Supper's Ready
Encyclopedia
"Supper's Ready" is a song by the band Genesis
. A recorded version appeared on their 1972 album Foxtrot
, and the band performed the song regularly on stage for several years following this. Live versions appear on the albums Seconds Out
(recorded in 1977), the compilation Genesis Archive 1967-75
, and the box set Genesis Live 1973–2007
.
In an interview, Peter Gabriel
summed up "Supper's Ready" as "a personal journey which ends up walking through scenes from Revelation
in the Bible....I'll leave it at that."
One commentator regarded the structure of "Supper's Ready" as a variation of sonata form
—a musicological
analysis by Nors Josephson proposes that "section 7 may be viewed as a Lisztian
, symphonic
apotheosis" of the "cyclical
fanfare
s that originated in section 2." On the other hand, the individual components of "Supper's Ready" are much closer to traditional rock songs than they are to classical pieces, even if they contain elements of both.
As with many progressive rock
pieces, the song undergoes multiple changes in time signature
, key signature
, Leitmotif
, instrumentation, and mood.
/Collins
/Gabriel
/Hackett
/Rutherford
). In various interviews, Banks mentioned that he composed several of the musical progressions whilst still a university student; Gabriel authored most or all of the lyrical content; Collins apparently contributed much to the arrangements and segue
s from one section to another.
guitar
backing (with Hackett, Banks and Rutherford all playing 12-string guitars), soft electric piano (Hohner
pianet
), bass pedals
, cello
and flute
, and a section with folky three part vocal harmonies (which omit the third note of the chord). The only percussion used is triangle, cymbals, and bells.
Lyrically it tells of a man returning home after a long time to be greeted by his lover, and mentions supernatural
imagery ("six saintly shrouded men"), which Gabriel claims relate to a genuine supernatural experience which occurred with himself, his wife Jill and producer John Anthony. According to Gabriel, during a late-night conversation, his wife began speaking with a completely different voice. Gabriel held up a makeshift cross
out of a candlestick and another household item, and Jill reacted violently. Jill was eventually calmed down and taken to bed, but neither Peter nor John Anthony slept that night. On another occasion, also late at night, Gabriel looked out of the window of his wife's parents' house to see what he perceived to be an entirely different lawn, across which seven shrouded men were walking. Gabriel recounted that these experiences led him to contemplate notions of good, evil, and the supernatural, and eventually inspired the lyrics to "Supper's Ready."
In the program given out at Genesis concerts at the time, "Lover's Leap" was explained as: "In which two lovers are lost in each other's eyes, and found again transformed in the bodies of another male and female."
This segment was performed as a standalone as part of an acoustic set on the group's 1998 Calling All Stations
tour with Ray Wilson
on vocals.
" headpiece at this point. The piece segués into the next with a Lover's Leap reprise.
The program describes this section as follows: "The lovers come across a town dominated by two characters; one a benevolent farmer and the other the head of a highly disciplined scientific religion. The latter likes to be known as "The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man" and claims to contain a secret new ingredient capable of fighting fire. This is a falsehood, an untruth, a whopper and a taradiddle, or to put it in clearer terms; a lie."
" style of playing). The lyrics refer to a battle of some sort, presumably involving Ikhnaton
.
The program spells "Itsacon" as "Its-a-con". It describes this section as follows: "Who the lovers see clad in greys and purples, awaiting to be summoned out of the ground. At the G.E.S.M's command they put forth from the bowels of the earth, to attack all those without an up-to-date "Eternal Life Licence", which were obtainable at the head office of the G.E.S.M.'s religion."
chords, each chord being faded-in on the recording, thus losing the piano's characteristic attack and sounding more like an organ (it was done on Hammond organ live). The title is a catchphrase used by the band's early music-business contact, Jonathan King
. The lyrics deal with the aftermath of the preceding battle, and referring to the Greek myth of Narcissus
, who turned into a flower.
The program describes this section as follows: "In which our intrepid heroes investigate the aftermath of the battle and discover a solitary figure, obsessed by his own image. They witness an unusual transmutation, and are pulled into their own reflections in the water."
.) This section features vaudeville
-style sections, the Mellotron
Mark II's "combined brass" tape set, sped-up vocals, and musique concrète
noises of trains and explosions. Lyrically, it has a Python-esque
quality, dealing with elements of the absurd in the English psyche, "there's Winston Churchill
, dressed in drag
, he used to be a British flag, plastic bag, what a drag!" and numerous elements of word play, boarding schools, agricultural depravity and social conformity.
At this point there is a reflective interlude, not definitely belonging to either "Willow Farm" or the following "Apocalypse In 9/8", with bass pedal, electric guitar, organ and mellotron drones, followed by another melody on acoustic guitars, flute and Hammond organ
.
The program describes this section as follows: "Climbing out of the pool, they are once again in a different existence. They're right in the middle of a myriad of bright colours, filled with all manner of objects, plants, animals and humans. Life flows freely and everything is mindlessly busy. At random, a whistle blows and every single thing is instantly changed into another."
"Willow Farm" was originally a stand-alone song, with music and lyrics by Gabriel. At one point, while "Supper's Ready" was being written and assembled, Banks or Gabriel had the idea of including "Willow Farm" in the middle of it. Banks commented that this jarring, fast-paced piece prevented "Supper's Ready" from seeming too much like a repeat of their earlier epic "Stagnation".
of 9 beats to the bar (expressed as 3+2+4). The lyrics employ stereotypical apocalyptic imagery, alternating with an organ solo from Banks (played in various time signatures against the 9/8 rhythm section), then switching to a climactic vocal from Gabriel, and the Mellotron "three violins" tape set. Banks has said that his approach to writing the solo was to parody the style that Keith Emerson
had developed with Emerson, Lake & Palmer
. In live performances, during the organ solo, Gabriel would don a bizarre "Magog
" outfit of geometrical headdress (which can be seen on the cover of the band's Genesis Live
album). "Gabble Ratchet" is a reference to the Hounds of Hell; they are usually portrayed as geese, which explains the sound effect heard during this section (18:48–18:53 on Foxtrot). They are also known as "Gabriel's Hounds". The programme for the 1972/3 tour refers to this section as "co-starring the delicious talents of wild geese".
The program describes this section as follows: "At one whistle the lovers become seeds in the soil, where they recognise other seeds to be people from the world in which they had originated. While they wait for Spring, they are returned to their old world to see Apocalypse of St John
in full progress. The seven trumpeteers cause a sensation, the fox keeps throwing sixes, and Pythagoras (a Greek extra) is deliriously happy as he manages to put exactly the right amount of milk and honey on his corn flakes."
This segment was performed as a standalone once in 1978 and on the first leg of the 1986 Invisible Touch
Tour as part of the "In the Cage"/"...In That Quiet Earth"/"Supper's Ready" medley.
that "X = X" and in this context is a reference to certainty and faith—being absolutely convinced of the ultimate victory of good over evil and that God and Heaven do indeed exist. "Aching Men's Feet" is a play on "making ends meet". "Apocalypse" segue
s into this part via a slower section which reprises the lyrics from "Lover's Leap" in combination with the chord progression from "The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man", backed by a pressed snare drum
roll and tubular bell
s. During live shows, a flash charge would be fired and Gabriel would discard his Magog costume to reveal himself in shining white apparel which glowed when exposed to black light
. During one gig, he attempted flying on a kirby wire
, and was nearly strangled. From this point to the end, drums, deep bass pedals and Mellotron brass are present, as are Blakean
lyrics which reference The New Jerusalem
(The Crystal City of God that is established after the death of the Anti-Christ) and the Second Coming of Christ with reference to the biblical Revelation
19:17: "I saw an angel standing in the sun. He cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the sky, Come! Be gathered together to the great supper of God."
After completing the lyrics in this section, Gabriel would pick up and raise an active blacklight tube, holding it near himself, upraised with both hands, as though it were a sword. Gabriel would be the only one lit onstage at this point and would actually appear to be glowing from the combination of blacklight, his reflective white costume and fluorescent makeup. Gabriel considered this effect to be a theatrical way of symbolizing the victory of good/light over evil/darkness.
The piece fades out on overdubbing cascading electric guitar parts. On the original recording this section is in the key of A, but because of Gabriel's inability to properly recreate the vocal performance onstage from either hoarseness or tiredness, the band regularly had to change the key to G.
The program describes this section as follows: "Above all else an egg is an egg. 'And did those feet ............' making ends meet. Jerusalem = place of peace."
This segment was performed as a standalone once in 1978 and on the first leg of the 1986 Invisible Touch
Tour as part of the "In the Cage"/"...In That Quiet Earth"/"Supper's Ready" medley.
During the 1982 Genesis reunion, billed as Six of the Best
, Gabriel told a story about a woman on a subway train (which he had told during the Foxtrot tour, and which was transcribed on the Genesis Live
album cover), slightly altered to segue into "Supper's Ready".
On the 1976 tour for A Trick of the Tail, Mike Rutherford would tell a story to introduce the song.
The 1977 performances on the Wind & Wuthering
tour (as documented on many ROIOs from this tour), Phil Collins would tell Peter Gabriel's "Romeo and Juliet" story from "The Cinema Show" to introduce the song. In these stories, Juliet wore a "I Love Gary Gilmore
" T-shirt and instead of saying "time for 'The Cinema Show'", Juliet said "I want to go because I'm hungry and 'Supper's Ready'". This story was used once more in August, 1982 at the band's performance in Saratoga Springs, New York.
During the 1982 live performances without Gabriel (the last times the song would be played in full apart from a one-off reunion
with Gabriel in 1982), Collins would normally announce the song.
On the 1982 versions, Tony Banks used the Yamaha CP70 Electric Grand Piano to replace the RMI Electric Piano he used in the 1970s, plus an ARP Quadra to replace the ARP Pro-Soloist, and lastly Sequential Circuits Prophet 10 synthesizers which were used to replace his Hammond Organ and Mellotron. He also played 12-string acoustic guitar on section 1. Also, Mike Rutherford played two different six string Fender Stratocaster electric guitars and bass pedals for most of track except for the first two sections which he used an Ovation 12-string acoustic guitar and then an Alembic bass guitar for "Willow Farm". Daryl Stuermer played a Martin 12-string acoustic for first section then switched over to his Suntec Stratocaster electric guitar at beginning of "Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man" for rest of song. Chester Thompson played drums and Phil Collins did lead vocals and then drums on "Apocalypse in 9/8".
After 1982, only fragments of this song were played live by Genesis. During the first leg of the Invisible Touch tour in 1986, the band played the last two parts ("Apocalypse in 9/8", "As sure as eggs is eggs"). During the We Can't Dance tour in 1992, Collins suggested they play "Supper's Ready" in its entirety, but was voted down by Rutherford and Banks. Finally in the Calling All Stations tour in 1998, Genesis performed an acoustic medley containing section 1.
Concert performances
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
. A recorded version appeared on their 1972 album Foxtrot
Foxtrot (album)
Foxtrot is the fourth studio album by English progressive rock band Genesis and the second from the band line-up which included Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford, Phil Collins, and Steve Hackett.-History:...
, and the band performed the song regularly on stage for several years following this. Live versions appear on the albums Seconds Out
Seconds Out
Seconds Out is a live double album by Genesis, released in October 1977. It reached No.4 in the UK, remaining in the charts for 17 weeks. The performances were recorded in Paris in 1976 and 1977 on their tours in support of A Trick of the Tail and Wind & Wuthering...
(recorded in 1977), the compilation Genesis Archive 1967-75
Genesis Archive 1967-75
Genesis Archive 1967–75 is a 1998 boxed set by progressive rock band Genesis.This set features live recordings and rarities from the band's classic years when Peter Gabriel was lead singer. The first two of the four discs consist of a previously unreleased live recording of The Lamb Lies Down on...
, and the box set Genesis Live 1973–2007
Genesis Live 1973–2007
Genesis Live 1973–2007 is a box set by Genesis which includes all of their live albums except Live Over Europe 2007. Genesis Live its bonus tracks, Seconds Out, and Live at the Rainbow 1973 include bonus DVDs which feature their respective albums in 5.1 Surround Sound. Three Sides Live and The Way...
.
In an interview, Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
summed up "Supper's Ready" as "a personal journey which ends up walking through scenes from Revelation
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
in the Bible....I'll leave it at that."
Structure of "Supper's Ready"
Nearly 23 minutes in length, the song is divided into seven sections. A number of musical and lyrical themes do re-appear throughout. The melody of the verse in section 1 reappears as a flute melody between sections 2 and 3. The melody of the chorus in section 1 reappears with new lyrics in the coda to section 6. And the song that comprises the majority of section 2 reappears briefly in instrumental form at the beginning of section 6, and then returns to form the body of section 7, with new lyrics.One commentator regarded the structure of "Supper's Ready" as a variation of sonata form
Sonata form
Sonata form is a large-scale musical structure used widely since the middle of the 18th century . While it is typically used in the first movement of multi-movement pieces, it is sometimes used in subsequent movements as well—particularly the final movement...
—a musicological
Musicology
Musicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
analysis by Nors Josephson proposes that "section 7 may be viewed as a Lisztian
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
, symphonic
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
apotheosis" of the "cyclical
Cycle (music)
A music cycle is when a section of a song/music is repeated.In music a cycle is a section which is repeated or repeatable indefinitely, with the end of a preceding repetition leading to the beginning of a succeeding repetition. Cycles may be melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, or based on some other...
fanfare
Fanfare
A Fanfare is a relatively short piece of music that is typically played by trumpets and other brass instruments often accompanied by percussion...
s that originated in section 2." On the other hand, the individual components of "Supper's Ready" are much closer to traditional rock songs than they are to classical pieces, even if they contain elements of both.
As with many progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
pieces, the song undergoes multiple changes in time signature
Time signature
The time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
, key signature
Key signature
In musical notation, a key signature is a series of sharp or flat symbols placed on the staff, designating notes that are to be consistently played one semitone higher or lower than the equivalent natural notes unless otherwise altered with an accidental...
, Leitmotif
Leitmotif
A leitmotif , sometimes written leit-motif, is a musical term , referring to a recurring theme, associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical idea of idée fixe...
, instrumentation, and mood.
Authorship
The song's writing is credited jointly to the whole band (BanksTony Banks (musician)
This article is about the musician. For other people named Tony Banks, see Tony BanksAnthony George "Tony" Banks is a British composer, and multi-instrumentalist, who performs as a keyboardist and a guitarist...
/Collins
Phil Collins
Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for British progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist....
/Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
/Hackett
Steve Hackett
Stephen Richard Hackett is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. He gained prominence as a member of the British progressive rock group Genesis, which he joined in 1970 and left in 1977 to pursue a solo career...
/Rutherford
Mike Rutherford
Michael John Cleote Crawford Rutherford is an English musician. He is a founding member of Genesis, initially as a bassist and backup vocalist. In later incarnations of Genesis, he assumed the role of lead guitarist. He is one of only two constant members in Genesis . He also fronts Mike + The...
). In various interviews, Banks mentioned that he composed several of the musical progressions whilst still a university student; Gabriel authored most or all of the lyrical content; Collins apparently contributed much to the arrangements and segue
Segue
A segue is a smooth transition from one topic or section to the next.-In music:In music, segue is a direction to the performer. It means continue without a pause. It comes from the Italian "it follows". The term attacca is also used in classical music.For written music it implies a transition...
s from one section to another.
"Lover's Leap"
This section features a gentle arpeggiatedArpeggio
An arpeggio is a musical technique where notes in a chord are played or sung in sequence, one after the other, rather than ringing out simultaneously...
guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
backing (with Hackett, Banks and Rutherford all playing 12-string guitars), soft electric piano (Hohner
Hohner
Hohner Musikinstrumente GmbH & Co. KG is a company specialising in the manufacture of musical instruments. Founded in 1857 by Matthias Hohner , Hohner is identified especially with harmonicas and accordions. The Hohner company has invented and produced many different styles, and most of the...
pianet
Pianet
thumb|Hohner Pianet TThe Pianet was a series of electric pianos built by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany from the 1960s to the 1970s. The designer of the early Pianet models was Ernst Zacharias, basing the mechanism closely on a 1920s design by Lloyd Loar...
), bass pedals
Bass pedals
Bass pedals are an electronic musical instrument with foot-operated pedal keyboard with a range of one or more octaves. The earliest bass pedals from the 1970s consisted of a pedalboard and analog synthesizer tone generation circuitry packaged together as a unit...
, cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
and flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, and a section with folky three part vocal harmonies (which omit the third note of the chord). The only percussion used is triangle, cymbals, and bells.
Lyrically it tells of a man returning home after a long time to be greeted by his lover, and mentions supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
imagery ("six saintly shrouded men"), which Gabriel claims relate to a genuine supernatural experience which occurred with himself, his wife Jill and producer John Anthony. According to Gabriel, during a late-night conversation, his wife began speaking with a completely different voice. Gabriel held up a makeshift cross
Cross
A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet...
out of a candlestick and another household item, and Jill reacted violently. Jill was eventually calmed down and taken to bed, but neither Peter nor John Anthony slept that night. On another occasion, also late at night, Gabriel looked out of the window of his wife's parents' house to see what he perceived to be an entirely different lawn, across which seven shrouded men were walking. Gabriel recounted that these experiences led him to contemplate notions of good, evil, and the supernatural, and eventually inspired the lyrics to "Supper's Ready."
In the program given out at Genesis concerts at the time, "Lover's Leap" was explained as: "In which two lovers are lost in each other's eyes, and found again transformed in the bodies of another male and female."
This segment was performed as a standalone as part of an acoustic set on the group's 1998 Calling All Stations
Calling All Stations
Calling All Stations, is the 15th studio album by rock band Genesis. It was recorded following Phil Collins's departure from the band in 1996, and was released in 1997...
tour with Ray Wilson
Ray Wilson (musician)
Ray Wilson is a Scottish musician, best known as vocalist in the post-grunge band Stiltskin, and in Genesis between 1996 and 1998.Wilson started off in a band called Guaranteed Pure in the early 1990s...
on vocals.
"The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man"
Banks composed the chord progression whilst still at University. When performing the song live, Gabriel would don a "crown of thornsCrown of Thorns
In Christianity, the Crown of Thorns, one of the instruments of the Passion, was woven of thorn branches and placed on Jesus Christ before his crucifixion...
" headpiece at this point. The piece segués into the next with a Lover's Leap reprise.
The program describes this section as follows: "The lovers come across a town dominated by two characters; one a benevolent farmer and the other the head of a highly disciplined scientific religion. The latter likes to be known as "The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man" and claims to contain a secret new ingredient capable of fighting fire. This is a falsehood, an untruth, a whopper and a taradiddle, or to put it in clearer terms; a lie."
"Ikhnaton and Itsacon and Their Band of Merry Men"
This section is much more dynamic than the previous two, with lively drums, an elegiac electric guitar solo, and a lot of interplay between this guitar and the organ (including a section with fast organ and guitar arpeggios, Hackett employing the "tappingTapping
Tapping is a guitar playing technique, where a string is fretted and set into vibration as part of a single motion of being pushed onto the fretboard, as opposed to the standard technique being fretted with one hand and picked with the other...
" style of playing). The lyrics refer to a battle of some sort, presumably involving Ikhnaton
Akhenaten
Akhenaten also spelled Echnaton,Ikhnaton,and Khuenaten;meaning "living spirit of Aten") known before the fifth year of his reign as Amenhotep IV , was a Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt who ruled for 17 years and died perhaps in 1336 BC or 1334 BC...
.
The program spells "Itsacon" as "Its-a-con". It describes this section as follows: "Who the lovers see clad in greys and purples, awaiting to be summoned out of the ground. At the G.E.S.M's command they put forth from the bowels of the earth, to attack all those without an up-to-date "Eternal Life Licence", which were obtainable at the head office of the G.E.S.M.'s religion."
"How Dare I Be So Beautiful?"
This is a slow and gentle section, the only instrumentation being treated acoustic pianoPiano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
chords, each chord being faded-in on the recording, thus losing the piano's characteristic attack and sounding more like an organ (it was done on Hammond organ live). The title is a catchphrase used by the band's early music-business contact, Jonathan King
Jonathan King
Jonathan King is an English singer, songwriter, impresario and record producer. He is also the author of three novels, Bible Two and The Booker Prize Winner , and Beware the Monkey Man , and an autobiography, 65 My Life So Far .King first came to prominence as an...
. The lyrics deal with the aftermath of the preceding battle, and referring to the Greek myth of Narcissus
Narcissus (mythology)
Narcissus or Narkissos , possibly derived from ναρκη meaning "sleep, numbness," in Greek mythology was a hunter from the territory of Thespiae in Boeotia who was renowned for his beauty. He was exceptionally proud, in that he disdained those who loved him...
, who turned into a flower.
The program describes this section as follows: "In which our intrepid heroes investigate the aftermath of the battle and discover a solitary figure, obsessed by his own image. They witness an unusual transmutation, and are pulled into their own reflections in the water."
"Willow Farm"
Live in concert, Gabriel would appear in his "flower mask" (by Gabriel's own admission, partly inspired by the BBC children's programme The Flower Pot MenFlower Pot Men
The Flower Pot Men were a British pop group created in 1967 as a result of the single "Let's Go to San Francisco", recorded by session musicians, becoming a major UK Top 20 and Continental Europe hit) in the autumn of 1967...
.) This section features vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
-style sections, the Mellotron
Mellotron
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
Mark II's "combined brass" tape set, sped-up vocals, and musique concrète
Musique concrète
Musique concrète is a form of electroacoustic music that utilises acousmatic sound as a compositional resource. The compositional material is not restricted to the inclusion of sounds derived from musical instruments or voices, nor to elements traditionally thought of as "musical"...
noises of trains and explosions. Lyrically, it has a Python-esque
Monty Python
Monty Python was a British surreal comedy group who created their influential Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series...
quality, dealing with elements of the absurd in the English psyche, "there's Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
, dressed in drag
Drag (clothing)
Drag is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origin of the term "drag" is unknown, but it may have originated in Polari, a gay street argot in England in the early...
, he used to be a British flag, plastic bag, what a drag!" and numerous elements of word play, boarding schools, agricultural depravity and social conformity.
At this point there is a reflective interlude, not definitely belonging to either "Willow Farm" or the following "Apocalypse In 9/8", with bass pedal, electric guitar, organ and mellotron drones, followed by another melody on acoustic guitars, flute and Hammond organ
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
.
The program describes this section as follows: "Climbing out of the pool, they are once again in a different existence. They're right in the middle of a myriad of bright colours, filled with all manner of objects, plants, animals and humans. Life flows freely and everything is mindlessly busy. At random, a whistle blows and every single thing is instantly changed into another."
"Willow Farm" was originally a stand-alone song, with music and lyrics by Gabriel. At one point, while "Supper's Ready" was being written and assembled, Banks or Gabriel had the idea of including "Willow Farm" in the middle of it. Banks commented that this jarring, fast-paced piece prevented "Supper's Ready" from seeming too much like a repeat of their earlier epic "Stagnation".
"Apocalypse in 9/8 (Co-Starring the Delicious Talents of Gabble Ratchet)"
At this point, the drums enter, with the rhythm section striking out a pattern using the unusual metreTime signature
The time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
of 9 beats to the bar (expressed as 3+2+4). The lyrics employ stereotypical apocalyptic imagery, alternating with an organ solo from Banks (played in various time signatures against the 9/8 rhythm section), then switching to a climactic vocal from Gabriel, and the Mellotron "three violins" tape set. Banks has said that his approach to writing the solo was to parody the style that Keith Emerson
Keith Emerson
Keith Noel Emerson is an English keyboard player and composer. Formerly a member of the Keith Emerson Trio, John Brown's Bodies, The T-Bones, V.I.P.s, P.P. Arnold's backing band, and The Nice , he was a founder of Emerson, Lake & Palmer , one of the early supergroups, in 1970...
had developed with Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Emerson, Lake & Palmer, also known as ELP, are an English progressive rock supergroup. They found success in the 1970s and sold over forty million albums and headlined large stadium concerts. The band consists of Keith Emerson , Greg Lake and Carl Palmer...
. In live performances, during the organ solo, Gabriel would don a bizarre "Magog
Gog and Magog
Gog and Magog are names that appear primarily in various Jewish, Christian and Muslim scriptures, as well as numerous subsequent references in other works. Their context can be either genealogical or eschatological and apocalyptic, as in Ezekiel and Revelation...
" outfit of geometrical headdress (which can be seen on the cover of the band's Genesis Live
Genesis Live
Genesis Live is the first live album released by rock group Genesis in 1973. It was the band's first top 10 hit in the UK reaching No.9 and remaining on the charts for 10 weeks.-History:...
album). "Gabble Ratchet" is a reference to the Hounds of Hell; they are usually portrayed as geese, which explains the sound effect heard during this section (18:48–18:53 on Foxtrot). They are also known as "Gabriel's Hounds". The programme for the 1972/3 tour refers to this section as "co-starring the delicious talents of wild geese".
The program describes this section as follows: "At one whistle the lovers become seeds in the soil, where they recognise other seeds to be people from the world in which they had originated. While they wait for Spring, they are returned to their old world to see Apocalypse of St John
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
in full progress. The seven trumpeteers cause a sensation, the fox keeps throwing sixes, and Pythagoras (a Greek extra) is deliriously happy as he manages to put exactly the right amount of milk and honey on his corn flakes."
This segment was performed as a standalone once in 1978 and on the first leg of the 1986 Invisible Touch
Invisible Touch
Invisible Touch is the 13th studio album by the band Genesis, released in 1986. It reached No.1 in the UK where it remained in the charts for 96 weeks, making it by far the most commercially successful album of their career, eventually selling over 15 million copies worldwide...
Tour as part of the "In the Cage"/"...In That Quiet Earth"/"Supper's Ready" medley.
"As Sure As Eggs Is Eggs (Aching Men's Feet)"
"As Sure As Eggs Is Eggs" is a folklore variation of the logical tautologyTautology (logic)
In logic, a tautology is a formula which is true in every possible interpretation. Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein first applied the term to redundancies of propositional logic in 1921; it had been used earlier to refer to rhetorical tautologies, and continues to be used in that alternate sense...
that "X = X" and in this context is a reference to certainty and faith—being absolutely convinced of the ultimate victory of good over evil and that God and Heaven do indeed exist. "Aching Men's Feet" is a play on "making ends meet". "Apocalypse" segue
Segue
A segue is a smooth transition from one topic or section to the next.-In music:In music, segue is a direction to the performer. It means continue without a pause. It comes from the Italian "it follows". The term attacca is also used in classical music.For written music it implies a transition...
s into this part via a slower section which reprises the lyrics from "Lover's Leap" in combination with the chord progression from "The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man", backed by a pressed snare drum
Snare drum
The snare drum or side drum is a melodic percussion instrument with strands of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords stretched across the drumhead, typically the bottom. Pipe and tabor and some military snare drums often have a second set of snares on the bottom...
roll and tubular bell
Tubular bell
Tubular bells are musical instruments in the percussion family. Each bell is a metal tube, 30–38 mm in diameter, tuned by altering its length. Its standard range is from C4-F5, though many professional instruments reach G5 . Tubular bells are often replaced by studio chimes, which are a smaller...
s. During live shows, a flash charge would be fired and Gabriel would discard his Magog costume to reveal himself in shining white apparel which glowed when exposed to black light
Black light
A black light, also referred to as a UV light, ultraviolet light, or Wood's lamp, is a lamp that emits ultraviolet radiation in the long-wave range, and little visible light...
. During one gig, he attempted flying on a kirby wire
Kirby wire
George Kirby invented the first pendulum-based flying system for stage performers in 1898. Utilizing a quick-release mechanism for safety, the device became known as a "Kirby wire". The Kirby family made other innovations in theatrical flight including the somersault wire and a system that allowed...
, and was nearly strangled. From this point to the end, drums, deep bass pedals and Mellotron brass are present, as are Blakean
William Blake
William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
lyrics which reference The New Jerusalem
The New Jerusalem
The New Jerusalem is a 1920 book written by British writer G. K. Chesterton. Dale Ahlquist calls it a "philosophical travelogue" of Chesterton's journey across Europe to Palestine.-Quotes:...
(The Crystal City of God that is established after the death of the Anti-Christ) and the Second Coming of Christ with reference to the biblical Revelation
Revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, through active or passive communication with a supernatural or a divine entity...
19:17: "I saw an angel standing in the sun. He cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the sky, Come! Be gathered together to the great supper of God."
After completing the lyrics in this section, Gabriel would pick up and raise an active blacklight tube, holding it near himself, upraised with both hands, as though it were a sword. Gabriel would be the only one lit onstage at this point and would actually appear to be glowing from the combination of blacklight, his reflective white costume and fluorescent makeup. Gabriel considered this effect to be a theatrical way of symbolizing the victory of good/light over evil/darkness.
The piece fades out on overdubbing cascading electric guitar parts. On the original recording this section is in the key of A, but because of Gabriel's inability to properly recreate the vocal performance onstage from either hoarseness or tiredness, the band regularly had to change the key to G.
The program describes this section as follows: "Above all else an egg is an egg. 'And did those feet ............' making ends meet. Jerusalem = place of peace."
This segment was performed as a standalone once in 1978 and on the first leg of the 1986 Invisible Touch
Invisible Touch
Invisible Touch is the 13th studio album by the band Genesis, released in 1986. It reached No.1 in the UK where it remained in the charts for 96 weeks, making it by far the most commercially successful album of their career, eventually selling over 15 million copies worldwide...
Tour as part of the "In the Cage"/"...In That Quiet Earth"/"Supper's Ready" medley.
Live introduction
Live performances of "Supper's Ready" were preceded by Peter Gabriel telling a story. This is the story told at the Rainbow Theatre on 20 October 1973 (as released on the Genesis Archive 1967–75 set):During the 1982 Genesis reunion, billed as Six of the Best
Six of the best
Six of the Best was the name chosen for the reunion concert of the rock band Genesis with former founding member Peter Gabriel which took place on a wet 2 October 1982 at National Bowl, in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England...
, Gabriel told a story about a woman on a subway train (which he had told during the Foxtrot tour, and which was transcribed on the Genesis Live
Genesis Live
Genesis Live is the first live album released by rock group Genesis in 1973. It was the band's first top 10 hit in the UK reaching No.9 and remaining on the charts for 10 weeks.-History:...
album cover), slightly altered to segue into "Supper's Ready".
On the 1976 tour for A Trick of the Tail, Mike Rutherford would tell a story to introduce the song.
The 1977 performances on the Wind & Wuthering
Wind & Wuthering
"It's Yourself" is the B-side to "Your Own Special Way", released February 1977-Related EP:All tracks from the Single Spot the Pigeon 20 May 1977-2007 SACD/CD/DVD Release:...
tour (as documented on many ROIOs from this tour), Phil Collins would tell Peter Gabriel's "Romeo and Juliet" story from "The Cinema Show" to introduce the song. In these stories, Juliet wore a "I Love Gary Gilmore
Gary Gilmore
Gary Mark Gilmore was an American criminal, and murderer, who gained international notoriety for demanding that his own death sentence be fulfilled following two murders he committed in Utah. He became the first person executed in the United States after the U.S...
" T-shirt and instead of saying "time for 'The Cinema Show'", Juliet said "I want to go because I'm hungry and 'Supper's Ready'". This story was used once more in August, 1982 at the band's performance in Saratoga Springs, New York.
During the 1982 live performances without Gabriel (the last times the song would be played in full apart from a one-off reunion
Six of the best
Six of the Best was the name chosen for the reunion concert of the rock band Genesis with former founding member Peter Gabriel which took place on a wet 2 October 1982 at National Bowl, in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England...
with Gabriel in 1982), Collins would normally announce the song.
On the 1982 versions, Tony Banks used the Yamaha CP70 Electric Grand Piano to replace the RMI Electric Piano he used in the 1970s, plus an ARP Quadra to replace the ARP Pro-Soloist, and lastly Sequential Circuits Prophet 10 synthesizers which were used to replace his Hammond Organ and Mellotron. He also played 12-string acoustic guitar on section 1. Also, Mike Rutherford played two different six string Fender Stratocaster electric guitars and bass pedals for most of track except for the first two sections which he used an Ovation 12-string acoustic guitar and then an Alembic bass guitar for "Willow Farm". Daryl Stuermer played a Martin 12-string acoustic for first section then switched over to his Suntec Stratocaster electric guitar at beginning of "Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man" for rest of song. Chester Thompson played drums and Phil Collins did lead vocals and then drums on "Apocalypse in 9/8".
After 1982, only fragments of this song were played live by Genesis. During the first leg of the Invisible Touch tour in 1986, the band played the last two parts ("Apocalypse in 9/8", "As sure as eggs is eggs"). During the We Can't Dance tour in 1992, Collins suggested they play "Supper's Ready" in its entirety, but was voted down by Rutherford and Banks. Finally in the Calling All Stations tour in 1998, Genesis performed an acoustic medley containing section 1.
Personnel
- Peter Gabriel – vocals, fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, bass drumBass drumBass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
, tambourineTambourineThe tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
and oboeOboeThe oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
(original studio recording and 1972–74 and October, 1982 performances) - Steve Hackett – electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, 6 and 12 string acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
s and guitar effects (on studio recording and 1972-1977 live performances) - Mike Rutherford – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, 12 string acoustic and electric guitars, bass pedalsBass pedalsBass pedals are an electronic musical instrument with foot-operated pedal keyboard with a range of one or more octaves. The earliest bass pedals from the 1970s consisted of a pedalboard and analog synthesizer tone generation circuitry packaged together as a unit...
, celloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
, 6-string electric guitar (1982 performances) - Tony Banks – pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, Hohner pianetPianetthumb|Hohner Pianet TThe Pianet was a series of electric pianos built by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany from the 1960s to the 1970s. The designer of the early Pianet models was Ernst Zacharias, basing the mechanism closely on a 1920s design by Lloyd Loar...
, Hammond organHammond organThe Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
, mellotronMellotronThe Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
, treated piano, 12 string acoustic guitar, backing vocals, RMI Electric Piano (performances from 1973-77), ARP Pro-Soloist synthesizer (1973-1977 performances), Yamaha CP-70 Electric Grand Piano (1982 performances), Sequential Circuits Prophet-10 Synthesizers (1982 performances), ARP Quadra Synthesizer (1982 performances) - Phil Collins – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, backing vocals, triangleTriangle (instrument)The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve...
, tubular bellTubular bellTubular bells are musical instruments in the percussion family. Each bell is a metal tube, 30–38 mm in diameter, tuned by altering its length. Its standard range is from C4-F5, though many professional instruments reach G5 . Tubular bells are often replaced by studio chimes, which are a smaller...
s, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, lead vocals on Seconds Out live version and most live performances from 1976 onward
Concert performances
- Chester ThompsonChester ThompsonChester Cortez Thompson is an American drummer and session musician.-Biography:Thompson made his name as a session drummer, going on to play in Frank Zappa's touring band and with Weather Report...
– drums on Seconds Out version and performances from 1977–82 - Daryl StuermerDaryl StuermerDaryl Mark Stuermer is an American musician who plays guitar and bass for Genesis during live shows, and lead guitar for Phil Collins during most of his solo tours and albums.-Biography:...
– lead electric guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar on 1982 performances - Bill BrufordBill BrufordWilliam Scott "Bill" Bruford is an English drummer, percussionist, composer, producer, and record label owner. He was the original drummer for the progressive rock group Yes, from 1968-1972. Bruford has performed for numerous popular acts since the early 1970s, including a stint as touring...
– drums on performances from 1976