In November 1992, Genesis released The Shorts, the first volume of their dual live album project, The Way We Walk. This release marked a departure from the typical live double-album format that encapsulates an entire show. Instead, Genesis took a bold approach by splitting their 1992 tour recordings into two thematic compilations: The Shorts—a collection of their most recent hits—and The Longs, featuring their extended, experimental tracks and a medley from the ’70s.
A Snapshot of the Era
The Shorts is an encapsulation of Genesis’ pop-driven era, drawing heavily from Genesis, Invisible Touch, and We Can’t Dance. The album showcases tracks like “Land of Confusion,” “No Son of Mine,” and “Invisible Touch,” all of which translated exceptionally well to a live setting, energized by the band’s chemistry and the audience’s fervent reactions.
Yet, despite its energy and polish, the album faced mixed reception from fans who lamented the lost concert atmosphere due to the split format. This compartmentalization diluted the dynamic flow Genesis had perfected over their live performances, which often balanced hit singles with lengthy epics to maintain an arc of suspense. “Basically, the two albums are the live show,” Mike Rutherford explained. “We tried to make it one, but we couldn’t seem to make it work. It mean losing quite a lot of material, especially some of the old stuff, like an old 20-minute-medley which wouldn’t fit onto one CD. Also, probably more important than that, what works on stage over two-and-a-half hours, which is alternating with short and long songs and building the set up and down, didn’t work on record.”1
The Highlights and Performances
The tracklist on The Shorts is full of standout moments. For instance, “Throwing It All Away” radiates warmth, driven by Chester Thompson’s groove, influenced by Latin and Brazilian rhythms. Thompson reflected on this in an interview, calling “Throwing It All Away” one of his favourite songs to play: “It’s a sad lyric actually, but it’s such a happy song.”2
“Hold On My Heart” provided a change of pace in the set, and Phil Collins recalled, “It always worked on stage as well because it was so different to anything else.”3
Noteworthy, too, is the dynamic of Mike Rutherford and Daryl Stuermer on guitar and bass, respectively. By this point in their career, the two had developed an intuitive musical connection. Stuermer’s remarks on the evolution of his bass playing underscore the effort behind the seamless grooves: “It took five, six years before I felt like a bass player,” he noted.4
One of the album’s more unique moments comes with “Jesus He Knows Me.” Here, Stuermer shifts to lead guitar to deliver a fiery solo, adding a bite that distinguished the live rendition from its studio counterpart. This adaptability among band members brought freshness to each performance. “I think Mike just said ‘Do something at the end there’. When he’s saying ‘Do something’, I know what he’s talking about, to play that kind of fiery solo and that’s what I did on that song. It had a fast intense guitar solo at the end and that’s not the kind of thing he does,” Stuermer said.5
Reception and Legacy
Critics offered differing views on The Shorts. While Entertainment Weekly praised it for being “long on infectious riffs and melodies,”6 AllMusic dismissed it as “superfluous,”7 suggesting that the album might not hold enough weight for those seeking a deeper representation of Genesis’ live prowess.
Nonetheless, the album performed well commercially, reaching No. 3 in the UK charts and No. 35 in the US, supported by the successful live single “Invisible Touch,” which Collins called one of those songs “that I like very much and that sound great on stage”8, paired with “Abacab (live).”
A Double-Edged Decision
The decision to split The Way We Walk into two parts—The Shorts and The Longs—remains a divisive one among fans. As Mike Rutherford put it, “As quite a lot of people seem to prefer one type of song over the other, they can now make their own choice.”9 On one hand, The Shorts serves as an accessible compilation for those drawn to the polished pop side of Genesis, showcasing their adaptability and connection with audiences. On the other hand, the move somewhat fragments the essence of a full Genesis concert, where the juxtaposition of radio hits and expansive compositions had always been a hallmark of their shows.
Despite the criticisms, The Shorts stands as a vivid snapshot of Genesis in the early ’90s: a band still capable of exhilarating live performances, adapting to the times yet holding onto the essence that made them legendary. For fans of their hit-driven era, this album delivers a burst of live energy, underscored by polished musicianship and crowd-pleasing moments. However, for those yearning for the immersive, complete concert experience, The Longs might provide the missing half of the story.
Sources
CHESTER THOMPSON FULL INTERVIEW : HOW HE WENT FROM ZAPPA TO DRUMMING WITH GENESIS & PHIL COLLINS.
DARYL STUERMER UNFILTERED:ON JOINING GENESIS AFTER THE DEPARTURE OF STEVE HACKETT. 27′ INTERVIEW.
GENESIS: The Way We Walk Interviews (1992).
Orens, Geoff, ‘Genesis Live: The Way We Walk, Vol. 1 (The Shorts) – Genesis | AllMusic’, AllMusic.
PHIL COLLINS:WHY HIS PERSONAL SONGS -‘MISUNDERSTANDING” & PLEASE DONT ASK’ – ARE ON GENESIS ALBUMS.
Platts, Robin, Genesis. Behind the lines, 1967-2007. (Burlington, Ont., Canada: Collectors Guide Pub., 2007).
Footnotes
- Platts 2007: 140. ↩︎
- CHESTER THOMPSON FULL INTERVIEW : HOW HE WENT FROM ZAPPA TO DRUMMING WITH GENESIS & PHIL COLLINS. ↩︎
- PHIL COLLINS:WHY HIS PERSONAL SONGS -‘MISUNDERSTANDING” & PLEASE DONT ASK’ – ARE ON GENESIS ALBUMS. ↩︎
- DARYL STUERMER UNFILTERED:ON JOINING GENESIS AFTER THE DEPARTURE OF STEVE HACKETT. 27′ INTERVIEW. ↩︎
- Ibid. ↩︎
- Altman, Billy, ‘Live: The Way We Walk Volume One: The Shorts Review’, Entertainment Weekly (4 December 1992). ↩︎
- Orens, Geoff, ‘Genesis Live: The Way We Walk, Vol. 1 (The Shorts) – Genesis | AllMusic’, AllMusic. ↩︎
- GENESIS: The Way We Walk Interviews (1992). ↩︎
- Platts 2007: 140. ↩︎