Happy Birthday to a True Frontiersman, Mr. Peter Gabriel
Today is February 13. Of course, we’ll have plenty of time to celebrate Valentine’s eve, but first, let’s lift our chocolate-covered whatevers to recognize the birthday of a modern music pioneer – Peter Gabriel. For more than fifty years, he’s been opening new frontiers for musicians of every genre and generation.
Peter’s early career set the example of persistence for any aspiring musician. When he founded his first band in 1967, producer John King quickly took the young group under his wing, naming them Genesis. The band released their first album, From Genesis to Revelation in 1968. Their first single, “The Silent Sun,” was heavily influenced by the Bee Gees, the producer’s favorite group – it was a commercial flop. So was the second single. And the third. Genesis was off to a rough start.
The band’s second album, Trespass, didn’t fair much better. According to Rolling Stone magazine, the album was “spotty, poorly defined, at times innately boring.” Ouch.
As a matter of fact, it wasn’t until Genesis released their fourth album, Foxtrot, that things really turned around. They had added Phil Collins as drummer and shifted from folk rock to progressive rock. The album was immediately accepted, with Sounds magazine declaring that Genesis had “almost achieved the perfect album.”
You would think that the band was on its way, but Peter wasn’t satisfied, and it led to one of Peter’s most visible innovations – costumes. Up to this point, Genesis was playing their shows through an inferior sound system. Fans couldn’t understand what Peter was singing. They couldn’t identify with the personality Peter was trying so hard to project from the stage. For an artist of Peter’s caliber, this was unacceptable. He realized he needed to engage the audience visually as well as vocally.
It was September 28, 1972, and Genesis was playing the Music Box at the National Stadium in Dublin, Ireland. At one point, Peter strolled onstage dressed as Foxtrot, from the band’s album cover. He wore a long red dress and a full fox head mask. No one in the band was in on it. The only person not shocked in the crowded venue was Peter. He went on to deliver an amazing performance. (Be sure to check out the cobbled-together dual microphone Peter is using.)
Fan response was instant and intense, encouraging Peter to introduce new costumes and personas throughout his career. Even years later on his monster solo album, So, Peter couldn’t resist transforming his appearance, and digital animation was his new toy of choice. The result? Masterpieces like “Sledgehammer.”
With the release of So, Peter had reached the peak of the musical career. Even Peter recognized it in his own humble way. “It turned me into a pop star for at least a week.” But even then, Peter showed other musicians how to handle fame. Rather than use his celebrity as a pulpit, Peter actually got involved in trying to change the things he saw as harmful to the world.
Over the years, Peter has supported countless causes, including abuse, adoption, conservation, animals, at-risk youths, education, the environment, gender equality, homelessness, human rights, hunger, peace, poverty, refugees, and women.
And when it comes to explaining his motives to his fellow musicians, Peter doesn’t pull any punches. “I don’t want all musicians preaching at me all the time but I think it’s really the first universal language, all around the world,” he says. “Young people listen to rock music, and to have that attention and that possibility for giving out information and not to use it for anything… is, I think, a waste of time.”
Through his music, Peter Gabriel has changed what we play, how we perform, and why we perform it. Happy Birthday, Peter, and thanks for the years of inspiration. For today, it truly is your world – we’ll just live in it.