Vinyl Record
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound on LP vinyl. A 1973 record available from Kilmorna Collection in Listowel, Ireland.
LP ยท 1973
Available from Kilmorna Collection in Listowel.
Buyer notes: 1973 LP, currently available from the Kilmorna Collection vinyl shelf. Pay for pickup in Listowel or ship within Ireland for EUR 5.50.
Selling England by the Pound is Genesis turning Englishness into a dream, a joke, a lament and a technical showcase. Released in 1973, it sits at the heart of the Peter Gabriel era, when the band had fully developed its mix of theatrical storytelling, intricate ensemble playing and pastoral strangeness. The title suggests satire, and the album delivers it, but the music is too beautiful and too emotionally layered to reduce to commentary. Dancing with the Moonlit Knight opens with Gabriel alone before the band unfolds into one of its most graceful progressive statements. I Know What I Like gives Genesis an unusually concise and playful single, while Firth of Fifth moves from Tony Banks' formal piano introduction into one of Steve Hackett's most celebrated guitar lines. The Battle of Epping Forest is crowded, comic and excessive by design; After the Ordeal offers instrumental release; The Cinema Show expands into one of the band's great long-form journeys. The album's lasting power comes from balance. Genesis could be witty, ornate, pastoral, aggressive and emotionally serious within the same side of music, and here those impulses feel unusually well integrated. Selling England by the Pound is not just a landmark of progressive rock; it is the point where Genesis' eccentric private language became grand, melodic and widely persuasive.
Selling England by the Pound matters because it is one of the most complete statements of Gabriel-era Genesis. It combines English social satire, mythic atmosphere, virtuoso ensemble passages and accessible melody without losing coherence. For many listeners, it is the band's early progressive peak.
This is a cornerstone album, not a deep-cut recommendation. It belongs in any Genesis collection and any serious 1970s progressive rock shelf. It pairs naturally with Foxtrot and The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, but its balance of beauty, humor and precision gives it a uniquely welcoming power.
Classic symphonic progressive rock with pastoral textures, theatrical vocals, intricate keyboards, lyrical guitar, shifting meters and a distinctly English sense of wit and melancholy.
Recommended for: Collectors seeking the essential Gabriel-era Genesis album; Fans of melodic but technically ambitious 1970s progressive rock; Listeners who want long-form songs with wit, beauty and dramatic range.
What year was Selling England by the Pound released? Selling England by the Pound was released in 1973. Is this a good first Gabriel-era Genesis album? Yes. It is one of the most balanced entry points into the band's early progressive sound. Which tracks are essential? Dancing with the Moonlit Knight, Firth of Fifth, I Know What I Like and The Cinema Show are central tracks.