Peter Gabriel recalls why he wanted to leave Genesis – and that he had more confidence in the band’s future without him than they did.
He made the leap towards future solo success in 1975, leaving Phil Collins, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Steve Hackett behind.
While personal considerations played a role in his decision, including his daughter’s health issues which had made him think more about family values, he also felt that the band were pulling in different directions.
“Phil used to hate the costumes,” Gabriel tells Mojo (via MusicRadar) of his outlandish stage gear. “He wanted to be like a jazz musician. That was his image of himself – which I understood – and then he’s got this idiot dressing up in a silly hat or as a sexually transmitted disease.”
He counters: “My vision was part of what made Genesis what it was, as was Phil’s vision. But I think we fall down when we take any of it too seriously.”
He adds that Banks knew him the best, but that “he and I were this combination of vicious enemies and best friends. Though we only every argued about band stuff.
“Back then we were in this strange situation where the band – and I know this sounds arrogant – were really worried about their future without me. I, on the other hand, felt confident that they’d do really well, as there was plenty of opportunity for them to create something new.
“Whereas my attitude was, ‘Fuck the co-operative!’”
Both parties, of course, went on to make great achievements in their chosen musical fields. Gabriel says of his debut solo single Solsbury Hill: “It was a hopeful, optimistic song. That first record was me trying to get some confidence outside of the band.”
In 1986 he scored his biggest global hit. “Sledgehammer was a throwaway thing,” he remembers, “recorded at the last minute, as the musicians were trying to leave – ‘Hey, let’s try this thing quickly!’ Everyone thinks the music was written to be a hit, but it wasn’t.”
