Mike Rutherford said he didn’t truly realize Genesis was over until near the end of their farewell show.
The band bowed out in March 2022 with a final performance in England, which was attended by former singer Peter Gabriel and several others who had worked with them over the years.
In a recent interview with Classic Rock, Rutherford said, “It was nice afterwards when everybody, including Peter and [former tour manager] Richard McPhail, was together in the dressing room. Apart from that we kept backstage closed off. … But the actual show felt bizarre. I was kind of OK until I saw on my set list that there were just four songs left. Seeing that in print made me emotional.”
He added that it “felt very good to see things through” to an official close. “I tend to forget how much the music means to people’s lives,” he explained. “For instance, we did a couple of shows in America in a city we hadn’t played in 30 years and sold out both nights. It proves what a lovely reach Genesis had. There was some sadness, but I thoroughly enjoyed our last tour. It’s always a joy to be onstage with Phil [Collins] and Tony [Banks].”
The guitarist is gearing up for a tour with Mike + the Mechanics, which will feature Collins’ son Nic on drums while regular band member Gary Wallis deals with a medical procedure. Because Nic was also part of the Genesis tour, Rutherford noted that it opened up more scope for playing more of that band’s classic songs with the Mechanics.
“I want to play some of the songs that weren’t heard on that last [Genesis] tour,” he said. “One that I really wanted to play during that run was ‘Jesus He Knows Me.’ We rehearsed it and it sounded great, but we just couldn’t get it in [the show]. We’ll do that one, definitely.”
Genesis Albums Ranked
From Peter Gabriel to Phil Collins to that guy who came after Phil Collins, we take a look at all of the band’s studio records.