Genesis (band)

Clockwise from left: Banks, Collins, Hackett, Rutherford, Gabriel

Origin ,

Country

Years– (Hiatus)

Members

Past

Website(s)

Genesis is a winning formed in . The band's notable former members include and , both of whom achieved additional success as solo artists and in other ventures. With approximately 150 million albums sold worldwide, Genesis is one of the top 30 highest selling recording artists of all time. The band is widely known for two distinctly different musical phases. Early on in their career, their complex song structures, elaborate instrumentation, and theatrical made them one of the most revered bands of the 1970s progressive rock movement. Hallmarks of the band's music during this period included the 23-minute long "" and the 1974 , . In the 1980s and beyond, their music took a distinct turn towards , becoming considerably more -oriented and more accessible to the . This change of musical direction gave them their first #1 album, , as well as their only #1 single, "".

Initially fronted by Peter Gabriel, Genesis has experienced several personnel changes over the years. Collins took over from Gabriel after the latter's departure from the group in 1975. After nearly two decades of being the band's frontman, Collins left the group in 1996 and was replaced by former singer for the 1997 album . Wilson was released from the group in 1998 following the disappointing sales of the new album. After three decades of activity, the band announced that it was on an indefinite .

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History

The beginning: 1967-1969

The original Genesis lineup in 1967, with , , , and .

The band's origin lies in the late 1960s, when founding members and were students at . The original line-up consisted of Peter Gabriel (vocals), (guitar), Tony Banks (keyboards), (bass & guitar), and (drums). Genesis recorded its first album, , after striking a deal with , an alum of their school and a songwriter and who had a hit single at the time called "Everyone's Gone to the Moon". King supposedly dubbed the band Genesis because it was the first serious band he had worked with, or the genesis of his career. As he recalled later — "I named them Genesis because I thought it was a good name...it suggested the beginning of a new sound and a new feeling".

The album was released by . During the sessions, drummer Stewart left the band and was replaced by . The band recorded a series of