| "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight" | |||||
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| Song by Genesis
from the album Selling England by the Pound |
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| Released | 12th October, 1973 | ||||
| Recorded | August 1973 | ||||
| Genre | Progressive rock | ||||
| Length | 8:02 | ||||
| Label | Charisma (UK) Atlantic/Charisma (U.S.) |
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| Writer | Tony Banks/Phil Collins/Peter Gabriel/Steve Hackett/Mike Rutherford | ||||
| Producer | Genesis & John Burns | ||||
| Selling England by the Pound track listing | |||||
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"Dancing with the Moonlit Knight" is the first track on the Genesis album Selling England by the Pound, released in 1973.
The a cappella voice of Peter Gabriel opens the track. Then, the song progressively gets louder and more upbeat, becoming a powerful rock number. This song is notable in that it is one of several tracks where Tony Banks used his newly-acquired Mellotron M400; toward the middle of the song the 8 Voice choir is featured prominently, and in the closing section the strings are used. It is also of special mention particularly that guitarist Steve Hackett used the tapping and sweep-picking techniques on this song.
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The lyrics are an ironic commentary on contemporary England that employs references to English staples like Wimpy hamburgers and Green Shield Stamps. The reference "chewing through your Wimpey dreams" is, at least, a double allusion - by sound to Wimpy hamburgers and by spelling to Wimpey Homes and the notion of a dream house. The latter reference has some echoes with the theme of "Get 'Em Out by Friday" from Foxtrot. A lyric toward the beginning, "selling England by the pound", is an obvious nod to the album title.
The song's melody is repeated in a different form at the closing of "The Cinema Show". The beats of the melody are shifted backwards once.
The album's closing song, "Aisle of Plenty", is a reprise of "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight". This gives the album a book-end effect, a technique that was used to great effect on later albums like A Trick of the Tail and Duke.
The line "Paperlate, cried a voice in the crowd" was alluded to in the title of the band's 1982 song Paperlate.
Line-up
- Peter Gabriel: vocals, flute, oboe, bass drum, tambourine
- Steve Hackett: electric and acoustic guitars
- Mike Rutherford: bass and acoustic guitar, bass pedals
- Tony Banks: ARP Pro Soloist, Mellotron, Hammond organ, piano
- Phil Collins: Drums
External links
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