Spot the Pigeon EP by Genesis from 1977.
After talking about Wind & Wuthering, it's time to take a look at Genesis' first Extended Play.
This little gem contains three tracks that didn't make it onto the 1976 album Wind & Wuthering. It was Genesis' last ever studio work with Steve Hackett on guitar before he left the band for good.
In late 1976, while recording Wind & Wuthering, Genesis wrote a lot of music. The three tracks from Spot the Pigeon were scrapped from the album because the band thought they didn't fit well with the melancholic, autumnal vibe of the main album. Instead of leaving them there, they decided to release them as 45 rpm EPs.
This EP never officially arrived in the United States, but it has become a real cult import, even reaching number 14 in the UK singles charts. The most famous and loved song is "Inside and Out", a real hidden gem. It starts intimately and then turns into an epic and overwhelming finale, with Steve Hackett's guitar dominating. Although Hackett cared a lot, "Inside and Out" didn't make it into "Wind & Wuthering."
The title and cover of the EP are inspired by "Spot the Ball", a super popular prize draw in British newspapers at the time. The idea was to guess where the ball was in a football photo, but here instead of the ball there is a pigeon. The cover is a black and white photo of an old-fashioned football match, with players jumping to hit headers. Instead of the balloon, there is the silhouette of a pigeon in flight. On the back, it reads: "Picture shows the regional final of the annual Pigeon-Balancing Championships". In short, a touch of irony and a bit of that typical "British" humor that makes everything even more fun.
Genesis, over the years, have expressed many perplexities about the songs, especially about "Match of the Day", and have also put "Pigeons" aside a bit. For quite some time, these songs were not included in their official history. The main reasons? Well, the lyrics weren't quite the best, the musical choices weren't entirely convincing and the promotional video wasn't exactly a production success.
In 2004, chatting with fans, Phil Collins openly said that "Match of the Day" wasn't exactly their brightest moment. He admitted that he wrote the lyrics, which he finds a bit embarrassing today. The idea was to bring some of the most popular rhythms of the time into Genesis, but the results were not quite what they had hoped for.
Fans and critics of the time found it strange that a group famous for its complex music and refined imagery would start singing stadium chants and telling simple stories about Saturday afternoon football.
Tony Banks, who has always been the guardian of the group's most sophisticated soul, expressed similar opinions. On "Match of the Day", he said that the band never considered the song valid. The only thing he liked was the central keyboard riff, but he would have gladly done without the rest. As for "Pigeons", he called it a strange and ironic experiment, but also an out-of-time compared to the artistic path they were taking. The song was based on a repetitive riff reminiscent of a banjo (created by applying tape to the piano strings) that went on from start to finish.
To worsen the reputation of "Match of the Day" there was the making of a promotional video shot at Loftus Road, the stadium of Queens Park Rangers. In the video, Phil Collins sings and fidgets in the empty stands, pretending to cheer. The band found the video so tacky and ridiculous that they decided not to include it in any official compilation. For many years, the clip was considered lost or hidden on purpose.
Mine is the Atlantic version - Canadian EP 1800 from 1978.
"Match of the Day" is a lighthearted and fun song that talks about the weekly ritual of football matches. It marks the band's transition to shorter, radio-friendly songs. Although it is a bit eccentric, it has some truly remarkable arrangements and instrumental joints. It's rhythmic and playful pop-rock, with lyrics that poke fun at British culture. The highlight is the energetic choral performance and the snappy guitar riff that holds it together. Phil Collins gives a fantastic performance on drums, keeping odd tempos smoothly and naturally, while Steve Hackett's guitar intertwines perfectly with Tony Banks' keyboards.
"Pigeons" is a sarcastic and lively Progressive pop song that ironically deals with the surreal theme of pigeons that dirty monuments. Despite the frivolous lyrics, the band demonstrates a truly remarkable instrumental cohesion. The pulsating bass lines and abrupt tempo changes break up the melody, making the song musically complex, even if the theme is light. Mike Rutherford on bass and Tony Banks on organ/keyboards are the real protagonists, creating a solid and nuanced sound carpet that perfectly balances Collins' vocal extravagance.
"Inside and Out" is a real hidden gem of the EP, a small suite that would look great on an album like "A Trick of the Tail". It's a deep and dramatic piece, with that symphonic and melancholic Progressive rock that I like so much. The final instrumental crescendo is powerful and the epic guitar solo fades into a choral and triumphant atmosphere, which rocks. Steve Hackett is in great shape here: his guitar touch, along with Tony Banks' airy solos, gives the song that melancholic epicness that fans love. And then, let's not forget Mike Rutherford, who with his pedal bass adds a majestic and enveloping sound.
The band's rejection was so strong that, when the monumental box set "Genesis Archive 2: 1976-1992" was released in 2000, the band included "Pigeons" and "Inside and Out", but left out "Match of the Day" entirely. The song about football remained unavailable in CD format for thirty years, until Genesis decided, a little reluctantly, to include it as a "bonus track for collectors" in the box set "Genesis 1976-1982" released in 2007, only for the sake of historical completeness.
It remains a historical document of a band that was about to face a very important break with the departure of Steve Hackett and a necessary record in a complete Genesis collection.
My Version
Label: Atlantic – EP 1800
Format: Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM, EP, Quality Records Pressing Country: Canada
Release: 1978
Tracklist
A1 Match Of The Day 3:23
A2 Pigeons 3:10
B Inside And Out 6:42
LineUp
Drums, Percussion, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals – Phil Collins
Electric Guitar, Twelve-String Guitar – Steve Hackett
Piano, Synthesizer, Organ, Mellotron, Twelve-String Guitar, Backing Vocals – Tony Banks
Twelve-String Guitar, Bass, Pedalboard [Bass Pedals] – Mike Rutherford
Listening link on the main streaming platforms at the following links:
Spotify: You can listen to the song collection through the Spot the Pigeon Playlist on Spotify.
Note: All links to the musicians’ works are in the TAGS under the article title or on the "Artists"
