The album’s single “…And Then There Were Three…” became the band’s first hit on both sides of the Atlantic.
Before establishing themselves as one of the most popular groups on the planet, Genesis played impenetrable progressive rock. As a result, according to the musicians, the female audience was reduced to the shows. But one song changed everything.
In a magazine interview Programguitarist and bassist Mike Rutherford told how “Follow you, follow me”the first single from the album …And then there were three… (1978), marks a new moment for Genesis. They were already cult, but the song’s mission was to attract a female audience.
He explained:
“Until “Follow you, follow me” our audience was predominantly male. After this song, all these guys might say to their girlfriends, “This is the song you like.” » So they started coming to the shows and, of course, they enjoyed the whole show. It changed our audience proportions and we attracted a lot more women because of it. »
The composition was barely heard by the public as everyone knew it, due to the group’s working method. Rutherford came up with the initial riff, completed by the keyboardist. Tony Banks with some chord changes. This kind of idea would normally be part of Genesis’ long musical suites, but when they developed an intro around this concept, inspiration struck. The guitarist took less than 10 minutes to write the lyrics.
He said:
“It was the first time I wrote such simple lyrics. It was inspired by my wife (Angie). We spent a lot of time on the road and I didn’t see her much, as was the case with the bands in those early days. So I thought of her. It was a very simple feeling, unlike what we usually did at the time. I wrote quickly and from the heart.”
Rutherford’s first reaction to the lyrics he wrote in less than ten minutes? Nervousness.
He described:
“I thought, ‘God, this can’t be good.’ Normally lyrics took work, they had to be developed and refined. Then you looked at this one and you realized it worked because it wasn’t that.”
Genesis and “Follow You, Follow Me”
“Follow you, follow me”released in February 1978, became the first Genesis single to reach the UK Top 10 as well as the US Top 40.
About that, …And then there were three… it became the best-selling album of the group’s career up to that point, surpassing one million copies sold in the United States.
It was the first album without the guitarist Steve Hackett and in trio formation, with Rutherford, Banks and the singer and drummer Phil Collins.
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