35 All-Time Best Genesis Songs

15. "Abacab"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbjfesCI254 Named after the song's early structure, with parts labeled after certain letters of the alphabet (A to B to A...get it?), "Abacab" is an art-rock masterpiece, complicated enough to feature multiple chord changes but still commercial enough to get stuck in your ear for days€”and in a good way. With its noodling keyboard work, syncopated percussion, and beautifully biting guitar riffs, it's no wonder they named the album after this hit.

14. "No Reply At All"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi5y5aDiqlE This is one of the few Genesis tunes to take advantage of a horn section (courtesy of Earth, Wind & Fire), something Collins heavily relied on throughout his solo career. In that respect, you could say it sounds more like a Collins song than a Genesis one, though the jam band Phish chose to play it at the ceremony when Genesis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. As its name implies, "No Reply at All" is about miscommunication, and my favorite part is the bridge (which is rarely a favorite part of any song), as Collins loudly pleads with his lover while Banks tickles the ivories in a moving crescendo.

13. "Keep It Dark"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQkiqQ7zZBQ Despite sounding at home on a pop radio station, this song was fittingly darker. It's about a man who is abducted by aliens and taken to a bright, happy world, and when he is returned to his family, he lies about being captured by money-hungry robbers since he realises no one would believe the true story (hence, the title of the song). More interestingly, the music sounds like the three members of the band are in heated competition with each other. Backed by Rutherford's repeated guitar riff, the melody is suddenly interrupted several times by something that resembles Collins having a percussive fit, only to have Banks' keyboards noisily drive the song back into the original groove. It's a strange and unforgettable experience.

12. "Man On The Corner"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htTTrXB025E If this song sounds like a solo Phil Collins track, that's because it was completely written by him€”words and music. It's also fairly straightforward compared with other Genesis tunes, but it's no less meaningful. Backed by haunting synths, Collins observes the lonely life of a homeless man yelling on the street, trying to get anyone's attention but failing. A similar sentiment would be echoed several years later on his hugely successful solo hit, "Another Day in Paradise," this time featuring an elderly woman seeking help in a big city but finding none.

11. "Mama"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1LOWEufAH0 The band's most successful single in the UK, "Mama" was also probably how Norman Bates from Psycho serenaded his mother. Collins has never sounded crazier before in his career, laughing maniacally before collapsing into a weird sneer. The song tells the sordid story of an insane man who's got a major mother complex. And who could forget that driving, pounding gated-reverb drum that opens the song? Producer Hugh Padgham, who would go on to produce their multiplatinum Invisible Touch coming up next on this list, said he was "tired of hearing records that sounded like they were recorded in cardboard boxes." He maintained that when you went to live concerts, the drums are so loud, "you almost can't stand it," and he wanted to replicate that experience on an album. Mission accomplished, Hugh.