The Musical Box celebrates Genesis’ prog rock style

Genesis released the album “Selling England by the Pound” 50 years ago, changing music’s landscape, thanks to singer Peter Gabriel’s theatrical stage presence and the band’s prog rock tendencies.

With Gabriel reviving his solo career, those Genesis years have passed. But the Montreal-based tribute band The Musical Box is recalling that era, down to the stitches of the act’s costumes.

“We have the same show as they did,” said lead singer Denis Gagné, who plays the Gabriel part.

“I wear the same costumes. The stage is set the same. We have copies of the original slide projections during the show. This is sort of a travel back in time for people who come to the show.”

The Musical Box will perform 1973’s “Selling England by the Pound” in “painstaking detail” at the Rialto Theatre in Tucson at 7:30 p.m.on Tuesday, Dec. 5.

The show also features guitarist François Gagnon (Steve Hackett), bassist Sébastien Lamothe (Mike Rutherford), keyboardist Ian Benhamou (Tony Banks) and drummer Marc Laflamme (Phil Collins). Founded in 1993, the band is named after a song on Genesis’ 1971 collection, “Nursery Cryme.”

The Musical Box is the only Genesis tribute band with permission from the “real” musicians. Hackett joined them on stage at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 2002, playing an encore of “Firth of Fifth.” He played with them on stage once more in Switzerland.

Collins penned an introduction for a tour program and attended a show in Geneva, Switzerland in 2005. Gabriel attended the band’s first show in the United Kingdom with his kids, so “they could see what their father used to do.”

The Canyon Club show will fete the 50th anniversary of “Selling England by the Pound,” Gagné said.

“We’ve toured with that before right now, but I’m in the middle of working on costumes,” he added. “We never stop figuring out new things. We enjoy improving it. We add to the live feel that they had as well.”

Gagné is a longtime Genesis fan. When Gagné joined the band in 1994, he quickly began mirroring Gabriel — even learning to play the flute. He grew his hair long and shaved a bald spot in the front of his hairline to look like the renowned singer/musician.

“There’s a mix of things that attracted me to the band,” he said. “I still love the band. I’ve been listening to Genesis for 40-something years now. I was like 10 years old, in the fifth grade, and listening to (the 23-minute song) ‘Supper’s Ready’ three times a day when everyone else was listening to the Bee Gees’ pop songs. I was into prog rock already.”

He said his obsession cannot be described. He compares it to a love story and the mystery surrounding that feeling.

“It’s hard to explain, ‘Why Genesis?’” Gagné said. “I first listened to Genesis when I was 10 years old, and it struck something within me. I fell in love with the band right away. I can’t explain why. I just kept listening to them.”

The Musical Box perform “Selling England by the Pound”

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 5

WHERE: Rialto Theatre, 318 E. Congress Street, Tucson

COST: Tickets start at $38

INFO: www.rialtotheatre.com

This article appears in Nov 23-30, 2023.