in 1974 paving the way for more success in the future and eventually reached Gold status in US sales. It reached #3 in their native UK. Sales aside, Genesis were maturing and becoming a band to be reckoned with.
In November of 2008, Rhino/Atlantic re-released the album as a CD/DVD set. The album was painstakingly remixed by engineer Nick Davis in stereo for excellent sound (in a similar manner to what was done to The Who catalog in the 1990s). The new mixes are AMAZING and I hear things in the new mixes that I have not ever heard before. The DVD was in 5.1 and had an excellent slide show with the album and interviews with band members, their classic Shepperton Studios concert that was filmed around Selling England's release but only aired on Italian TV but scrapped by rest of the world (but widely bootlegged) and the Batalcan Theater in France earlier that same year. In March, 2009, Virgin/EMI re-released the 2008 mix of the album as a single CD set.
This new mix of Selling England is recommended!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A 70's Progressive Rock Top 10, January 12, 2011

By 

kako - See all my reviews

This review is from: Selling England By the Pound (Audio CD)

Genesis is usually divided into two distinct phases; the Peter Gabriel version or the Phil Collins one. Both versions have their positive attributes and both represent different eras in music. Peter Gabriel was there at the beginning and left in 1975 while Phil Collins lead and then dominated the group in the late 70's and throughout their more commercial period in the 80's. Like I said, both had their merits as well as drawbacks. But, in the Gabriel led era there is no better, prettier, or complete record than this one. Unlike the heavy handed complexity of 'The Lamb Lies Down... .' (the follow-up and last with Gabriel) this record has a sweet and sophisticated appeal that makes it a standout in the Genesis library. The album's centerpiece songs; 'Dancing with the Moonlight Knight', 'Firth of Fifth' and 'The Cinema Show' all feature extended instrumental work. Both keyboard player Tony Banks and guitarist Steve Hackett really show off their skills on this record. In fact all musicians are exceptional and the combination of Gabriel's singing and the bands instrumental breaks and solos makes for a soaring and majestic collection of songs. 'Isle of Plenty' closes the record with the same melody and theme as 'Dancing...' which focuses on the downturn of England as a once powerful country in the late 20th century. In 1973 England was going through a change from an industrial society to a service based economy (sound familiar?) and the lyrics and attitude on this record reflect the negative aspects of that change.
But, from a musical perspective Genesis created arguably their most appealing musical statement. The performances and song writing are first rate and each song has its own unique melody and feel so the record is always interesting and very satisfying.