Genesis: Phil Collins (vocals, drums); Mike Rutherford (guitar, bass); Steve Hackett (guitar); Tony Banks (keyboards).

Additional personnel: Chester Thompson (drums, percussion); Bill Bruford (drums).

Recorded in Paris, France in 1976 & 1977.

After Peter Gabriel left Genesis, the band proved able to carry on without him, making high-quality albums with Phil Collins as the frontman. On the stage, though, where Gabriel's outrageous costumes, antics, and charisma made Genesis concerts the stuff of legend, the Collins-era band had even more to prove. Those who hadn't seen the post-Gabriel group live were served notice by SECONDS OUT that this was a performance unit to be reckoned with.

For the tour from which this album is taken, the band borrowed drummer Bill Bruford (between this and his time with King Crimson and Yes, Bruford was truly the prog-rock drummer de rigueur in the '70s) and set about exploring both new and old tunes with equal aplomb. Steve Hackett was still on hand, and his majestic guitar lines mix with Tony Banks's stately synths for that vintage Genesis sound on Gabriel-era epics such as "Supper's Ready" as well as newer tunes like "Squonk" and "Afterglow."

Mojo (Publisher) (3/01, p.82) - "...The last essential concert LP....Collins makes old material such as 'I Know What I Like' and even 'Supper's Ready' his own..."