The Wild Costumes Peter Gabriel Wore With Genesis
Perched between the no-holds-barred Summer of Love and the stern but stylish materialism of the ’80s, the 1970s was a time of experimentation and boundary-pushing; it gave us everything from the filed-off edges of what’s now known as “yacht rock” to the caterwauling fury of punk. It also gave us Genesis — and the magnificently bizarre costumes of founding member Peter Gabriel.
It may be tempting to dismiss such grand theatrics as just wacky ‘70s kitsch, but even just a little digging will find some fascinating stuff about the whys of Gabriel’s sartorial choices. Those reasons were rooted in storytelling, and in Genesis’ early days, Gabriel had to learn how to step into that role. As he recounted to Uncut, “Well, firstly, I was left with the job, while they were busy tuning up their 36 strings of guitars, of filling in these enormous silences. To entertain the audience, I started telling stories. I found I could hold their attention and they wouldn’t all go to the bar.” The costumes he created for the songs’ various characters were a natural next step in holding the audience’s attention.
The Slipperman Cometh
Genesis guitarist Mike Rutherford remembers Gabriel as shy; it’s not much of a stretch to think that dressing up in costumes could have been a coping mechanism for dealing with the stress of being the band’s frontman. When Gabriel started wearing costumes on stage, they were based on characters in the band’s songs, enabling him to truly embody their experiences and immerse the audience in them.
A basic Google Images search will show some of those fantastic creations. One of the most famous is his Fox character for the band’s 1972 album, “Foxtrot,” for which he donned a red designer dress and a full fox head. Before Ozzy Osbourne was gothing things up, Gabriel was dressing as “The Watcher in the Skies” in 1973, topping off his sleek, all-black ensemble with a bat wings headpiece and black-rimmed eyes. And perhaps Gabriel’s most unsexy, discomfort-giving entity was known as “Slipperman,” all lopsided face and bubbles that look like they’re filled with something you don’t ever need to see.
Considering all the best-of lists these costumes have generated, it’s hard to believe that Gabriel only did this for three years, from 1972-1975 (per Musical Brick), but there are just some moments in pop culture that defy time’s flimsy limits. Sleep tight when Slipperman pops into your head later tonight.
250 thoughts on “The Wild Costumes Peter Gabriel Wore With Genesis”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
The Truth About Hollywood's Oldest Living Star
The Truth About Salvador Dali's Politics
The Hidden Detail About The Statue Of Liberty You Never Knew About
The Mythology Of Demeter Explained
The History Behind The Callanish Stones
How Genesis Really Felt About I Can't Dance
The Biggest Funerals In History
Most Bizarre Items Ever Brought Onto The Antiques Roadshow Lot
The Truth About Kurt Cobain And Michael Stipe's Relationship
Why This Film Writer Was Briefly A Suspect In The Night Stalker Murders
What a stuff of un-ambiguity and preserveness of precious knowledge about unexpected feelings.
Hey There. I found your blog using msn. This is a very well written article. I will be sure to bookmark it and come back to read more of your useful information. Thanks for the post. I will definitely comeback.
Hey there I am so thrilled I found your web site, I really found you by error, while I was browsing on Askjeeve for something else, Regardless I am here now and would just like to say thank you for a incredible post and a all round interesting blog (I also love the theme/design), I dont have time to read through it all at the minute but I have saved it and also included your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read a great deal more, Please do keep up the superb b.
Undeniably consider that that you stated. Your favourite justification appeared to be at the net the simplest thing to take note of. I say to you, I definitely get irked even as other people consider worries that they plainly do not realize about. You controlled to hit the nail upon the top as smartlyand also defined out the whole thing with no need side effect , other people can take a signal. Will likely be back to get more. Thank you
Hello! I could have sworn I’ve been to this blog before but after reading through some of the post I realized it’s new to me. Nonetheless, I’m definitely happy I found it and I’ll be bookmarking and checking back often!
I love what you guys are usually up too. This type of clever work and coverage! Keep up the good works guys I’ve incorporated you guys to our blogroll.
When someone writes an article he/she maintains the plan of a user in his/her mind that how a user can know it. So that’s why this article is perfect. Thanks!
It’s difficult to find educated people for this topic, but you sound like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
Have you ever thought about creating an e-book or guest authoring on other sites? I have a blog centered on the same subjects you discuss and would really like to have you share some stories/information. I know my audience would enjoy your work. If you are even remotely interested, feel free to send me an e mail.
Thanks for the marvelous posting! I definitely enjoyed reading it, you will be a great author. I will always bookmark your blog and will often come back someday. I want to encourage you to definitely continue your great writing, have a nice weekend!
When I originally commented I seem to have clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now each time a comment is added I recieve four emails with the same comment. Perhaps there is a means you can remove me from that service? Appreciate it!
Hi, i feel that i saw you visited my blog so i got here to go back the prefer?.I am trying to in finding things to improve my website!I guess its good enough to use some of your ideas!!
Have you ever thought about publishing an e-book or guest authoring on other sites? I have a blog based upon on the same subjects you discuss and would really like to have you share some stories/information. I know my viewers would value your work. If you are even remotely interested, feel free to send me an e mail.
I all the time emailed this webpage post page to all my associates, since if like to read it then my friends will too.
Wow, this piece of writing is nice, my sister is analyzing these things, thus I am going to let know her.