Where It All Began: First Steps Of Two Legends

By Dave Swanson

Ask a random music listener their take on David Bowie and/or Genesis and you're likely to get wildly different stories. Ask someone who considers themselves a genuine fan of either of these acts and you're just as likely to get wildly different takes. Both Bowie and Genesis have a rich history of making music of various styles which ultimately helped create legions of obsessive fans.

Many acts go through changes (though others slavishly adhere to one thought and run with it forever). The aforementioned acts never took that path, and were all the better for it. Each of them rose to fame in the 1970s, but each had roots that began in the '60s. Two new releases spotlight the earliest steps taken by both.

First off, Mr. David Jones was one of countless British youth who took the spark ignited by the Beatles, and others of the "beat group" era, and tried to catch that fire. Jones made the rounds as a solo artist, and in bands such as the Mannish Boys and the Lower Third. All of those incarnations are included on this newly released set, "David Bowie: The Shel Talmy Recordings." His first single, "Liza Jane," preceded his association with Talmy (therefore not included here) and was a genuine R&B rave-up, but he soon regrouped to form the Mannish Boys, which is where producer Talmy enters the story.

Talmy was notable for his work with the Kinks, the Who and other British acts (though he was a transplanted American), and he immediately saw something in Bowie. "I always thought he was incredibly talented, he was extremely bright, he impressed me as knowing exactly where he was going," Talmy was quoted as saying. "He was 17 when I first recorded him, with the Mannish Boys. I honestly didn't think that what he was writing at the time had a snowball's chance in hell of making it, but I thought he's so original and brash, let's take a flier."

Author and Bowie authority Karen Laney suggests that "Talmy's belief in the young Davie Jones proves he could spot a 'Starman' and capsulate a meteorite in the making," adding, "It's the electricity of Bowie that shines brightest here. We can all thank our lucky stars these recordings have found us!" Songs like "You've Got a Habit of Leaving Me" and "Baby Loves That Way" capture that charge of the Kinks and Who, while "Leave Her to Me" conjures up the grit of the early Pretty Things.

Throughout the 22 tracks on the CD, we are treated to some raucous mod-styled rock 'n' roll and some rough-and-tumble R&B. Guest players included Jimmy Page and Nicky Hopkins. Also included are some previously unissued demos as well as alternate takes on some of the singles. The sound here is top-shelf; in fact, the more well-known tracks have never sounded better! It's a fascinating gaze into the early days of a rock 'n' roll legend like no other.

From their Charterhouse School days on to their stadium-filling years, Genesis were truly their own creation. Like Bowie, their first steps were spent figuring out just who they were, and also like Bowie, that identity would shift and change drastically over the years.

Schoolmates Anthony Phillips, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Peter Gabriel were also enamored by the beat group sounds, but also in their attaché was a knowledge of classical and folk music. Drawing on those influences would ultimately shape their style. With their 1970 album "Trespass," they had dove headfirst into the progressive rock end of the pool, a path that would lead to classic albums like "Nursery Cryme," "Foxtrot," "Selling England by the Pound" and ultimately, "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway."

The long story short is that lead singer Peter Gabriel left as the others soldiered on through a series of records that would lead to unlikely mega-pop success in the following decade. The first chapter of the band took shape in 1967 as they began working on songs and recording demos. Eventually, they were brought to the attention of a former Charterhouse member, Jonathan King, who had minor pop music success in 1964 with the hit "Everyone's Gone to the Moon."

King had moved into management and signed this new band, hooking them up with Decca Records. He christened them Genesis, and in 1968 they set about to record their debut single, "The Silent Sun." The song was a sophisticated pop gem overflowing with folk and classical ornamentation, very much influenced by the early Bee Gees. They recorded their debut album, which was full of this style. Minimal orchestration would ride tandem with psychedelic and pop sounds, all the while familiar yet strikingly new. With the band not settled on a name for the album, King decided to call it "From Genesis to Revelation." All well and good, but it became problematic when record shops thought it was a religious record and would file accordingly, leading to more confusion.

The album was released in March 1969 to a thunderous round of silence. Those who may have loved it never heard it and, well, essentially, no one heard it. Shame as it is a minor masterpiece, despite many a Genesis fan disliking it to this day. Fools! Now, nearly 60 years later, it is being given the royal reissue treatment in this multidisc box set. Songs like "In the Beginning," "The Conqueror," "In the Wilderness" and "The Serpent" remain lost classics from this band, while early demo recordings such as "Hey!" and "The Magic of Time" never made it to proper studio takes, yet still capture that magic of the era and the band.

Spread over four CDs and one Blu-ray, we are treated to remastered versions of the original stereo and rare mono mixes, a brand-new 2026 remix, the original mono singles remastered and an entire disc of early demos and outtakes, some previously unreleased. The music within has never sounded better! The Blu-ray also includes 96 kHz/24-bit Atmos, 5.1 surround sound and stereo mixes by Stephen W. Tayler as well as a recent video interview featuring Tony Banks, Peter Gabriel and Mike Rutherford in conversation at AIR Studios, London, discussing the album and its history.

So whether as historical content or just wonderful music, both releases are fantastically fascinating looks behind the curtain. Dig in!

Released by and photos courtesy of Parlophone/Rhino and Esoteric/Cherry Red