~ Reviewed by Larry Mazzenga

It doesn't seem quite real now. My friend George and I flying into Montreal from Philadelphia for the final Musical Box show at the University of Montreal Sports Center. We arrived around noon on Saturday the 14th and made our way to Hotel du Parc. Even as we were checking in, we could overhear conversation in the lobby, excited talk about Genesis music and the concert that evening. We made our way to the arena and managed to linger for the sound check, then back to the hotel lobby for about four hours of intense Gabriel-era Genesis reminiscing and conversation with about 10 or 12 other fanatics. There were people from Georgia, Wisconsin, California and Maryland, as well as England, Norway, Italy and Switzerland. And I thought I was nuts!

I had seen the band three times previously, and was anxious to see if they could better those great performances. We made our way back to the Sports Center, and at exactly 9:30 PM the opening mellotron chords to Watcher of the Skies brought the crowd to its feet. It was obvious that TMB were psyched for this their (maybe) last performance, and they went through a rip-roaring version of the Foxtrot classic.

Lead singer Denis (alias Peter G.) Gagne was in great voice and top form as he pranced about the stage, his green day-glo eyes darting back and forth as he moved to the music. The sound was mind-blowing!

The band continued throught the "white show" songlist - perfect renditions of dancing with the Moonlit Knight, Cinema Show, I Know What I Like, Firth of Fifth (complete with killer guitar solo). The sound was clear, the vocals were crisp. Drummer Guillame Courteau, somewhat reserved in previous shows, was not merely intent on reproducing the beat of the original versions - he seemed to let loose, showing real fire in his playing as Phil was known to do (prior to his "A Groovy Kind of Love" era).

After the old man's sex-and-death dance at the end of The Musical Box, the crowd went into a frenzy, delaying the show for a full five minutes with a roaring standing ovation. The guitar work of Christian Hebert was awesome throughout the night, worthy of the often-overlooked contribution of Steve Hackett to Genesis. The acoustic guitar gem Horizons followed, then came Battle of Epping Forest. This seems like one of the more difficult songs to be played live, as was often conceded by members of Genesis themselves, but TMB carried it off without a hitch, leading into the all-time great Supper's Ready. Utterly fabulous keyboard work by David Myers, incredibly dramatic at the climax of Apocalypse in 9/8, with Peter (um, excuse me, Denis) flinging off his black robes in a flash of explosion and light to reveal himself and the whole band in blinding white in a glorious conclusion to the main set.

As expected, The Knife was the encore, but what would they do next? Surely, the band had something special in mind for the ecstatic crowd who cheered and stomped for them to return to the stage, even after the house lights came up. We weren't disappointed - as the band re-appeared, and Denis introduced a song in English for the first time all night (his pre-song patter had been all in French), the band swung into Can-Utility and the Coastliners, one of my personal favorites. Thumping bottom-end lines were right out in front on this number, courtesy of Sebastien (Michael Rutherford) Lamothe, who provided solid bass guitar and pedal work throughout the night, along with perfect rhythm guitar, acoustic, and twelve-string accompaniment.

After another long session of pleading applause, we heard, unbelievably enough, Seven Stones, probably the biggest surprise of the night, and a song for the true Genesis-crazed loonies in the crowd. The band handled this number, with its deceptively complex quieter passages, in tremendous fashion.

One more? Yes, they returned again and tore into a ferocious version of Return of the Giant Hogweed. My last memory is of Denis frantically charging back and forth across the front of the stage, seen through flashing strobe lighting, while the band absolutely nailed the final butt-kicking section, a crescendo of keyboards, guitars, and drums.

My friend and I were speechless for a few minutes after it was over, an unforgettable night!

My everlasting gratitude to The Musical Box, and a special note of thanks to Serge Morissette for doing such a tremendous job in putting this labor of love together, and also for just being such an all-around nice guy. It was a night I will never forget. I know it won't happen anytime soon, but maybe we haven't seen the last of this truly special band.

Larry Mazzenga - Genesis347@aol.com

My Montreal report.
Armando Gallo interviewed by Alan Hewitt of The Waiting Room + Thomas Holter.
Paul Whitehead interviewed by Alan Hewitt of The Waiting Room and Thomas Holter.
Check out info on Gallo's 'I Know What I Like'.

And - as always