I traveled from my home in Orlando, Florida, to Columbus, Ohio
the third weekend of September. Part of it was to visit family, but the main reason for the trip was for my birthday present (my birthday was on Sept. 14, but the present was a day of fun, starting with an Ohio State football game and ending with a concert by my favorite band, Genesis).
After a blissful afternoon with my friend Ken, watching the Buckeyes steamroll Northwestern, 58-7 in the 500th game at the old Horseshoe, it was time to head downtown for the concert at Nationwide Arena. Ken wasn't going to the show, so he dropped me off at the arena about 30 minutes before the show and in I went. My first stop, as always, was the merchandise counter.
Now I have been to many, many concerts in my 41 years, but I have NEVER, EVER, EVER seen a more disorganized and slow-moving merchandise line. In fact, I bypassed one such overcrowded merch area in search of a better option. No dice. I ended up standing in line for 30 minutes just to buy a couple overpriced t-shirts. But hey, this was Genesis, so I had to buy a shirt or two (I bought two). I have no idea what was creating the backup at the merch counters, but it was by far the worst merch-buying experience I've ever encountered. But hey, I got my stuff before the show started, which is more than I can say for those poor souls behind me.
On to the show. I reached my seat in Row Z (the 26th and last row) in the front right floor section (i.e. the Tony Banks side) a few minutes before the show started and chatted with my seat neighbors - one of whom had traveled from Dallas to see the show. But soon the arena went dark and the show got started.
I don't know if I can remember every song played, although the setlist is widely available online for those who want it - the band hasn't varied its setlist since the tour started - but I can tell you it was phenomenal. It was a very balanced set with approximately the same amount of 70s material as 80s material, and the 80s stuff included longer, proggier pieces like the Duke stuff, as well as Home by the Sea and Domino. The absolute pinnacle for me came fairly early in the show, when the band launched into the "In the Cage" medley, which included a long instrumental break that included a big chunk of "Cinema Show." For me, the tear-inducing (tears of joy) moment was during the Cinema Show instrumental section, when Tony's mellotron keyboard patch kicked in. It was what I imagine a choir of angels sounds like. Majestic. Breathtaking. The hairs on the back of my neck stood straight up and I got goosebumps. Pure magic.
Another highlight was an incredible performance of Los Endos, which began with Phil Collins and Chester Thompson doing a drum duet. The duet started not on drum kits, but with the two percussionists rapping on the same bar stool. They used the seat and legs of the stool, and the mic stand to create some very cool rhythms and they gradually branched out to either side, where their respective drum kits awaited. Los Endos KILLED! Some of my other favorite moments included "Ripples," the opening Duke suite and a scorching performance of "Home by the Sea"/"Second Home by the Sea." And the closer was "Carpet Crawlers," which was sad in a way, because I may never see these guys live on stage again.
Of course, there were a couple songs in the setlist I wasn't particularly keen on, but only two: "Hold On My Heart" and "Throwing It All Away." At least during the latter song, the projection screens entertained by showing various concert goers. One in particular was humorous: a guy with a pair of binoculars, totally focused on the band, didn't realize his own mug was being projected to the crowd. It was funny seeing this giant face covered with binoculars, staring over the band out into the arena. But even though I didn't really want to hear those two songs, it gave me a rare opportunity to sit down (we basically stood the entire 2.5 hours).
As a front man, Phil shined. He was funny and fed the energetic Columbus crowd's frenzy early in the show, by referencing Ohio State's big win
over Northwestern earlier in the day. He punctuated that by yelling the traditional "O-H," to which the crowd roared "I-O!" He would add two more "O-Hs" later in the show. The band was very tight and flubs were scarce. They played more like 20-year-olds than 50-somethings. And they were clearly enjoying themselves on stage. The band seemed to be having as good a time as the audience.
I spent quite a sum of money between tickets, airfare, hotel, t-shirts, etc., to see this tour. I didn't see how the band would come through and make it worth the cost, but in the end, they did. Incredible, amazing, wonderful show.
