ABSTRACT
The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway received decidedly mixed reviews. While critics such as Barbara Charone wrote in the November 23, 1974 issue of Sounds that the Lamb "sticks out of the present vinyl rubble like a polished diamond", other critics asserted that Genesis had simply overreached this time. Prior to The Lamb, lyrics were often group efforts, or at least contributions from various band members were given equal consideration. This communal approach to song writing helped to mitigate the attention lavished on Gabriel as the group's flamboyant front man, at least from Foxtrot onward. With The Lamb, however, not only had Gabriel insisted on writing all of the lyrics himself, but he had also copyrighted the inner-sleeve story in his name alone. Brian Harrigan, covering the set-up of Genesis's "triumphant return" to the UK at the Empire Pool Wembley in London, described the Lamb show as "probably one of the most ambitious shows on the road today."
