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The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway (song)

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"The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway"
Single by Genesis
from the album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
B-side"Counting Out Time"
Released1974 (US)
RecordedAugust–October 1974
GenreProgressive rock
Length5:03
LabelAtco Records/Atlantic (U.S.)
Songwriter(s)Tony Banks, Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett, Mike Rutherford
Producer(s)John Burns and Genesis

"The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" is the first song from Genesis's 1974 album of the same name. The song was released as a single in the U.S. Although it did not chart, it was frequently played on American FM radio stations.

The end of the song features the words "They say the neon lights are bright on Broadway. They say there's always magic in the air" from The Drifters' song "On Broadway". The studio recording features a variation on the former lyric ("They say the lights are always bright on Broadway"), but subsequent live recordings feature the original.

The bass-playing on the song by Mike Rutherford has been described as having "connotations of aggressive energy" that fits in well with the concept album's angry and defiant character Rael.[1]

Record World called it "a theatrical rock event with a haunting plotline."[2]

After Gabriel's departure, the Phil Collins-fronted incarnation of the band performed the song often during their first few tours, usually segueing into the closing section of "The Musical Box".[3] A live version appears on Seconds Out from 1977 as well as part of the "Old Medley" on The Way We Walk, Volume Two: The Longs from 1993. The song was also played in full during the 1998 Calling All Stations tour, with Ray Wilson on vocals. For the 2021 The Last Domino? Tour they play a stripped-back, acoustic version of the song as part of a short acoustic section of the show which also included "That's All" and "Follow You, Follow Me".

Personnel

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References

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  1. ^ Holm-Hudson, Kevin (2008). Genesis and The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Ashgate. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-7546-6139-9.
  2. ^ "Single Picks" (PDF). Record World. 15 February 1975. p. 14. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  3. ^ Couture, François. "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway: Song Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
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