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(The lyrics, about erogenous zones of a woman, would weirdly foreshadow one ofFriendsmostfamous scenes.
Peter Gabriel left the bandbeforeThe Lamb Lies Down on Broadway.
He was going to work with William Friedkin, who wanted him to write a screenplay.
He saw Hollywood opening up for him.
Now, as soon as William heard that Peter had left, he was horrified.
He didnt want to break up Genesis.
He was dictating terms to a band that had functioned more or less as a democracy.
The narrative is there.
Counting Out Time was very much a joke or a novelty single.
Its almost like Benny Hill put to music.
It didnt quite make it as a single, and nobody was surprised, least of all me.
I couldnt see it becoming a hit.
It didnt have the depth of Stairway to Heaven or even any of theTommysongs from the Who.
I understand the record-buying publics complete rejection of that.
The band was kind of a runway train at this point.
Phil Collins was very much number two in the vocal department, although he had a great voice.
I think the wordaberrationcomes to mind.
The Carpet Crawlers was released as the second single and Im glad it was.
That seems to be the standout song that makes grown men weep in bathrooms when theyve just heard it.
Theres something about it that speaks to people, even though its not obvious.
I wonder what it is they see in it.
The whole concept was Peters swan song with the band.
It still gets played every day on the radio.
There were no passengers in the band, but there wasnt necessarily room for everybody on that train.
