To say that STEVE HACKETT is simply a guitarist is like claiming Harry Potter is a bit of a magician. Okay, so maybe not the best comparison, but when it comes to playing the guitar there is something magical about the sound he creates. I think it’s also fair to say that Steve is an absolute wizard of an all-round musician. His ability to flip between rock, classical, jazz, blues and world music is about as versatile as you’ll see anywhere.
Steve is all set to head out on the next leg of his world tour, which brings him into South Wales for two shows. All the dates and tickets details are at the bottom of the page. As you can see, this is no ordinary tour, Steve and his band will be revisiting the classic ‘Foxtrot” with plenty of Genesis fan favourites and songs from Steve’s extensive solo career.
Steve was lead guitarist with Genesis as part of their classic line up with Gabriel, Collins, Banks and Rutherford, that produced acclaimed albums such as Selling England by the Pound (a favourite of John Lennon).
With Genesis, Steve’s guitar playing produced some of the most memorable moments, from the sensitivity of his acoustic sound on Horizons and Blood on the Rooftops to the dramatic rock guitar solos of Firth of Fifth and Fountain of Salmacis. As he embarked on his solo career he developed his exceptional range, pushing musical boundaries into exciting areas, inventing new sounds and also techniques such as ‘tapping’. His solo career went from strength to strength and the mid eighties not only saw the hit single Cell 151, but also the Steve Hackett and Steve Howe super group GTR, highly successful in America.
Steve Hackett joined Genesis at the beginning of 1971 and gained an international reputation as the guitarist in the band’s classic line-up alongside Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins. Steve’s intricate guitar work was a key element of Genesis’ albums from Nursery Cryme (1971) to Wind And Wuthering (1977) including the classic Selling England By The Pound.
After leaving Genesis at the end of 1977, Steve’s solo career, which now spans more than 30 albums, has demonstrated his extraordinary versatility with both electric and acoustic guitar. He is renowned as both an immensely talented and innovative rock musician and a virtuoso classical guitarist and composer and this was recognised in 2010 when he was inducted into the Rock Hall Of Fame. He has also worked alongside Steve Howe of YES in the supergroup GTR.
The lockdown has proven to be a particularly creative period for Steve. He began by releasing Selling England by the Pound & Spectral Mornings: Live at Hammersmith, a live recording of 2019’s hugely successful tour celebrating that Genesis classic together with the 40th anniversary of one of his most-loved solo albums. Lockdown also gave Hackett the opportunity to write and record two new studio albums, the UK Classical Chart hit Under A Mediterranean Sky and Surrender of Silence.
And it’s that we spoke about when we put a Zoom call into Steve on one of his ‘at home‘ days. We, of course, touched on the old Genesis period and took time to give credit to his incredible band, who’ll we get to see with Steve when he plays here in South Wales.
Steve Hackett & his band have just completed a run of shows in New Zealand and Australia, and will continue their ‘Seconds Out & More’ tour in Japan, Europe and North America throughout the rest of year. In September and October 2022, they will present their ‘Foxtrot at Fifty’ 25-date tour in the UK.
Steve plays two dates here – Swansea Arena on Friday 9th September. Tickets for that show available HERE.
He then brings the GENESIS REVISITED – FOXTROT AT FIFTY + HACKETT HIGHLIGHTS tour to St David’s Hall in Cardiff on Saturday 10th September. You can tickets for that show HERE.
