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Ending it all: Genesis and Revelation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2013

Sarah Hill
Sarah Hill*
Affiliation:
School of Music, Cardiff University, Corbett Road, Cardiff, CF10 3EB, UK. E-mail: hillss@cf.ac.uk
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Abstract

Because of their brevity, many pop songs of the last 50 years seemingly elude the application of narrative theory. But the deliberate lengthening of individual tracks during the early years of progressive rock exposes them to precisely that kind of examination. One such song is ‘Supper's Ready’, which closes the 1972 Genesis album Foxtrot. This allegorical 23-minute epic, abundant with references to the Book of Revelation, provides an intriguing model for the ‘concept song’, and confounds the listener's expectations – lyrical, musical, narrative, structural and temporal. In this article I explore the seven tableaux of ‘Supper's Ready’, paying particular attention to the treatment of the apocalyptic theme, apply formalist and narrative theories of interpretation, and consider ways in which the song's design demands that the listener engage with both its concept and its construction.

Type
Articles
Information
Popular Music , Volume 32 , Issue 2 , May 2013 , pp. 197 - 221
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013 

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