We Can't Dance

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We Can't Dance
Genesis - We Can't Dance.jpg
Studio album by Genesis
Released 11 November 1991[1]
Recorded March–September 1991
Studio The Farm in Surrey, England
Genre
Length 71:30
Label
Producer
Genesis chronology
Turn It on Again - Best of '81-'83
(1991)Turn It on Again - Best of '81-'831991		 We Can't Dance
(1991)		 The Way We Walk, Volume One: The Shorts
(1992)The Way We Walk, Volume One: The Shorts1992
Singles from We Can't Dance
  1. "No Son of Mine"
    Released: 21 October 1991
  2. "I Can't Dance"
    Released: 30 December 1991
  3. "Hold on My Heart"
    Released: 6 April 1992
  4. "Jesus He Knows Me"
    Released: 13 July 1992
  5. "Never a Time"
    Released: 5 November 1992
  6. "Tell Me Why"
    Released: 8 February 1993

We Can't Dance is the fourteenth studio album from the English rock band Genesis, released in November 1991 on Virgin Records in the United Kingdom and Atlantic Records in the United States. It is their last album recorded with drummer and lead singer Phil Collins before his departure in 1996 to pursue solo projects. Production began after a four-year period of inactivity from the group, following the commercial success of Invisible Touch (1986) and its tour.

We Can't Dance was a worldwide commercial success for the band. It became the band's fifth consecutive No. 1 album in the UK and reached No. 4 in the US, where it sold over 4,000,000 copies. Between 1991 and 1993, six tracks from the album were released, including "No Son of Mine" and "I Can't Dance". The latter received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals. Genesis toured in support of We Can't Dance in 1992 which saw the band play large stadiums and arenas across North America and Europe.

Production

We Can't Dance was Genesis' first studio album in five years, following the international success of Invisible Touch in 1986. After the tour for that album ended, the band took a long hiatus to focus on solo careers. Both Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford expected Phil Collins to depart the band during this time due to his huge solo success, but he stayed. The album reached No. 1 in the UK and No. 4 in the U.S., selling several million copies (including 4 million in the U.S. alone). The album also spawned several hit singles, including "No Son of Mine", "Hold on My Heart", "I Can't Dance" and "Jesus He Knows Me", the latter two supported by humorous videos. Two songs, "On the Shoreline" and "Hearts on Fire", were cut from the album, because "there wasn't enough room on the record." Both songs were released as B-sides.

Contrary to popular belief, "Since I Lost You" is not about a broken relationship. The lyrics were written by Phil Collins for friend Eric Clapton. On 20 March 1991, Clapton's four-year-old son Conor died after falling from the 53rd-story window of his mother's friend's New York City apartment, landing on the roof of an adjacent four-story building. Collins played it to him before putting it on the album to get his approval.

Most of the songs were created by improvisation at Genesis' Fisher Lane Farm ("The Farm") studio. The band noted in past interviews how this album was the perfect balance of both their old style longer songs and their current, short, pop/rock songs.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
AllMusic 3/5 stars[2]
Entertainment Weekly C[3]
Rolling Stone 3/5 stars[4]

Rolling Stone chiefly commented on the album's lyrics. They criticised "Tell Me Why" and "Way of the World" for being soulless and impersonal social commentaries, but regarded most of the songs as outstanding, and summarised "Although We Can't Dance doesn't quite achieve the vulnerable grace of Duke or the exuberance of Abacab, Genesis has nevertheless delivered an elegantly spare – and even adventurous – album."[4]

AllMusic similarly criticised the lyrics of "Tell Me Why" and "Way of the World", calling them "paeans for world understanding that sound miles away from any immediacy". However, they praised the album for returning to a less pop-oriented direction, and especially complimented the grittiness of "No Son of Mine", "Jesus He Knows Me", and "I Can't Dance" (which received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals in 1993).[2]

David Browne of Entertainment Weekly gave a lackluster review, stating: "At a time when everything is uncertain... you almost have to admire a record like We Can't Dance. [...] You know there will be a couple of fleeting moments when the band breaks out of its torpor – for instance, on the very polite primal stomp of 'I Can't Dance' – and that such moments will just as quickly be subsumed by the rest of the musical quicksand."[3]

Stevie Chick of The Guardian has dismissed the album as "blandness".[5]

The album garnered Genesis an American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo, or Group and two further nominations for Favorite Adult Contemporary Album and Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist. At the Brit Awards in 1993, the album was nominated for Best British Album while Phil Collins was nominated as Best Male British Artist for his contribution to the album.

Track listing

All songs written by Tony Banks, Phil Collins and Mike Rutherford.

No. Title Length
1. "No Son of Mine"   6:39
2. "Jesus He Knows Me"   4:16
3. "Driving the Last Spike"   10:08
4. "I Can't Dance"   4:01
5. "Never a Time"   3:50
6. "Dreaming While You Sleep"   7:16
7. "Tell Me Why"   4:58
8. "Living Forever"   5:41
9. "Hold on My Heart"   4:37
10. "Way of the World"   5:38
11. "Since I Lost You"   4:09
12. "Fading Lights"   10:16

B-sides

No. Title Single of origin Length
1. "On the Shoreline"   "I Can't Dance" 4:45
2. "Hearts on Fire"   "Jesus He Knows Me" 5:15

Personnel

Tour

Following the release of the album Genesis spent 13 weeks on the road playing 55 concerts between May and July 1992, with a 15 date UK tour in October/November.[6] The popular worldwide tour sold out arenas and stadiums (where they mostly played on the U.S. leg of the tour). This proved to be Collins' last tour with Genesis until the band reunited in 2007. The album was re-released as a SACD/DVD double disc set (including new 5.1 and Stereo mixes) in October 2007. During the recording of We Can't Dance a 40-minute documentary called No Admittance was produced and broadcast on the Discovery Channel. It has since been included in the bonus DVD released in 2007.

The "We Can't Dance" tour featured shows in large arenas and stadiums throughout North America and Europe. It would be the band's final full-length tour until the 2007 Turn It On Again reunion tour. The tour is captured live on the albums The Way We Walk, Volume One: The Shorts, The Way We Walk, Volume Two: The Longs and the concert video The Way We Walk - Live in Concert.

Charts and certifications

Sales and certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Australia (ARIA)[24] Platinum 70,000
Austria (IFPI Austria)[25] Gold 25,000
Canada (Music Canada)[26] 4× Platinum 400,000
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[27] Gold 25,000[27]
France (SNEP)[28] 2× Platinum 788,600[29]
Germany (BVMI)[30] 5× Platinum 2,500,000
Japan (RIAJ)[31] Gold 100,000
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[32] Platinum 100,000
Sweden (GLF)[33] Platinum 100,000
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[34] 4× Platinum 200,000
United Kingdom (BPI)[35] 5× Platinum 1,500,000
United States (RIAA)[36] 4× Platinum 4,000,000

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

References

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External links

Preceded by UK number one album
23 November 1991 – 29 November 1991		 Succeeded by
Dangerous by Michael Jackson
Preceded by UK number one album
22 August 1992 – 28 August 1992		 Succeeded by
Best I by The Smiths
  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Orens, Geoff. Album review, Allmusic.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Manning, Kara (9 January 1992). Album Review, Rolling Stone.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ genesis-movement.co.uk
  7. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Genesis – We Can't Dance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  8. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Genesis – We Can't Dance" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  9. ↑ http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.2041&type=1&interval=20&PHPSESSID=8gtl9u7trphhliommrvt4kqlb2
  10. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Genesis – We Can't Dance" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ http://books.google.co.uk/books?lr=&rview=1&id=jg8EAAAAMBAJ&q=genesis#v=snippet&q=genesis&f=false
  13. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – Top 100 Longplay". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  14. ↑ http://zene.slagerlistak.hu/archivum/kereso-eloado-cim-szerint
  15. ↑ http://www.hitparadeitalia.it/hp_yenda/lpe1983.htm
  16. ↑ [1]
  17. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Genesis – We Can't Dance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  18. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Genesis – We Can't Dance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Genesis – We Can't Dance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  21. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Genesis – We Can't Dance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  22. ↑ November 1991 "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  23. ↑ "Genesis – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Genesis.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Enter Genesis in the field Interpret. Enter We Can't Dance in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "FinlandGenesisWe_Can.27t_DancealbumCertRef" defined multiple times with different content
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Select GENESIS and click OK
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Select 1992年月 on the drop-down menu
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Enter We Can't Dance in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
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