| "No Reply at All" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Genesis | ||||||||||
| from the album Abacab | ||||||||||
| B-side | Naminanu / Dodo | |||||||||
| Released | September 9, 1981 | |||||||||
| Format | 7" / 12" | |||||||||
| Recorded | 1981 | |||||||||
| Genre | Pop rock | |||||||||
| Length | 4:40 | |||||||||
| Label | Charisma/Virgin (U.K.) Atlantic(U.S.) |
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| Writer(s) | Tony Banks, Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford | |||||||||
| Producer | Genesis | |||||||||
| Genesis singles chronology | ||||||||||
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"No Reply at All" is a song by British band Genesis, from their 1981 album Abacab.
This song, like Phil Collins' solo track "I Missed Again" (recorded at around the same time), makes prominent use of a horn section, arranged by Tom Tom 84 (i.e. Thomas Washington, horn arranger for Earth, Wind & Fire) and played by that band's wind players, credited on the song as "EWF Horns". The song marks a step toward the mainstream pop direction Genesis was taking at the time, yet it still contains elements of their past: complex, melodic bass riffs, and a cross-hand technique on a Prophet-5, similar to the style used for the intro to "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway."
The song was released as the first single from Abacab in the U.S. and reached the U.S. Top 30 in the fall of 1981.
The song was performed live by Phish as a tribute to Genesis at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 2010 induction ceremony. Phish also performed "Watcher of the Skies" that night.
When introducing the song on the 1981 Abacab tour, Phil said it is about miscommunication between two people in a relationship.
The music video features only the band. Cameras revolve around the band playing their parts in a rehearsal setting. When the horn part is prominent, it cuts to a different shot of the band — wearing hats, sunglasses, and jackets to conceal their identity — playing the trumpet, saxophone and trombone.