Totally agree, and don t miss his "Tribute" album, classic spanish guitar. Small thing: so interesting the hair still having this genuine black colour, compared to, let s say Bryan Mays'. Okey, maybe Queen was working even more physically, Hackett more kind of sitting down. A really great musician, a real favourite of mine!
But he isn’t married to sexy Toyah & isn’t impressing Robert Plant as she gargles her way through Stairway in a giant tent somewhere near Salisbury. Robert isn’t famous for being Mr Nice Guy. I will be honest i have yet to even listen to this but i was excited because I’ve never considered Genesis & King Crimson or Fripp within any matching framework. I’ve been aware since 1980 of a working relationship between Fripp & Hammill though. 😃👍
@@Bo-tz4nwi have repeatedly tried to appreciate his album Defector & the like & i just cannot stand that type of music to be honest. I don’t know if you’d describe it as AOR or Pop but whatever it it is I can’t hear poppy hooks or melodies nor did it stretch my imagination so i kept to Post Punk , indie then loved Bay of Kings & still do. 😁
Steve really is the keeper of the flame for Genesis. Peter Gabriel wanted nothing to do with his old band, Genesis moved into a new sound that was more commercially successful, whereas Steve loved his work with Genesis and has kept it alive all these years
I mean prog years yes. But genesis changed when pete and steve left. Phil didn't write much in those years but Tony and Mike were always writing. Its just 2 different bands really. Tony was always the main writer. And he was rigid so the other creators (besides mike) couldnt get out what they wanted. When Pete land then Steve left tho Tony very much clung to Phil in order to stay relevant. Lucky for him phils melodies and sings were huge hits. Albeit very differnt from early genesis. So yes Steve has held it for early genesis but phil and tony did as well.
Without this man, this one man, we would have to do with the records, albeit fantastic, and more or less talented tribute band. He is single-handedly responsible for preserving the live versions of the greatest progg music ever concieved. Kudos to you Mr Hacket, kudos!
It's not just on stage that Steve is somehow still at his peak in 2024. I mean what a difference comparing him being interviewed to just about 99.9 percent of musicians with a half-century career behind them. It's really remarkable. He doesn't sound like someone reminiscing about the good old days at all: it's as if his mind is still WORKING with the music itself, analyzing and digesting it as if it were brand new. Perhaps that's why he never sounds like one of those tired old rock mastodons. And perhaps that's why even after fifty years the music sounds completely fresh when he plays it. He's an extraordinary artist. And considering I wouldn't be born for another quarter century when Genesis were at their 70s zenith, I'm grateful I get to experience these tracks being played in a way that's so fresh, so real, so full of life, never feeling like the nostalgia act that so many musicians turn into after touring for more than a decade or two. I'm not sure I've ever seen anything quite like it.
Thank you Barry. Steve is a gentleman and gives freely. I love listening to him. Steve is also the only one holding the Genesis torch aloft. And I am grateful for that. Thank you Steve…for everything.
The best ever show Helsinki Spring 2014 Genesis Revisited Live in a small venue three hours perfection in everything faultless presentation and performance. Me and my found ourselves shouting The Knife !
You'd never know how old he was. How does he remember all this stuff ? A truly wonderful guitar player. Saw him perform Horizons live in the 80s on one of his solo tours at Hammersmith Odeon. Made me cry. Have seen him play three or four times. So looking forward to this tour 🎉
The Lamb is my favorite album by any group. And Steve, I have not missed a tour in many years. He was on fire when I saw him last year. Fantastic show. And his album the Circus and the Nightwale was quite good. Thank you, thank you, thank you Steve!!
I appreciate very much how you allow Steve the space to talk (even if he seems to stray from the question). His perspective on his days with genesis is quite interesting. He speaks with such candor.
One of the greatest sounding guitarists ever! I had to stop and listen to Firth of Fifth for a few minutes mid interview :-)... The guitar in that last half is epic!!
I saw him and his crack band in April 2024, in Houston. I was taken back at the force and majesty of the music, as I kept reminding my concert-going young companion. Craig Blundell gave one of the most powerful ROCK drum solos I've ever seen and heard.
Lamb Lies Down was a major landmark when I was kid in high school. It was my favorite album for many years. I still enjoy listening to it occasionally. The surrealistic story line embodied the classic Heroes Journey, with Rael going through various trials and having a final realization that culminates in the song "It." Thanks Barry, the interview of Steve Hackett. It was enlightening.
I've seen Steve Hackett in concert since the Lamb in 1974. I'm acquainted with people who know Steve and have broken bread with Steve and Jo. These acquaintances have nothing but genuinely kind words regarding Steve. He's a class act. I hope to meet him before this ride is over.
The guitars on Hairless Heart are so gorgeous! OMG There's a live video of the Lamb in RU-vid everyone needs to see! You can see the whole show, it's really amazing. This show sounds so amazing, Steve looks awesome, too. What an artist, thanks for all the music, what a creative legacy.
I can very much relate to the kind words Steve said about Peter and Africa. Him singing Beko at a concert in Brussels in 1980 was registered as a minor earthquake in the observatory as we all sang along. Afterwards when we left the stadium, there was riot police everywhere as they thought we were all subversives. But it did indeed inspire me to help organise marches for South Africa. Many years later we went to Yousou N’Dour’s discotheque in Dakar. He is the hero of Senegal and most of Africa. Peter did so much for African music and equality. Much later after that I am proud I was able to be in South Africa at Mandela’s funeral and I laid flowers by his coffin. Peter was indeed a visionary.
I enjoyed the Nuremberg gig last week enormously. He is a guitarist guitarist ..his touch and phrasing and choice of sounds pallet is so cool to see up close. Nad was on the finest form vocally too. Wonderful to catch the essence of the Lamb ..I saw the full album played by the Musical Box which wa great, but Steve's sound is in his fingers too. sadly I don't find his solo stuff quite so accessible. Wonderfully talented musicians he tours with too.
The most charming person that you can meet in the "rock" sphere. I admire his musical ADN that made him declining from Genesis at the time he perceived kind of a "sick and ego momentum into the band" . He is a MUSICIAN . He has proven that by composing solo works without stoping for about 48 years, most or them amazing. And he has mantained a lower profile, while other, with less talent have been boasting out
I really admire the evolution of his live shows the last 15 years. It's not easy to play stuff from the past when you're a fountain of new material, and yet that old material is so well loved. Steve's answer has been to play quite a lot of old material, but without being a tribute band that merely copies things faithfully. His current band is not *repertory*; they play those tunes like themselves, not like Genesis, and that keeps it fresh and new. I hope he knows how many of us regular attendees love his new material just as much. Yeah, there might be hell to pay if he didn't play some of the old stuff these days, but an equal number of use would be upset if there was nothing new either. Everyone in the band is having FUN, old songs and new. He's completely avoided being one of those old rockers playing half-hearted classics at corporate picnics that usually leave me feeling a bit embarassed for them. Avoided it my a huge margin. Back in 1972 I was a 12 year old kid trying to learn the guitar parts on Nursery Cryme on my Harmony acoustic guitar. Half a century later, I still do the same, especially the classical pieces. (I may have better guitars now.) A Hackett concert these days is two shows for the price of one-I get to be a fanboy of the Genesis era, and get to watch a superb band surprise me at every turn.
Great interview Barry. I first saw the band supporting Lindisfarne and again performing The Lamb at the Usher Hall, amazing gig. Gabriel era Genesis were untouchable.
Mark my journey was with going to see Lindisfarne in London. I wasn’t sure what I was watching and indeed listening too. The Musical Box and the Old Man with Peter has stuck with me all these years. Lost interest after the Trick .👌🎶🎸
@@mrduffin1663Lost interest after Lamb but found Wind nicely suprised and Three with grandeau symphonic sound and power in certain songs. And the best disco tune perfectly fitting the late 70s.
I discovered all this wonderful music in 1980 , with the release of Peter Gabriel 3rd album. My local record store owner told me about Genesis Steve ,etc and been a fan ever since. Steve Hackett is such a descent person. The first time I ever saw him live was with the ill fated GTR . I was literally an arms length at the concert. I have seen Steve play live at least 7 or 8 times since. I love his new album. It's probably one of my favorites of all time.
I bought the first PG album at the record store near Charterhouse which the band members frequented while schooling there. When I got it home, I discovered that there was a chunk missing from the edge, as if someone had taken a bite out of it. Deeply troubling.
@@TheRealHucasys Yes! I had to take it back, but that shop did very well out if me overall. They were very good. There was none of this: "But you _have_ chewed it, sir."
Saw him last year in a small theater in Salem, Oregon doing the Foxtrot tour. 3rd row center. What a great freakin’ show. His band is awesome it’s ridiculous. If you ever get a chance to see him live do it!! You won’t be sorry.
Great interview, very much looking forward to seeing him and the band in Cardiff. I enjoyed hearing him talk about this tour and the lamb in general. I think its time I gave some of his solo albums a spin
I saw Steve play on the Seconds Out tour in Washington DC in 2022 and it was a wonderful show. I then bought a 180 gram version of The Lamb to replace my old copy, what a great album!
One of my FAVE guitarists! Wish this tour would come to here to the States.......! And, as a DEVOUTE metalhead, Fly on a Windshield is SOOOO HEAVY! So deliciously heavy! That keyboard drop is EPIC!
I just want to acknowledge (again) that Steve's "Cured" album is a wonderful work of pop/progressive material that doesn't get the credit it deserves. It has plenty of melodic guitar and keyboard sounds as well as lyrics that creates emotional vibes for me. The Linn drums sound meticulously programed and obviously took a lot of time and work to create. "Highly Strung" is another of his albums that is full of amazing work as well and it too doesn't get the credit it deserves. Also, I like that Steve provided all the vocals on Cured and most, if not all, on Highly Strung. I never get tired of listening to them both.
It's nice to hear this gentleman in his own words. The concert in Nürnberg last weekend was one of the most extraordinary concerts I've ever been to. I'm looking forward to the concerts in Italy, which isn't that far from us. I hope there's standing room there too, it's hard not to be able to move when you're sitting :) The band is fantastic, the music is livelier than ever, it was just wonderful and Nad is more than a replacement for Peter Gabriel. By the way: Greetings to the couple with the "I love Nad" shirt. Hope to meet you next time.
Love Steve, an amazing musician and a wonderful humble man, the only member still holding that classic Genesis torch. I will be looking forward to seeing him in Turin insha'Allah end of the year, I have a front row ticket :)
Fantastic interview! I have a lot of admiration for Steve, but it's clear he still harbors some (likely justified) resentment towards certain band members, especially Tony B.
I attended in 2 oportunities in México City. The first one was an acoustic performance in 2005. The second one was in 2018. An extraordinary venue divided in 2 sets: solo career and GTR, and the second half, classic GENESIS. The higlights of the night were "when the heart rules the mind", "shadow of the hierophant", and "the endos" Wonderful concert, plenty of virtuosism Kind regards from México
Great Interview but if you ever interview Steve again about The Lamb can you ask him why they never filmed the Lamb show back then? I imagine if's about costs of filming and maybe the fact that Gabriel was leaving after the tour stopped the from filming the show but i would like to hear what Steve has to say.
Yes Steve. Please play LOTS of Lamb tracks! Some of the Least rocky, the said. That means hopefully In The Rapids. End it with _It. It_ would have been a great single. _It_ / Watcher would be cool since there may be some other Genesis tracks played. I loved Steve's soaring guitar on that 1976 live recording. The Chamber of 32 Doors was gorgeous. Pete was obsessed by "chambers" in The Lamb!
Watching the interview, I keep thinking: Man, I love his playing, I love his music and his work in and out of Genesis... But then he starts to speak, once again, about the end of his tenure with Genesis. He's been more time out of the band than in it, and he keeps revisiting, by his account, his most difficult years. I just don't get why he does it, it feels like all his interviews are the same.
@@classicalbum I was very lucky as one of my brothers friends dropped out at the last minute and I was offered the ticket - Steve H. just gets better and better !
Great player and composer, and very influential. My only issue is when you see him live, he not only rarely moves - but his eyes remain fixed on his fretboard. Makes even Robert Fripp look exciting lol
It's very strange to think about it, but except for the name, I'd never even heard about Genesis by the time Peter Gabriel released his 'Shock the Monkey', and Genesis released 'That's All', I think. Luckily (for me) this was just before most of Genesis LP catalogue was released on the Best Price thingy for LP's in the mid-80's. Of course, I had to spread out my paltry earnings of the time, so I got everything up through the first two albums with Phil Collins at the vocals (and I love all of them!), but from there I had so many, many other avenues to explore with my limited funds... I did borrow (and put on a cassette...) the Undertow album, and I later made an effort to get it legally for my mp3 collection.
Amazing this popped up as I've been re-visiting this album. I've tracked down some demos on utube and I've come to conclude that the album was mixed with a lot of the guitar work buried in the mix - I dare say even nullified. I feel as if the guitars (Steve spoke of this 'I'm not in control' etc.) were given equal sonic structure as the keys the album would sound a lot "harder". I don't want to blame Tony or John Burns mixing but I think it would give more sonic edge to fit the narrative. I think the "softer" eq kind of blindsides the density. Honestly I think the band simply didn't want to go through the arduous task of fighting for an equal mix. Steve kind of just acquiesced you can tell. A 97 minute album and basically 1 or 2 "kind of"'guitar solos? Come now! Truth is I think he contributed much more than we think, but simply don't hear it. In a perfect world this year would see a completely re-mixed (not re-recorded!) and remastered 180 gram vinyl re-release. Instead it's ... well, silence from the Genesis camp. It's not a priority. I'm just glad we have the album.
It really was good, though I love the Selling England intricate Cinema Show drumming too. The Lamb drumming has a very different, more raw sound and gives the album a lovely edhy but silvery monochrome sound, like the cover, to my weird perception. I heard a few bootlegs of Lamb gigs. Phil was even more on fire on those. He had a big drumkit then too, pretty unique from the pictures.
20:55 Anyone catch this? Steve reveals he played vibraphone on the link between “Supernatural Anaesthetist” and “Lamia.” I always thought Phil did all the vibe work! Maybe this is what was meant by the phrase “with variations on the above and experiments with foreign sounds.”
What I do know. I have a friend on Facebook, of whom states regarding the 'Lamb Lies Down on Broadway' album, it really bothers him the sound on the Lamb. It sounds great to me, though, he states "Perhaps it is just me - I am a sound junkie". And, how was Brian Eno involved in the production in all of this?
