Invisible Touch (song)
| "Invisible Touch" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Genesis | ||||||||||
| from the album Invisible Touch | ||||||||||
| B-side | The Last Domino | |||||||||
| Released | 19 May 1986 | |||||||||
| Format | CD single | |||||||||
| Recorded | The Farm, Surrey, October 1985 | |||||||||
| Genre | Pop rock, synthpop | |||||||||
| Length | 3:27 | |||||||||
| Label | Atlantic, Vertigo | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | Tony Banks, Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford | |||||||||
| Producer(s) | Genesis, Hugh Padgham | |||||||||
| Genesis singles chronology | ||||||||||
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"Invisible Touch" is the title track of the 1986 Genesis album of the same name. It is the most successful single in the band's lengthy history and was their only #1 single in the United States.[1] It reached #4 in Canada, and #15 in the United Kingdom.[2]
Its B-side is the second part of "Domino", titled "The Last Domino". (The album includes both parts of "Domino" combined together.)
History
"Invisible Touch" came about during a jam for the second part of "Domino," Rutherford playing a riff while Collins improvised the line "She seems to have an invisible touch". It was recorded at The Farm in Surrey during 1985 and 1986.
In the summer of 1986, "Invisible Touch" was succeeded in the number one position on the Billboard Hot 100 by the Multi-Grammy nominated "Sledgehammer", performed by Genesis' former lead singer, Peter Gabriel.
The single also reached number one on the U.S. Mainstream rock tracks chart.
Live versions
A live version of "Invisible Touch" appears on the albums The Way We Walk, Volume One: The Shorts, and Live over Europe 2007, as well as on the DVD's Genesis Live at Wembley Stadium, The Way We Walk - Live in Concert and When in Rome 2007.
"Invisible Touch" was performed during the Invisible Touch, We Can't Dance, Calling All Stations (with Ray Wilson on vocals) and Turn It On Again tours. On later tours, the song segued from "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight", albeit transposed to a lower key to accommodate Collins' deepening voice.
Eventually, Collins began performing the song on his solo tours with the song once again tuned down to compensate for his deepening range.
During the 2007 reunion tour, the song was the finale featuring fireworks going off as the song ended.
Charts
| Chart (1986) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom (The Official Charts Company)[3] | 15 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[ 1] | 7 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[ 1] | 28 |
| Italy (FIMI)[4] | 21 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[ 1] | 13 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[ 1] | 41 |
| Germany (Media Control AG)[ 1] | 16 |
Personnel
- Phil Collins - vocals, drums, Linn LM-1
- Tony Banks - keyboards
- Mike Rutherford: guitar, bass
Live single
| "Invisible Touch (Live)" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Genesis | ||||
| from the album The Way We Walk, Volume One: The Shorts | ||||
| B-side |
Abacab (Live) The Brazilian (Live) | |||
| Released | 9 November 1992 | |||
| Format | 7", CD | |||
| Genre | Pop rock | |||
| Label | Virgin | |||
| Writer(s) | Tony Banks, Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford | |||
| Producer(s) | Nick Davis, Robert Colby, Genesis | |||
| Genesis singles chronology | ||||
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Genesis Live - Invisible Touch was a single by Genesis, released on limited edition 7" and CD near the end of their 1991-1992 world tour in support of We Can't Dance. Both formats were numbered and came with a booklet; the CD was housed in a box and the vinyl edition in a gatefold sleeve.
The A-side was recorded during the We Can't Dance Tour, and is the same version found on the accompanying live album The Shorts. The B-sides "Abacab" and "The Brazilian" were culled from the Wembley Stadium venue from the 1987 Invisible Touch Tour.
The 7" featured an edited version of "Abacab", while the CD included complete versions of both songs.
Like the albums The Shorts and The Longs, and the home video The Way We Walk - In Concert, the title of the record was prefixed by "Genesis Live", with "(Live)" appearing as a suffix on the back sleeve and on the disc itself.
During live performances of "Invisible Touch", Collins substituted the line "And though she will mess up your life" with "And though she will fuck up your life". Consequently, the swear word was bleeped out on the single.
Unlike the original recording of the song, this live version was a Top 10 hit in the UK, reaching number seven. In one of the interview sections on the Way We Walk - Live in Concert DVD,
Personnel
- Phil Collins: vocals
- Tony Banks: keyboards
- Mike Rutherford: guitar
- Daryl Stuermer: bass
- Chester Thompson: drums
References
- ↑ Dean, Maury (2003). Rock N' Roll Gold Rush. Algora. p. 317. ISBN 0-87586-207-1.
- ↑ Genesis UK chart history, The Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
- ↑ UK Singles Chart Chartstats.com (Retrieved April 10, 2008)
- ↑ "I singoli più venduti del 1986". HitParadeItalia (in Italian). Creative Commons. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
10. Invisible Touch - Genesis [#21]
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Genesis "Invisible Touch" (1986)
 22 second sample from Genesis's "Invisible Touch"
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| Problems playing this file? See media help. | |
External links
| Preceded by "Holding Back the Years" by Simply Red |
Billboard Hot 100 number-one single July 19, 1986 |
Succeeded by "Sledgehammer" by Peter Gabriel |