"Man on the Corner" is a 1981 song by British

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...

, released as a single on 5 March 1982. The song is from the band’s ''

Abacab ''Abacab'' is the eleventh studio album by English rock band Genesis, released on 18 September 1981 by Charisma Records. After their 1980 tour in support of their previous album, ''Duke'' (1980), the band took a break before they reconvened in ...

'' album, and was written and sung by drummer

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and later became the lead singer of the rock band Genesis (band), Genesis and had a successful solo career, ac ...

. It peaked at No. 41 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 40 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Lyrics

The lyrics describe a man who spends his days on a street corner, shouting at passersby. According to the radio show

In the Studio with Redbeard ''In the Studio with Redbeard'' is a North American radio program, produced and hosted by Dallas, Texas, based rock and roll disc jockey Doug "Redbeard" Hill. The show is a weekly hour-long "rockumentary" interview with music program which look ...

(which spotlighted the making of the ''

'' album), the song was composer Collins' first song about the

homeless Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

epidemic and society's reluctance to help the homeless or find a resolution. Near the end of the 1980s, Collins would revisit the theme of homelessness in "

Another Day in Paradise "Another Day in Paradise" is a song written and recorded by English drummer and singer Phil Collins. Produced by Collins along with Hugh Padgham, it was released as the first single from his number-one album '' ...But Seriously'' (1989). As w ...

Music

Backed by a simple drum machine beat, the song takes a musically dark tone. This song makes a prominent feature of the

Roland TR-808 The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, commonly known as the 808, is a drum machine manufactured by Roland Corporation between 1980 and 1983. It was one of the first drum machines to allow users to program rhythms instead of using preset patterns. ...

drum machine at the beginning, then switches to a drum set during the bridge while the drum machine continues to run in the background throughout the entire song. According to Tony Banks, this song features two tracks of

Prophet-5 The Prophet-5 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the American company Sequential (company), Sequential. It was designed by Dave Smith (engineer), Dave Smith and John S. Bowen (sound designer), John Bowen in 1977. It was the first Polyphony ...

recorded separately in the studio, with mainly factory voices because Phil wrote the song on a stock, "un-reprogrammed" Prophet-5. The song was reproduced live on a Prophet-10 (basically two Prophet-5's in one) by allocating the different patches on each of the keyboards.

Reception

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' said that "magical keyboard and percussion sounds back Phil Collins' intense vocal solitude."

Music video

The music video used to promote the song features Collins, Banks, and Rutherford, along with

Daryl Stuermer Daryl Mark Stuermer (born November 27, 1952) is an American musician, songwriter, singer, and record producer best known for playing the guitar and bass for Genesis during live shows, and lead guitar for Phil Collins during most solo tours and ...

and

Chester Thompson Chester Thompson (born December 11, 1948) is an American drummer best known for his tenures with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, Weather Report, Santana (band), Santana, Genesis (band), Genesis and Phil Collins. Thompson has performed ...

playing on stage together, using different colours to illuminate the band. It was filmed during a performance at the

Savoy Theatre The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre was designed by C. J. Phipps for Richard D'Oyly Carte and opened on 10 October 1881 on a site previously occupied by the Savoy ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and uses the audio taken from this performance rather than the studio recording. This performance would also be included on the ''

Three Sides Live ''Three Sides Live'' is the third live album by the English rock band Genesis, released as a double album on 4 June 1982 on Charisma Records in the United Kingdom. It was released by Atlantic Records in the United States. After touring in su ...

'' film. However, when the video was included on the DVD set '' The Video Show'' the footage was dubbed over with the studio track.

Credits

* Tony Banks – keyboards *

– lead and backing vocals, drums,

Mike Rutherford Michael John Cloete Crawford Rutherford (born 2 October 1950) is an English guitarist, bassist and songwriter, best known as co-founder, lead guitarist and bassist of the rock band Genesis (band), Genesis. He and keyboardist Tony Banks (musici ...

– bass guitar, guitar fills

References

{{authority control 1982 singles Genesis (band) songs Songs written by Phil Collins Songs about homelessness 1981 songs Charisma Records singles Atlantic Records singles