Music DVD Review: Genesis - When In Rome 2007
Published July 06, 2008
Back in 2005 rumors began spreading of a possible Genesis reunion featuring the quintessential lineup of Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford, and Phil Collins. The band members discussed performing The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway live for a limited run of shows that would be recorded and filmed. Could it finally happen?
Unfortunately this reunion never came to fruition, but instead the ...And Then There Were Three lineup of Collins, Rutherford, and Banks, along with long time touring members Daryl Stuermer and Chester Thompson, came together for the first time in 15-years to embark on what was billed as the Turn It On Again World Tour of 2007.
When In Rome was filmed on July 14, 2007 during a free open-air concert at Rome's Circo Massimo, before an enormous crowd of nearly 500,000 people. I think it is safe to say that the Genesis fan base remains firmly in tact - no matter what lineup they are presenting. I never thought that Genesis would be able to one-up the elaborate stage show that they rolled out during their 1992 We Can't Dance Tour, which was so eloquently captured on their The Way We Walk concert DVD, but they did - and then some.
The concert kicks off in fine fashion with "Duke's Intro," a combination of "Behind The Lines" and "Duke's End." This strong opening number immediately gives you hope that this would not just be another Invisible Touch/We Can't Dance love affair like the last one was, although they were still heavily favored. "Turn It On Again," another Duke standout, follows the ambitious opener, and then Collins takes a few minutes to address the crowd - in Italian. Reading from some notes he had written down and rehearsed, Collins comes off as charming the first time around, but it soon turns annoying the next few times he bogs down the proceedings with his butchered Italian.
The stage setup for this tour was monstrous to say the least. The band is surrounded by a massive 210 foot wide curved video backdrop that provides animation and graphics throughout the show. The shape of the stage is kind of odd looking, it reminded me of a giant sperm whale, but it works well once you see the whole affect. Numerous lighting towers are strategically placed all over the stage, and they offer up one of the brightest and most colorful light shows I have ever witnessed.
This getup alone would make most other band's jealous, but also positioned behind the stage are several more lighting towers that dwarf the ones on stage by a magnitude of about five. It made Pink Floyd's Pulse tour look small in scale. One of the most impressive parts of the show came early on when they played the Peter Gabriel era classic "In The Cage," which also featured excerpts of "Cinema Show" and "Duke's Travels." It sounded so good that I actually got a little choked up with emotion. The 30 foot tall, 3-D man running at you on the screen, and then exploding out of the cage, looked pretty damn cool too.
- Music DVD Review: Genesis - When In Rome 2007
- Published: July 06, 2008
- Type: Review
- Section: Music
- Filed Under: Music: Rock, Music: Progressive Rock, Music: Pop, Music: Live Concerts, Music: Video, Review, Video: Music
- Writer: Paul Roy
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Comments
Kit, I didn't realize the remastered version of Three Sides Live was out of print. I picked up my copy back in the 90's.
I had the great luck to see this terrific band playing in Washington DC during this last tour, and let me tell you it was the best concert I ever seemed.
This DVD really captures this feeling. The video quality is amazing, since it was filmed in HD. The sound is another fantastic chapter in this production. It will blown your home theater away!!
Don't miss to have it in your collection. It's a real gem.





I'm glad to see that Genesis played some of the older stuff instead of simply the hits. I too liked the "Abacab" album, and don't know why they tend to ignore it in concerts. However, they did play some "Abacab" stuff on their early 80s album "Three Sides Live," which I believe is now out of print. That should be remastered and reissued.