A new Genesis with Musical Box (From Surrey Comet)

A new Genesis with Musical Box

9:37am Friday 6th November 2009 in

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In 1975, the departure of lead singer and front man Peter Gabriel left progressive rockers Genesis with an urgent problem – either find a suitable replacement or call it a day.

The solution came from within the band, as drummer Phil Collins stepped into the spotlight and carried the lead vocals on the tour to promote their 1976 album A Trick of the Tail.

Fast-forward to Montreal, Canada, in 2008, where The Musical Box, a leading Genesis tribute band, found themselves with a similar dilemma.

Their solution also lay within the band, with lead singer Denis Gagné, who having mastered the voice and character of Gabriel so accurately, agreed to work on a new voice and become Collins as well.

The Musical Box will showcase their latest Genesis recreation when they bring A Trick of the Tail to Croydon, the only UK concert on this European tour.

Maybe the word tribute does them a disservice, as the band has had a high degree of collaboration from the original members of Genesis.

In fact, Gabriel took his children to a concert to see what their father used to do.

Founder member and musical director Sebastien Lamothe assembled a group of Genesis enthusiasts in 1993 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the release of the classic 1973 album Selling England By The Pound.

He says: “The support from Genesis has been crucial and it obviously made our job much more interesting and accurate.

“We had the privilege of listening to the original studio tapes of the albums and access to visuals used in the original shows.

“We also found a lot of help from original crew members.

“We like to think that the members of Genesis are comfortable with the way we respectfully re-enact their past, which has resulted in their precious collaboration.”

Surprisingly, having made the dramatic leap into the Collins era, it seems unlikely the Musical Box will reprise the later Genesis albums.

As Sebastien explains: “We were always about the Gabriel era.”

Singer Gagné, after inhabiting the quirky persona of Gabriel for 14 years, needed to become Collins, even to the extent of learning to play the drums.

Gagné says: “Peter comes naturally to me, maybe because I have always been so fascinated with his persona since I discovered the Foxtrot album many years ago.”

With Genesis having once performed in Croydon, did the Musical Box want to tread the same boards by coming to the town?

Lamothe says: “We know of the history of Fairfield Halls, which makes it a necessary address on our tour.”

The Musical Box: A Trick of the Tail tour, Fairfield Halls, Park Lane, November 12, 8pm, £37. Call 020 8688 9291 or visit fairfield.co.uk