Genesis – Extras Tracks 1983-1998 (2007)
PS3 Rip | ISO | SACD DST64 2.0 & 5.1 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 45:36 minutes | Scans included | 2.91 GB
or FLAC 2.0 Stereo (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 951 MB
Features 2.0 Stereo and 5.1 multichannel surround sound

The long-awaited high-fidelity overhaul of the Genesis catalog began with a multi-album box set spanning 1976-1982 — the first half of Phil Collins’ reign as lead vocalist, otherwise known as the prog years of when the group was a trio. Instead of moving backward to cover the band’s early, arty years with Peter Gabriel, the next release in this series moved forward, covering 1983-1998, otherwise known as the “pop years” for the trio. To their credit, Genesis doesn’t try to write the 1998 post-Collins Calling All Stations out of their history: it’s right here, alongside 1983’s Genesis, 1986’s Invisible Touch, and 1991’s We Can’t Dance, plus a bonus disc with eight rarities. Going forward to these albums makes sense for two reasons: first of all, there’s the fact that this is the reunited lineup that was touring the world in 2007, but it’s also true that these digital-era productions are better showcases for 5.1 Surround mixes and they’re the records that have loads of video and multimedia material to fill out these DVD-As (in the U.K., this set is available as Hybrid SACDs as well). The video section of each of the albums contains all the video clips from the record, plus new interviews with the bands about the record, then there’s multimedia press kits added to the mix. It may be a more deluxe treatment than either We Can’t Dance or Calling All Stations, but it’s certainly something that will appeal to hardcore fans who will find this expertly produced set irresistible even if the music itself isn’t.

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Genesis – Extras Tracks 1976-1982 (2007)
PS3 Rip | ISO | SACD DST64 2.0 & 5.1 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 59:03 minutes | Scans included | 3,75 GB
or FLAC 2.0 Stereo (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 1,29 GB
Features 2.0 Stereo and 5.1 multichannel surround sound

If the grouping of albums on this 2007 box set initially seems a little odd — it is neither a collection of the band’s early work, nor all of their albums after Peter Gabriel’s departure, nor is it their most popular work — it soon becomes apparent why these five albums are grouped together and reissued as remastered double-disc sets, with one disc containing a CD of the album, the other a DVD with a 5.1 mix and extra video material (in the U.K., the first disc contains hybrid SACDs of the albums, raising this question why they aren’t in this format in the U.S., especially since the bonus disc in this box is a hybrid SACD in all territories). These are the key art rock albums from the Phil Collins-fronted lineup of Genesis, the ones that the fans value, certainly more so than the pop-oriented Genesis and Invisible Touch. Collins, Tony Banks, and Mike Rutherford reunited in 2007 for a tour, so it made sense to box up their key texts as a deluxe reissue, because this is indeed the music that the fans will want to hear on the tour. If the remastered sound wasn’t enough of an incentive for hardcore fans (although it often is), the set also includes plenty of supplemental material, highlighted by a bonus disc containing 13 rarities and B-sides, including the single “Paperlate.” That’s not the end of the bonus material, though: there’s also a 48-page book, and each DVD is packed with extra material, including promotional videos, TV appearances, replications of tour programs, and new interviews with the band about the making of the albums. The only drawback to the set is that it’s not available as hybrid SACDs in all territories, but really, that’s a minor complaint because this set is executed with love and care, living up to the high expectations of Genesis’ dedicated fans.

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Genesis – Extras Tracks 1970-1975 (2007)
PS3 Rip | ISO | SACD DST64 2.0 & 5.1 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 46:42 minutes | Scans included | 2,86 GB
or FLAC 2.0 Stereo (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 997 MB
Features 2.0 Stereo and 5.1 multichannel surround sound

This supplemental disc has the exceptional B-side “Twilight Alehouse,” the single-only “Happy the Man,” the demo of the terrific “Going Out to Get You,” and the BBC session that produced “Shepherd,” “Pacidy,” and “Let Us Now Make Love” — all tracks that showed up on the 1998 box set Genesis Archives, Vol. 1: 1967-1975, but the real treat is the first official release of the four songs that comprise Genesis Plays Jackson, the band’s soundtrack to a show by artist Michael Jackson. Add to this the video material — limited to interviews on Trespass and Nursery Cryme, but containing full performances on Foxtrot and Selling England, plus the original slide shows used for the stage show of Lamb — and this box turns into something extraordinary: a nearly complete portrait of a restlessly creative band at their peak, whose output only sounds more distinctive with each passing year.

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Genesis – Wind & Wuthering (1976) [Remastered Reissue 2007]
PS3 Rip | ISO | SACD DST64 2.0 & 5.1 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 50:57 minutes | Scans included | 3,19 GB
or FLAC 2.0 Stereo (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 1,03 GB
Features 2.0 Stereo and 5.1 multichannel surround sound

Wind & Wuthering followed quickly on the heels of A Trick of the Tail and they’re very much cut from the same cloth, working the same English eccentric ground that was the group’s stock in trade since Trespass. But if A Trick of the Tail played like Genesis’ attempt at crafting a great Genesis record without Peter Gabriel, as a way of finding their footing as a quartet, Wind & Wuthering finds Genesis tentatively figuring out what their identity will be in this new phase of their career. The most obvious indication of this is Mike Rutherford’s “Your Own Special Way,” which is both the poppiest tune the group had cut and also the first that could qualify as a love song. It stands out on a record that is, apart from that, a standard Genesis record, but quite a good one in that regard.

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