Abacab

Abacab was the first album that drew me to Genesis. For someone who spent his teen years listening mostly to country rock, the album was like nothing I’d ever heard. To me, songs like Abacab, Me and Sarah Jane, Dodo/Lurker, and Man on the Corner sounded inventive and “artsy.” It opened the door to me going back through their catalog. 10 months after buying the album I was singing along to Supper’s Ready at one of the Encore Tour shows. Yet many Genesis fans seem to genuinely loath the Abacab album, as most famously evidenced during the 1981 tour when they were nearly booed off the stage in Leiden. Sometimes I think if the fans of the “old stuff” could have seen what was on the horizon 5 years later (Invisible Touch) they may have realized that Abacab was not the album where the band went too commercial. So, why do so many despise Abacab?

I listened to this album earlier this week. For some time, I've held the opinion that this was their best album as a trio. It sounds like they've re-invented themselves for the new decade, embracing the Industrial rock style that pervades the albums of King Crimson, Peter Gabriel and Bowie around this time.

Side 1 is pretty well perfect. It's the most perfect album side since ATOTT, with 4 very complimentary songs. But Side 2 is a let down in comparison. Dodo/Lurker is good, but the remaining 4 tracks are basically bland album thrillers, with one possible exception in Man On The Corner (although in hindsight, it does sound like a formulaic Phil track).

Dodo/Lurker was originally a potentially extended suite that included Naminanu and Submarine. Together they embrace not only the Industrial Rock, but pay homage to the band's Prog roots. Was this a massive missed opportunity ? Perhaps Side 2 could have started with Man On The Corner, then the extended Dodo suite, before rounding off with Like It Or Not ?

What prevented them from this was the strong anti-Prog, anti-extended track attitude that was prevailing at the start of the 80s. Had the Dodo suite been included in full, Abacab would have been hammered by the critics. However, we might then be calling Abacab a classic Genesis album to rank with their best.

In a surprising turn of events, the title track is the first song eliminated. I must say, I'm rather surprised at this outcome. I always thought that this... Ha! Just kidding! Did I get you? I totally got you. In perhaps the least surprising outcome ever, Who Dunnit? is the first one gone. Who Dunnit? is often labeled the worst song that Genesis ever did, what with its repetitive lyrics, clumsy instrumentation, and grating vocal distortions. And despite all that, I still think it's kind of a fun song. It's not meant to be taken seriously. It's just the band goofing off and having fun. If anything, Genesis probably deserves kudos for having the guts to put a track like Who Dunnit? on a major album release. I don't have any complaints with this being the first song eliminated or the general opinion that it's a bad song, but I do think it's worth re-evaluating for its fun ridiculousness.

On to Round 2! It's time to cast your ballot for A or B or X or Z or whichever one you want gone. Vote for your LEAST favorite remaining song from Abacab, and remember to upvote this post for visibility purposes.

The deadline to vote for Round 2 is tomorrow at 2 p.m. EST.

Voting is now closed.

Songs Remaining

• Abacab

• No Reply at All

• Me and Sarah Jane

• Keep It Dark

• Dodo/Lurker

• Man on the Corner

• Like It or Not

• Another Record

Songs Eliminated

• 9th: Who Dunnit? (95/192 votes, 49.48%)

Alright, my men (and women) on the corner. It's Monday, so a new edition of Survivor is coming your way! The album that we'll be dissecting for the next nine days? 1981's Abacab, another huge turning point for Genesis' career.

While most people seem to agree that Duke is an excellent album, I think opinion is a little more split on Abacab. This is the album where Genesis really started to lean into pop and new wave more than prog—more experimentation with drum machines, more musical and lyrical songwriting written around proven pop formulae, and overall, more of that distinctively '80s sound.

While those changes tend to turn some older listeners off, Genesis never relinquished the passion and creativity that made them stand out in the first place. You can point to Abacab as "rote pop" with limited truthfulness, but I prefer to think of it as an established band evolving its sound to roll with the changing music landscape and often finding great success in doing so. No, I wouldn't personally rank Abacab above previous triumphs like Duke, Selling England by the Pound or A Trick of the Tail, but it's an album that I think fills a distinct role in the Genesis catalogue and deserves appreciation just the same.

Like it or not, Round 1 of Abacab: Survivor is here. Vote for your LEAST favorite song from Abacab, and remember to upvote this post for visibility purposes.

The deadline to vote for Round 1 is tomorrow at 2 p.m. EST.

Voting is now closed.

Songs Remaining

• Abacab

• No Reply at All

• Me and Sarah Jane

• Keep It Dark

• Dodo/Lurker

• Who Dunnit?

• Man on the Corner

• Like It or Not

• Another Record

Songs Eliminated

None yet!

I’ve been trying to get into Abacab for while. I like both eras of Genesis but this record in particular I just have a tuff time getting into it and I want to like it. For instance the really the songs I like from the album is Dodo / Lurker and I’m really fond of Submarine just love the style of that song. Am I missing something with this album and how should I approach it?

My wife and I both level 34 were XPing in guk when we had to find a replacement tank, Abacab sent a tell saying he could do that.

Within 10 minutes he was needing on all the FS weapons when confronted that they wern't just his loot he linked his Fiery Avenger and asked for our discord, I assume to talk about why he was needing all the fine steel.

Now I don't know what a "hot n*gga" is or what he meant by "get the fk out my trap house" probably some Faceless Empire term but he constantly asked me if he could lemme smash my wife and offered me a FS sword for it.

Anyone else have experience with this "hot n*gga" jackass?

Would not recommend.

No more waiting for Man on the Corner. It's been told to move elsewhere. Though I'm typically not a huge fan of these songs where drum machines and simple, repetitive lyrics are the main focus, there's a certain charm about Man on the Corner that brings me back each time. Part of it has to be Phil's vocals—on point as always—though I think the simple look at the depressing subject matter of homelessness also helps its poignancy. Genesis didn't always have to write about dancing moonlit knights or long climbs up burning ropes to come up with something profound.

Well, what are you waiting vote for? The new round is available! Vote for your LEAST favorite remaining song from Abacab, and remember to upvote this post for visibility purposes.

The deadline to vote for Round 5 is tomorrow at 2 p.m. EST.

Voting is now closed.

Songs Remaining

• Abacab

• No Reply at All

• Me and Sarah Jane

• Keep It Dark

• Dodo/Lurker

Songs Eliminated

• 9th: Who Dunnit? (95/192 votes, 49.48%)

• 8th: Another Record (80/157 votes, 50.96%)

• 7th: Like It or Not (95/191 votes, 49.74%)

• 6th: Man on the Corner (77/198 votes, 38.89%)

Go ahead and put another record on, because Another Record is gone. I can't say I'm too big a fan of Another Record; it's got a nice groove and some good drum fills, but the simple lyrics and super cheesy '80s synths are a bit off-putting. I don't hate Another Record, and in isolation, I don't think Another Record is a bad song. But as the closer to Abacab? Come on. This is the same band that closed albums with Los Endos, Duke's End and goddamn Supper's Ready! The finale is Genesis' strong suit. So ending Abacab with a fairly standard, run-of-the-mill pop tune is a surefire way to disappoint. I'll gladly put another record on after I listen to this song.

Let's put another round on. Vote for your LEAST favorite remaining song from Abacab, and remember to upvote this post for visibility purposes.

The deadline to vote for Round 3 is tomorrow at 2 p.m. EST.

Voting is now closed.

Songs Remaining

• Abacab

• No Reply at All

• Me and Sarah Jane

• Keep It Dark

• Dodo/Lurker

• Man on the Corner

• Like It or Not

Songs Eliminated

• 9th: Who Dunnit? (95/192 votes, 49.48%)

• 8th: Another Record (80/157 votes, 50.96%)

Me and Sarah Jane had a special thing going, but it dies today unafraid. I can't think of a more stark example (expect perhaps, hilariously enough, Alien Afternoon) of a song that I don't care much for the first half but just absolutely LOVE the second half. Well, that's not entirely true. The first minute and 11 seconds of Me and Sarah Jane are pretty special, but I can't say I'm uber fond of the reggae swing that takes over until the halfway point. I don't hate it, I'm just not crazy about it. But then Sarah Jane hits the 3:30 mark, and we entire a dream: "First I'm flying, going 'round, 'round, 'round." And then the drop at 4:05. My god. Prog glory the rest of the way. If they had just extended the second half to be the entire song, it might be my favorite on Abacab. It's that good. But considering it's only half of the song, I think third place is an appropriate spot for Sarah Jane to be laid to rest.

A week of voting has led us here: the grand finals. Our two finalists are two very worthy competitors for the crown. We've got the high-energy title track Abacab pitted against the long, genre-bending romp Dodo/Lurker. Vote for your LEAST favorite remaining song from Abacab, and remember to upvote this post for visibility purposes.

The deadline to vote for the finals is tomorrow at 2 p.m. EST.

Voting is now closed.

Songs Remaining

• Abacab

• Dodo/Lurker

Songs Eliminated

• 9th: Who Dunnit? (95/192 votes, 49.48%)

• 8th: Another Record (80/157 votes, 50.96%)

• 7th: Like It or Not (95/191 votes, 49.74%)

• 6th: Man on the Corner (77/198 votes, 38.89%)

• 5th: Keep It Dark (63/177 votes, 35.59%)

• 4th: No Reply at All (89/169 votes, 52.66%)

• 3rd: Me and Sarah Jane (78/148 votes, 52.70%)