When Genesis Ruled the World
The seasoned band’s 1986 hot streak, as a group and as solo artists, impressed everyone—even Patrick Bateman
There are certain moments in pop music when an artist reaches that pinnacle of success or dominance — either buoyed by a blockbuster album, a streak of hit radio singles, inescapable media presence, or a combination of all three. Pop music history is filled with examples of artists who had the stars aligned perfectly in their favor during a certain time period: Elvis Presley in 1956; the Beatles in 1964; Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1969; the Bee Gees in 1977; Michael Jackson in 1983; George Michael in 1988; and Taylor Swift in 2014.
In the case of the veteran British rock band Genesis, 1986 was a banner year for them in the States, albeit with less fanfare than those aforementioned acts. Having been in existence for almost two decades up to that point as essentially the standard bearers of progressive rock, Genesis skyrocketed into the pop stratosphere with the release of the smash album Invisible Touch. From 1986 to 1987, that multi-platinum record yielded five Billboard top 10 singles: the title track, “Throwing It All Away,” “Land of Confusion,” “Tonight, Tonight, Tonight” and “In Too Deep.”
