By Nick Tate
It may seem paradoxical, but the best tribute albums achieve two opposing aims at once: They are loyal enough to the original material to satisfy fans yet also bring something new to the mix. Often, tributes go too far in one direction or the other — reworking the originals so much that they are unrecognizable or delivering letter-perfect renditions that beg the question: What’s the point?
Fortunately, for Genesis fans and progressive rock aficionados, Sonic Element’s audacious new tribute to “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” hits that musical sweet spot. To even tackle such an ambitious project is itself noteworthy. But in the capable hands of Sonic Element’s mastermind, multi-instrumentalist Dave Kerzner, the album achieves the just-right Goldilocks effect that this classic 1974 double album warrants. The first clue is the title itself: “IT — A 50th Anniversary Celebration of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway by Genesis.” It underscores Kerzner’s intent to reimagine the album as a film soundtrack of sorts, giving the 25 tracks an orchestral sweep and a Broadway-style theatricality, rather than simply replicating this prog-rock masterwork.
“We call this a celebration because we’re celebrating certain elements of it — the melodies, the musicality and the emotions,” Kerzner said in an interview. “My vision was to make it like a film score with an orchestra — a cross between a theatrical production and film soundtrack for a film that doesn’t exist, a film in your head. So, it’s supposed to be grandiose and cinematic, but it’s also supposed to sound like it’s still Genesis — squint and pretend — or close to Genesis.”
More than 10 years in the making, “IT” involves a Who’s Who of contemporary prog artists: It Bites vocalist/guitarist Francis Dunnery, Yes bassist Billy Sherwood, Spock’s Beard drummer Nick D’Virgilio, guitarist Fernando Perdomo and a host of guesting musicians, including Steve Rothery (Marillion), Randy McStine (Porcupine Tree) and Lee Pomeroy (ELO, It Bites).
Curiously, the genesis of this album is tied to a prior reworking of a prior “Lamb” tribute — 2008’s “Rewiring Genesis: A Tribute to the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway,” helmed by D’Virgilio and engineer/producer Mark Hornsby. But where that earlier effort featured stripped-down or jazzed-up versions of the material — performed by Nashville session players, some of whom had never heard the originals — Kerzner’s tribute is a lush, full-on symphonic reinvention of “The Lamb.” You might say D’Virgilio’s tribute took a jeans-and-T-shirts approach, while Kerzner gives the album a tuxedoes-and-gowns upgrade.
From the get-go, “IT” plays like a dynamic film for the ear, incorporating cinematic elements, sound effects and over-the-top musical experiments barely hinted at by Genesis in 1974. And, as you might expect from a sound-design engineer as talented as Kerzner — sidenote: he even helped Genesis with the keyboard sounds and software for the band’s farewell 2024 tour — “IT” has a diamond-cut clarity that accentuates every note and every player. From start to finish, Kerzner and friends reveal both the genius of the original works and how recent advances in recording technology have improved upon what was possible 50 years ago. (For instance: “IT” was assembled through shared digital the musicians recorded that Kerzner collected, mixed and mastered.)
There is little point in recounting, track by track, what made “The Lamb” such a high-water mark for classic Genesis. But a few highlights are worth spotlighting.
A Theatrical Welcome to the Show: The album opens with an urban soundscape that transports the listener to the noisy streets of New York City, creating an immersive IMAX-like experience that sets the scene for everything that follows. “I wanted that intro to the album to sound like an overture,” Kerzner explained. “It’s like the orchestra playing before the show starts, as people are taking their seats.” Two minutes in, the title track’s signature trilling piano theme kicks in, before Dunnery’s voice makes its confident entrance. It’s thrilling to hear this familiar classic, dressed up in Kerzner’s new orchestral clothes. It’s also clear from the start that Dunnery is up to the daunting task of channeling Peter Gabriel’s punk-Pavarotti vocals on “The Lamb.” His narration of the story of Rael and his surrealistic adventures through the Big Apple is delivered with an edgy intensity. It’s a breathtaking vocal tour-de-force that is the perfect foil for Kerzner’s devil-may-care keyboard calisthenics.
Synths Meet the Symphony: The opening track introduces the distinguishing hallmark of this production — real orchestra strings, brass and choir vocals are layered over Tony Banks’ original keyboard melodies, Steve Hackett’s eclectic fretwork and Mike Rutherford’s propulsive bass lines. Kerzner even turns to kettle drums to punch up the accents of Phil Collins’ melodic drumming on “The Lamb.” The combined effect adds a new depth and luster to many tracks. On “In the Cage,” “Back in New York City” and “Riding the Scree,” for instance, Kerzner replicates Banks’ intricate ARP Pro Soloist synth lines, trading licks with the orchestra and sounding like Antonin Dvorak fronting the band. “The Waiting Room” (Genesis’s noise-rock answer to the Beatles’ “Revolution 9”) features a musical library of sampled sound effects, synths, guitar and symphonic sounds that create a psychedelic orchestral journey. And on the elegiac “Fly on a Windshield,” violins merge with mellotron, providing a backdrop for Dan Hancock’s haunting extrapolation of Hackett’s original guitar licks and Dunnery’s intimate vocal and additional guitar solo. (A second take of this one is offered up as a bonus track, with just Dunnery’s guitar solo departure from the original.)
Vintage Keys Sweeten the Sound: Throughout the album, Kerzner plays the actual analog keyboards he acquired from Banks that were used on the original “Lamb” recordings — including Tony’s Mellotron and RMI electric piano — and similar models tricked out to echo those vintage synth sounds. Several guesting keyboard players also lend a hand (or two) to the proceedings. Dave Schulz from Berlin plays a clean piano intro to “Carpet Crawlers,” delivering the signature line in half-time as Kerzner handles the main theme on RMI. Roger King, recruited from Steve Hackett’s Genesis Revisited band, plays piano on ”Anyway,” using a software called PianoVerse that gives it an analog quality with a few orchestral flourishes thrown in for good measure.
Taking Liberties Here and There. For the most part, Kerzner (wisely) limits the number of major detours on “IT.” Only the most discriminating Genesis fan will notice the vocal liberties Dunnery’s takes on “Here Comes the Supernatural Anesthetist,” the flute lines framing the classical piano progression on “The Lama” and the new brass fanfare added to the middle section of “The Colony of Slippermen.” But when Kerzner does break with the original material, it feels more like homage than sacrilege. “The Light Dies Down on Broadway,” for instance, is more leisurely paced here, giving the track — the turning point in Rael’s saga — a new poignancy. In “Counting Out Time,” Kerzner adds a Dixieland band outro that is perfectly in keeping with Gabriel’s campy take on nascent adolescent sexuality. “Chamber of 32 Doors” opens with a violin quartet playing the theme before the band and vocals chime in regally and features a newly invented outro that improves on the low-keyed ending — something even Hackett has acknowledged made the original track feel unfinished. “The acoustic guitar and the mellotron blend so well in the song itself, and I thought it was really gorgeous, and I just wanted to hear more of it,” Kerzner explained. But the biggest departure on the album is during the closing section of “It,” with Dunnery adding some quirky vocal flourishes that sound as much like prog-rock scatting as you can imagine.
Extra Goodies for Uber Genesis Fans: In countless ways, Kerzner’s “IT” reflects his deep knowledge and love of the Genesis catalog. In places, it sounds like he’s attempting to answer — musically — a key question: What if Genesis had expanded some of the shorter musical interludes that bridge the big numbers on “The Lamb”? For example, he turns “Silent Sorry in Empty Boats” — a brief mood piece that connects “The Lamia” with “The Colony of Slippermen” — into a fully realized ambient-classical-chorale that stands on its own. Similarly, he gives “Ravine” an orchestra-mellotron-choir retread that takes the piece into another space entirely. He also creates a new reprise of “The Light Dies Down” that extends the melody of the piece and sets up the final acts of “The Lamb.” This new reprise pushes the narrative forward, following the 9/8 insanity of “Riding the Scree” and becoming a stage setter for the quietly introspective “In the Rapids,” which delivers the big reveal in Rael’s story. And, in one final dramatic flourish, Kerzner has created a musical finale for the album — “End Credits: (In the Cage Reprise)” — that closes out the album like a coda or ending overture.
Bonus Tracks That Leave You Wanting More: As if two discs of “The Lamb” isn’t enough, the deluxe edition of “IT” includes a third bonus disc containing 15 extra tracks that are collectively among the most interesting of the lot. They include versions of “The Lamb, “It” and “Lilywhite Lilith” with Sherwood on vocals as well as bass; an alternate take of “Anyway” with Roger King (from Hackett’s Genesis Revisited) on piano; and extended versions of “Carpet Crawlers,” with Martin Levac on vocals, and a demo of “Chamber of 32 Doors,” with Genesis Revisited vocalist Nad Sylvan (the track that caught Hackett’s ear and got him the gig with his band). There are also instrumental, acoustic and alternative versions of “Fly on a Windshield,” “Back in New York City,” “The Lamia,” “Counting out Time,” “Here Comes the Supernatural Anesthetist” “In the Cage” and “The Light Dies Down on Broadway.”
Given the richness and depth of this tribute album, it’s no surprise that it took Kerzner more than a decade to make and release. But the project is clearly a labor of love, rooted in Kerzner’s decades-long respect and appreciation for the band.
“We wanted to make it sound as if Genesis themselves reunited as a five piece and were celebrating the 50th anniversary of their incredible album either on a Broadway stage playing with an orchestra or with a ‘Lamb Lies Down on Broadway’ film that fans always dreamed of,” he said.
As tribute albums go, this one’s a keeper that strikes the right balance between honoring the original material and offering fresh takes on the classic pieces that introduced the world to a darker side of the band.
ut Genesis fans who can’t get enough of “The Lamb” have two more reasons to celebrate this year. Hackett’s Genesis Revisited project is currently touring, showcasing nine tracks from “The Lamb” — with a live release expected out later this year. And a deluxe, 4-CD (5 LP) + Blu-ray box set of the original album — remixed and remastered, and containing a host of bonus extras — is due out in August.
Release Details
“IT — A Celebration of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” is available in standard and deluxe high-resolution versions for download and 2-CD and 3-CD formats from http://sonicelements.bandcamp.com Additionally, a 14-track “Highlights” compilation of tracks from the album is now streaming on Apple Music and all major streaming platforms.
Track Listing
1.The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
2. Fly on a Windshield
3. Broadway Melody of 1974
4. Cuckoo Cocoon
5. In the Cage
6. The Grand Parade of Lifeless Packaging
7. Back in N.Y.C.
8. Hairless Heart
9. Counting Out Time
10. Carpet Crawlers
11. Chamber of 32 Doors
12. Lilywhite Lilith
13. The Waiting Room
14. Anyway
15. Here Comes the Supernatural Anesthetist”
16. The Lamia
17. Silent Sorrow in Empty Boats
18. The Colony of Slippermen
19. Ravine
20. The Light Dies Down on Broadway
21. The Light Dies Down Reprise
22. Riding the Scree
23. In the Rapids
24. It
25. End Credits (In the Cage Reprise)
Line-up / Musicians
Francis Dunnery (It Bites) / lead vocals and guitar
Dave Kerzner (Sound of Contact, In Continuum) / keyboards
Fernando Perdomo (Dave Kerzner Band) / guitar and bass
Lee Pomeroy (ELO, It Bites) / bass and taurus pedals
Steve Rothery (Marillion) / guitar
Dan Hancock (Giraffe) / guitars
Martin Levac (The Musical Box) / vocals and drums
Billy Sherwood (Yes) / bass and vocals
Nick D’Virgilio (Big Big Train) / drums
Plus additional guest musicians and a symphony orchestra recorded by Mark Hornsby and arranged by John Hinchey
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