“Caught out”: the Genesis song that confused Peter Gabriel
In 1980, Genesis weren’t just reinventing what it meant to present intricate dynamics as deceptively simple structures; they were also tapping into the cultural zeitgeist in a way that perhaps many hadn’t known to be so direct. Around Duke in particular, they became concerned with another phenomenon that had long defined the music industry—the blurred lines between reality and fiction.
For this record, Genesis adopted a relatively unique approach, at least for them, where all three band members worked together to write the songs. Usually, this started as an extensive, improvised jam, going on for as long as it took before they decided on an arrangement they liked. Then, someone else would take the arrangement and write a set of lyrics to it.
This approach also meant that, being guided instrumentally first, many of the songs were far more meticulous, complicated, and intricate than they seemed on the inside and out. They evoked the kind of refined progressions that Genesis became more well-known for, especially with their transition from low-key cult band to mainstream stadium explosion.
This is a recurring thing with Genesis, particularly when it comes to the details of their own craft. For instance, Mike Rutherford once argued he merely writes “simple” songs for Genesis, although it’s difficult to claim this to be entirely true, despite the directness of his more obvious lyrics and melodies. With ‘Turn It On Again’, however, the main delicacy was the time signature, which gave it a particular edge that made for some interesting experiences not just on stage but for Peter Gabriel, too.
Inspired by the incessant need for audiences to neglect their “real” lives in favour of the television screen, ‘Turn It On Again’ thematically tackled the vague distinctions between reality and fiction, and how people can too often become too focussed on those they love on screen and forget about their friends and family. The time, which was around 13/8, mirrors the kind of rhythmic momentum of someone losing track of reality in a way that Rutherford described as a “merry-go-round”.
Incidentally, when Gabriel attempted to take it on for live performances, his confidence beforehand far outweighed his ability to actually get it right, leading to some confusion among Gabriel and some members of the audience. “It was typical Peter: ‘Oh, I can play this,’” Tony Banks told Louder. “But once he started playing, he kept looking around going: ‘Oh fuck!’ ‘Turn It On Again’ does funny things; it’s truly a Genesis song.”
Gabriel hadn’t realised that the song was in 13/8 time, “Which made it like a merry-go-round,” said Rutherford. “Peter would think he’d got to the end, and suddenly we would be off again,” he added. While it became a live staple, the signature didn’t just present a challenge for whoever was playing it, as Banks admitted. “You can’t dance or clap along to it,” he said, “because of that time signature. When we play it live, you can always see the audience getting caught out.”
Evidently, despite the mass popularity of songs like ‘Turn It On Again’, there exists an innate complexity that even Genesis struggles to replicate from time to time. This is even more intriguing considering how many of the songs feel or sound simpler than they actually are, suggesting a deep-seated intricacy that only Genesis can pull off, persisting below the radar, detected only by those in the machine who know the exact details that make it all possible.
