Genesis's catalog of songs is ripe for orchestral arrangements, and there have been different performances over the years, including from Steve Hackett of Genesis, so when the opportunity to hear some of these songs presented by Daryl Stuermer, I knew I was going to go. Of course, with a dozens and dozens of songs, there are always going to be ones that get omitted, but overall, I was pretty happy with the set list. The show opened with Duke's Intro from the Duke album, and then Daryl introduced Joe Richter, who looked like he was ready for a day at the office, to sing "Throwing It All Away". It could be very intimidating trying to step into a Phil Collins vocal, but Richter seemed pretty confident and didn't try to copy or mimic Collins and added his own flair (not too much), a little R&B sound, which I liked. In addition to Richter on vocals, Stuermer was joined by his long time bandmates: Kostia on keyboards, Eric Hervey on bass and Al Arber on drums, and Michael Kamenski conducting. "No Son of Mine" was next, which was probably the one song I would have changed for something from ...And Then There Were Three, like "Snowbound" or maybe "Many Too Many". "Heavy Heart", one of Stuermer's own compositions, was really terrific. I was thrilled when "Your Own Special Way" from Wind & Wuthering was introduced, it's perfect for a symphony, and you could really hear the strings clearly. The first half of the show ended with another song written by Daryl, "Urbanista". I'm going to have to play the Go album again, because I thoroughly enjoyed both "Urbanista" and "Heavy Heart".
The second half of the show started with an instrumental version of "Just a Job to Do" from the Genesis (Shapes) album; it's an often overlooked song, and I don't know if it was played live by the band, but the addition of the strings and the horns gave it an added kick. I don't know that much was added to "I Can't Dance", and it's another one I could have done without; I like the song, but it's not one of the band's strongest (although it was popular, but that's not the same thing). "In Too Deep", another cut from Invisible Touch, was next. The next song was the oldest of the night, going back to Genesis's Selling England By the Pound - "Firth of Fifth" going into the end of "Squonk". The guitar solo was originally done by Steve Hackett, but Daryl did a tremendous job, and it was so much fun to listen to those soaring chords. In fact, I hope it's not too late to say he took some of the guitar parts that he normally does not play (he usually plays bass on the 'newer' material) and took them to a higher level. In between songs, Daryl bantered with the audience, sharing stories or introducing band members; before "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven", he shared with us that he co-wrote the song with Phil Collins. The MSO shined here as well, the strings and horns coming through (there are no strings on the original version, but there easily could have been). The last song before the encore was "Invisible Touch", which is always a good time, and has been played recently on Phil's tour. The final song of the night was "Turn It On Again", which was the last song on a couple of Genesis tours, but this was done without the Motown medley. This was so fun, with the symphony doing hand claps (maybe you had to see it, but it made me smile). It was a great way to end the night, although I think most of us would have stayed for another hour. Everyone on stage seemed to be enjoying themselves, and I heard nothing but positive things from the people around me.
