How Jon Anderson Helped Genesis Open a New Chapter

Genesis were in the midst of trying to figure out a path forward as vocalist Peter Gabriel was planning to leave. It was Jon Anderson of Yes who gave them an important assist.

The signs of a potential fracture first appeared as the band were working on songs for 1974’s The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Gabriel briefly departed from the group to collaborate with William Friedkin, who had enjoyed success with the previous year’s The Exorcist, eventually earning an Oscar nomination for the horror film. “[But] Friedkin, didn’t want to bring about the end of the Genesis he’d enjoyed,” guitarist Steve Hackett tells the UCR Podcast. “Pete came back to the band, but over time, it became apparent he was going to do this one album and tour it with us, so he didn’t leave us in the lurch. But then we were going to have to find a new singer after that.”

Finding a replacement for Gabriel proved to be a challenge, though Hackett says now that he knew they had a solution. “We had one person in the ranks who could carry this off, but there was a worry about a singing drummer, having had a frontman who was dressing up, running around and doing all sorts of things,” he explains. “The idea of having a guy singing behind the kit was an idea that we thought visually, could be very difficult. But funny enough, it was Jon Anderson [who gave us some good advice]. I was there at Phil’s first wedding to his first wife and I was meeting Jon for the first time.”

READ MORE: The Day Peter Gabriel Left Genesis

“He said to me, ‘Well, Phil’s got a great voice, why don’t you make Phil the lead singer and get in another instrumentalist?’ I said, ‘Well, you’re absolutely right and I agree with you.’ He’d sung on the first song I ever wrote for Genesis [‘For Absent Friends,’ from 1971’s Nursery Cryme]. Phil also sang on my [solo] album, Voyage of the Acolyte,” he continues. “I told Jon at the time, ‘Yep, I think that’s the right thing to do, but the others aren’t convinced of that strategy.’ As it happened, Phil at one point got very frustrated and said, ‘Let me have a go at this song.’ We’d started an album without knowing who was going to be the vocalist. That song turned out to be ‘Squonk,’ on A Trick of the Tail. Phil did such a great job that [Genesis manager] Tony Stratton-Smith poked his head around the corner while we were at Trident [Studios] and said, ‘Well, chaps, looks like you’ve found your singer, bye!’ He left before there was any argument. So in some ways, it looked as if he was in the know that Phil was going to do that. I think if Phil had been rejected for any reason, I suspect he might have just decided to go off and join another band. But luckily Tony talked him out of that and talked him into staying with the band.”

Listen to Genesis’ ‘Squonk’

What’s Steve Hackett Doing Now?

The former Genesis guitarist continues to tour regularly and will release a new live album, The Lamb Stands Up Live at the Royal Albert Hall on July 11. He’ll bring that same trek to the United States this fall and admits that he’s already got material in the works for his next solo album. “I’m working on new stuff, which sounds better than ever, of course,” he laughs. “But then I would say that, wouldn’t I?”